"I'm not sure if the rest of you did, but when the creatures rose in the desert, and Chakos said 'kasatha', I at least saw a vision in my mind..." Astra says. "Of those four-armed creatures, alive, clothed...even using tools." She purses her lips and looks pensive. "It could have been just my imagination... It is true what you say, Chakos, we have no proof. But my gut feeling says strongly that these kasatha, while living at least, were far from mindless."
Unfortunately undead it seems. Far from home perhaps and no way to rest.
You move up the stairs to the strange machine and see images of maps hovering over it. The maps change, sometimes replaced by static. None of the images look like the desert, however. There is Androffan writing with some of the images.
As you stare at it, the Southeast door opens and a ratfolk appears.
"Hey, Gruethur, I searched everywhere and I couldn't find the intruders. They must have left... Oh, shi-"
He ducks back behind the door.
Astra immediately tries to make a new Perception check upon hearing that there is someone in this room after all.
She chooses not to follow the ratfolk -- as opposed to the other day when she chased it at all costs -- and instead focuses on the greater threat that may lurk herein. "Close ranks! The gargoyle may be anywhere! Don't let it pick you off alone." She tries to remain close to the others, and keeps trying Perception rolls until either she spots the gargoyle, or it makes its presence known.
Assume defensive formation Alpha! Liz looks around, up and down.
I don't see anything, doesn't mean that the gargoyle isn't here.
"I hate hiders", Astra mutters. "It's probably waiting for us to wander off and get in another fight, so it can attack us while we're already preoccupied." The Kellid waves her zapper wand threateningly at nothing in particular. "Well you smell like cabbage, and your face looks like goat droppings anyway! I'm glad you're hiding away like a coward so I don't have to endure the sight of your diseased pustuled little face, you ugly toad-licking drooling half-wit!" She takes every opportunity to insult the gargoyle while it can't fight back. "And your mother was a grain of sand passed through a hog's intestine!"
Chakos will throw down some detect evil and start scanning the room. If he spies the creature, he won't notify anyone, rather he will swift action smite it, and charge it!
After Astra's insult, a dark shape crashes from the ceiling in front of the Eastern double doors. It is a gargoyle as Astra said, with bits of broken machinery, silverdisks, circuitry and metal wrapped around itself like jewelry. It stands in front of the double doors with its arms folded. You notice a scar along its neck.
Chakos senses evil, smites it, and charges it.
Liz will pour her Oil of Magic Weapon onto Argug's axe is he is okay with it, or any other weapon.
1. Sneek
2. Gargoyle
3. Astra, Argug, Chakos, Liz
The gargoyle's stony muscles bulge, hands posed to deflect attacks, white eyes staring you down.
Charging smite attack:
(that's a lot of bonuses that didn't get me too far eh?)
Pouring the oil over his rapier, Sneek takes up a defensive position besides Chakos.
He waits for an opportunity to flank the gargoyle so Argug/Chakos can hit easier.
Astra will try to move in and strike the gargoyle with her zapper wand.
???
The gargoyle grabs the long handle of Chakos' greataxe as he swings, pulls him close and stares into his eyes. It whispers in a raspy voice, "You will not get to the priestess, rabble." And throws it back.
Astra moves in close to the gargoyle, pulls the trigger and switches it to lethal mode. Small arcs of electricity come out of the tip. She swings at the gargoyle, and the zapper wand bounces harmlessly off of him.
Nimbly Sneek tries to get around the gargoyle to attack it opposite of Chakos.
Priestess? Interesting. She will beg for mercy at our hands!
Argug, his axe now magical thanks to Liz's application of the oil, rushes in with a charge to smack the gargoyle.
Argug cleaves through stony flesh across the gargoyle's chest. Broken bits of metal and machinery clatter to the ground.
Sneek sneaks around and tries to stab the gargoyle from behind, but its tail smacks the blade away.
The gargoyle turns its attention to Argug, who seems the deadliest of the group. He swings his claws, bites and tries to gore the orc with his horns.
The gargoyle claws into Argug's chest and digs his other claw into the orc's shoulder. Blood spills onto the ground.
Quick stats
HP 16/16
AC 11/11/10
Effects: Mage
Hand of Apprentice:7/7
Liz casts Enlarge on Argug, hoping to give him the strength to win.
Newly emboldened by his larger size, Argug snarls. "Awright, 'little man', that crap hurt!"
Gives the gargoyle a good vertical cut.
Argug chops down on the gargoyle, splitting him apart. A gurgle escapes his mouth. He falls to the sides of the door.
Awesome Argug!
Astra, quick! Help heal Argug with our potions If there is a priestess that is the cause of the problems here, we can catch her by surprise while Argug's magic enlargement is still running!
Liz gives Argug a potion of clw
Astra steps up to heal Argug with a Cure Light Wounds. "Indeed, let us press our attack. I am guessing that the 'priestess' in question has purple hair... Argug, *kick the door in*!" she says, pointing at the large east door that the humming is coming from.
Chakos Life Link will take 5HP of the damage away from Argug and to Chakos instead this round.
"Excellent job Argug, so what did the rat say?"
Argug chugs the potion, and spit a good orc-y goober on the corpse of the gargoyle. "Alright, I agree with the ladies."
He walks up to the door Astra indicated and gives it a good, swift kick.
Attempts to repeat her last door-opening feat. RAWR!
*Crk*
Ow.
Astra will also lend either a white keycard, or technological know-how to trying to get the east door open.
Both Argug and Liz try to force open the door, but being made of glaucite, the double doors are much heavier and sturdier, and do not budge. Sneek tries to pick the lock, and hears a beep come from the machine slot to the side followed by an Androffan voice.
Astra slides the white striped keycard through the machine. As she pulls it out she notices that the stripe turns black. The door repeats the same message in Androffan.
"That's odd", Astra frowns as she notices her white keycard change color.
Astra frowns and scratches her head a little bit. "The door says it wants a white keycard. I tried a white keycard, but it didn't work. Maybe the door is broken somehow." She strokes her chin deep in thought, and tries to figure out if there might be any way to bypass the illogical door.
Well, if your card didn't work perhaps we need to try to find another card that will. Perhaps we need to search around more before rushing headlong into battle. Does anyone have special tools or such that can get through the door?
Just kidding. These ideas are way too advanced for most Golarion people. Maybe if you were Androffan or part of the Technic League, or an Earthling from the 21st century, you would know these things.
It is a door. Either continue to smash into it (though Glaucite is unbelievably tough), find a higher colored epick to boost your disable device (and use it to crack into this high-value, high security area), or find another white keycard, as the keycard in Astra's hand is now a black keycard. And a black keycard is not a white keycard.
"I agree, perhaps the card was at fault", Astra nods. "We may have to explore this area further for something that will open this door."
Astra will Take 20 searching the body of the fallen gargoyle.
There are four doors into this room. One is to the North (where you came from). There are glaucite doors to the East (which are locked), a door to the South (where the ratfolk ran through), and to the West is a single door (where you can hear a powerful buzzing noise).
"Let's head that way", Astra points at the south door. "Maybe with enough 'convincing', the rat can tell us how to get through the door. Let's try not to kill it, all right?"