The door is jammed shut and completely resists your efforts to open it.
Examine the door, can Ang tell what is jamming it or is it just locked? Does he think he can break it down by putting his shoulder into it or smashing the bolt or locking mechanism with his hammer?
Did Ang see anything in the alcoves in the room that might be useful? Like keys laying around?
Do any of the corpse have belt pouches or backpacks?
Back when Ang fought the minotaur he found an azure coin stamped with the face of a devil. He recognized the coin as a symbol of the arch-devil Mammon. Would that have helped him identify the rat biting the coin symbol or not?
The door seems to be magically sealed, as you don't find any type of lock or other securing mechanism. Your guess is that you can bash it down with you hammer, it will just be hard work. The corpses have been stripped of anything valuable.
Bonus points for remembering/rereading the posts! You are indeed able to recognize the coin biting rat as a rare symbol representing the faith/forces of Mammon.
Mammon again, what does the devil have to do with all this?
Ang will activate slippers again and climb up to the next opening if that is an option. Otherwise try to break down the door.
Ang avoids any potential unpleasantness with the door and undead for the moment and utilizes his slippers {why'd I ever let you get those! :)} to climb the tower to its third level which is built out of a light grey flagstone material. Squeezing through a window you find yourself in the center of a large, somewhat oddly circular room the contents of which have been badly damaged.
What remains is the ruins of an alchemical and arcane workshop. Various apparatuses and devices lie scattered about in mostly broken fashion and you can see blast marks from what appear to be from fireball and lightning impacts. There is an intense reek of chemical in the air and you struggle to breathe.
In the center of the room is a wide spiral staircase constructed of dark metal that leads up to a hatch/door in the ceiling some 20' above.
Any other exits from the room besides the spiral staircase? Climb the stairs and open the door.
There are a few other windows looking out into the city and cavern beyond. As well, there is a staircase that was partially obscured by wreckage from the equipment; it appears to lead down to the level below. Before you begin your ascent on the spiral staircase, you notice some more blood script on that is entirely similar to what you have seen previously.
Sigh, more script, probably a trap.
Ang will try to remove the script by dragging the hammer across it, then open the trap door.
As you drag your hammer across the markings and spiral stairs a blast of electricity snaps from them, through you hammer, and into you.
DC 22 FORT or take points of electricity damage; save = 1/2 damage; add whatever total 'pluses' your hammer has to your save roll.
Ouch
Use wand to heal.
Open trap door and take a look.
You work your way through the hatch and enter what you believe must be the last level of the tower. You remember the outside of the top of the tower being an off-whitish color but from inside the walls are completely translucent, and your vision looking out to the city and cavern is as clear as if you were outside on a well lit day.
In the center of the roughly circular room is a low 3-step ziggurat about 35' high. Atop the ziggurat is a 10' tall malachite statue. It appears to be a nude humanish female body, with an articulated shell covering the shoulders, and a lobster head and claw in place of the expected human head and arms. The right claw is closed and raised with a body in it while the left arm is held out about 4' above the floor of the 3d tier. The associated claw appears to be missing?
Lapis lazui artwork decorates the floor of the room and there appear to be two paths leading to the central stairs that ascend to the 3 levels of the ziggurat.
What is that?
Detect evil around the room and on statue. Does Ang have any clue as to meaning of the statue, is it related to Mammon? Also does Ang recall seeing a lobster claw anywhere? Any discernible difference between 2 paths?
Ang detects tremendous evil from the statue and moderate evil from the ziggurat. You don't think it has anything to do with Mammon, but really you have not done any detailed research on the arch-devil so it is hard to be certain. There are many strange things in the hells, maybe this is an example of one?
You don't recall seeing anything to do with lobsters anywhere in your travels, but you know that the creatures that dwell underground worship many strange things that are unfamiliar to those on the surface. You can't tell a difference between the two paths, but you think you can see what might be a pair of altars at the top of the first tier of the ziggurat.
Ang ponders some more. Is there anything in this room that resembles the green gems? Anything in this room that seem connected with the undead plague on the surface?
The strange statue looks like it is essentially the same material as the green gems, but you would have to get closer to be sure. As well, there appears to be something 'off' about the body clenched in the right claw. Maybe the body is infected?
Take the left path and head up the ziggurat.
Ang feels a strange tingle as he takes his first few steps on the path and the sigils and artwork outlining it glow with a deep blue light.
You make it to the foot of the stairs leading to the first tier of the ziggurat.
I have a bad feeling about this.
Keep moving up the ziggurat.
The deep blue light continues to follow you as you move up the stairs to the first tier of the ziggurat atop which you find two altars. One is a bowl of black obsidian filled with ash and bone the other is a bowl of lapis lazuli filled with a small amount of rotting blood.
Two sets of stairs lead to the second level of the ziggurat, one to the left of the obsidian bowl and one to the right of the lazuli bowl.
Knock the bowls off the altar with Ang's hammer.
Then go up the right side.
Ang knocks the bowls off of the altar. As they fall to the ground a pillar of living flame and a pillar of living water emerge from each and attack!
Your divine senses are keyed in and you get the first action.
Damn! Wasn't expecting that.
Swing hammer at the pillar of flame.
Ang lands two blows which appear to harm the fire creature, but the intense heat hurts him in return
It slams at you!
The water pillar does its best to soothe any wounds you get from the flames:
Not sure I understand your post fully. Is the 1d8+2 physical dam and the 1d4 is fire dam?
If the water healing me?
The d8 is physical and the d4 fire. The water doesn't heal, it was me trying to be funny.
-24
Your hammer swings connect only with air as the elemental creatures continue their attack:
Fighting elementals is harder than it looks.
Adjusted damage, I was applying damage for attacks that missed for some reason.
-23
Your hammer continues to miss as the elementals slam at you:
-7
Your healing helps steady your swings and you connect once taking . The pillar of flame looks very weak.
Slams!
-22
Ang's hammer extinguishes the pillar of flame; the censer that was filled with ash and bones explodes sending deadly shards everywhere DC 18 REF for 1/2 damage.
The hydraulic foe smashes away undaunted
One down, one to go.
-5
You miss twice on the watery foe.
-24
The deadly dance continues
Enough, begone.
With a massive hammer blast, you do in fact banish the watery foe, but your hammer slips from your wet hand and flies down to the base of the ziggurat as the bowl with blood explodes DC 18 REF for 1/2.
Go down and pick the hammer up and then continue on up to the next level.
-12
You retrieve your hammer, noting that the deep blue light of the sigils and artwork glow and follow you, and upon ascending back to the first level of the ziggurat you find that the black obsidian bowl and the bowl of lapis lazuli have returned to their original position atop the two altars. Although both bowls are not empty, any other signs of the battle you have just fought are gone.
Two sets of stairs lead to the second level of the ziggurat, one to the left of the obsidian bowl and one to the right of the lazuli bowl.
Head up using the right side.
A mysterious force rips at you trying to prevent you from ascending to the second level of the ziggurat.
DC 25 WILL save or be unable to ascend the stairs and take and
Second Chance trait
Ugghhh, what is that?
Keep moving up.
The second tier of the ziggurat holds another altar; this one is a large silver-grey stone block with myriad inscriptions cut into it with the now all too familiar spidery script you have seen along the path.
Atop the altar is a beautiful clam-like shell chased with sliver along the ridges. Their is a clear fluid in it and at the bottom (6" or so) a small handful of what appear to be precious stones.
A single staircase lies beyond the altar leading to the large statue at the top level of the pyramid.
Detect evil on the altar.
The altar itself does not appear to be evil but the entire structure of the ziggurat emanates great evil. You feel that many heinous and bizarre acts have been committed on the structure.
Top off with the CLW wand.
Take the single staircase up.
Once again some malignant pressure builds in your mind, attempting to block your ascent to the final level of the ziggurat.
DC 25 WILL save or be unable to ascend the stairs and take and