While Raen summons, Vael puts his wand to use on Doxon.
He then moves to Ushyle
"Quickly now. Raen's friend will only help for a minute or so."
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WP has so many questions about the Winged Snake Lady. 'Where does she live." "are there human footed Snake creatures too?" "how fast can she fly?"
But Everyone is so grim and serious, he takes to checking out the door to pass the time.
Pig Approaches the door:
If not trapped he checks the door for sounds:
WP tries to pick the lock:
Whistle Pig feels some heat on the door, but nothing dangerous. The other side has some loud rumbling, but no voices.
He climbs up to the handle, grabs on handle with both hands and kicks away from the other door.
In the middle of this room sits a huge, cylindrical, open-topped steel tank that exudes a luminous mist toward the ceiling. The tank is equipped with elbow-shaped pipes that connect it to the floor, and surrounded by four black stelae engraved with mystic symbols. A frieze-like array of rectangular silver plaques adorns the cylinder’s outer surface.
The core is an 18-foot-tall, 30-foot-diameter steel tank full of a gas which placidly drifts upward from the tank toward the ceiling and casts a soft light in the room. Ten feet above the floor, twelve 3-foot-thick elbow tubes emerge from the curved surface of the tank cylinder and disappear into vents in the floor.
Between the ring of tubes and the rim of the vat, a circular array of 72 rectangular niches, each spaced 5 degrees apart, surrounds the entire surface of the cylinder. The niches hold a collection of 72 silver plaques, each approximately 1 foot square and 1 inch thick and weighing about 30 pounds, engraved with astronomical symbols and numbers in Giant (from 1 to 72).
Around the central tank, the four upright, 10-foot-tall rectangular stelae at the cardinal points bear signs that are clearly related to the astronomical symbols on the hot silver plaques.
Four circular hatches are positioned on the floor around the tank in the spaces between the stelae.
Raen speaks a few flowing words to the lillend, who takes up her harp to fill the room with a light and pleasant music. She also takes a moment to touch up Raen's wounds.
"Renfal, am I correct in surmising that this is the engine?" Raen asks of the ghost. To the others, "King Tytarian's documents suggested that Volstus may have placed an explosive here. Let us find it and disarm it."
She begins searching, first to identify the most likely location, then to actually look for it.
Renfal's form appears, ghostly as always, but with a glimmer of hope in the ghost's eyes. "Aye. This is the engine room. True control requires the crown. There is a bomb somewhere, but I do not see it here. I confess, I do not want you to destroy this castle, it is everything to me. If the castle crashes, I do not think I could find rest. If the castle crashes on a town you care for, I do not thing you could either."
Raen thinks that the engine itself isn't the best place for the bomb. Likely it's in a more fragile location close by. Perhaps through the hatches?
Raen nods in response to Renfal. "The hatches, I think," Raen suggests, glancing at Whistle Pig. "Would you be so kind as to open them?" she asks of Hamilton, Ushyle, and the dwarves.
The lillend continues her playing.
Once a hatch is opened, all seven of Raen dive into it.
Ushyle nods, some vague discomfort at these celestial beings so close to one such as he, and wordlessly joins Hamilton on opposite sides of one hatch.
It takes a bit, but the stronger members of the party work together to open a hatch. Under is a ladder which descends 20' into the darkness before opening to a service tunnel 10' and 10' tall.
Raen bows to the azata before she departs. Raen scans the aperture under the hatch for magic. .
Bump
Continuing on the plucky halfling comes to something.... important; an empty exoskeleton of a giant spider attached to the ceiling of the duct with sovereign glue. There's a fuse, a magical glass bead within a 6-inch-diameter globe, externally visible as a faintly luminous point of light in one of the dull eyes of the dead spider. This is clearly some kind of massive alchemical bomb.
Whistle Pig quickly realizes the potential of prematurely detonating the bomb through improper handling.
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WP knowing a bomb when he sees one, he takes quick note of the rest of the room.
He hurries back to the rest of the group.
WP winks back into sight right next to Raen. "I found the bomb. It's in a HUGE dead spiders body for some reason. It's a large glass orb in the eye socket that looks like the trigger."
Raen nods. "Well done, Whistle Pig. Can you take me to it? Perhaps I might discern its properties."
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Raen nods. "Well done, Whistle Pig. Can you take me to it? Perhaps I might discern its properties."
"of course! but no flying. the winds in the tubes are VERY strong." WP nods to the rest of the group." we should bring everyone. I don't like the idea of splitting us up."
as an after thought "we are flying over a city right now. I took a wrong turn and found an exit out near the bottom of the castle."
"Thank you. Any notion of which city, by the by?" Before proceeding down the hatch, Raen casts alarm over the entryway to the engine room. Once in the tunnel, she disregard's Whistle Pig's advice, as she is much more comfortable flying than walking into storm-force winds.
Once at the spider's corpse, Raen considers the engineering details carefully.
Whitle Pig leads the party to the bomb, but first with a detour to the opening without cloud cover.
It's Korvosa. You are over Korvosa. This means the castle is travelling impossibly fast, but here you are. It gets worse.
You're slowing down to a stop...
Raen looks over the bomb.... It's HUGE. It's also really fragile. The bomb consists of three elements: the fuse in the head of the exoskeleton, the primer in the thorax, and the charge in the abdomen, each contained inside a crystal globe connected by a metal rod. Only the fuse, a magical glass bead within a 6-inch-diameter globe, is externally visible as a faintly luminous point of light in one of the dull eyes of the dead spider. The primer consists of several reagents, including alchemist’s fire and a powerful acid, which are stored in compartments in the second, 18-inch-diameter globe. The charge, contained in a 3-foot-diameter globe, consists of 200 pounds of explosive alchemical salt that is 100 times more powerful than Alkenstar black powder.
Raen estimates that if this thing goes off, it will mean instant death for anyone close by. She also estimates that it would send the castle crashing, but not instantly. It's feasible that a powerful user of the diadem, or someone in the engine room could guide it down gently.
The whole mechanism is really finicky.
Renfel's ghostly image appears, "If this bomb goes off, the castle will indeed be ruined. Such a fantastic achievement erased from the world because of a petty mind. If.... if it goes off, I can likely guide the castle down. If you care about that city below..." He leaves the predicate unsaid.
Can we... Teleport it someplace else, someplace where the explosion won't matter? Another plane, even?
"The castle has reached Korvosa, and is decelerating," Raen announces quietly. "Your suggestion is well-met, Hamilton. I carry a vial of universal solvent, which could permit us to remove it. I fear, however, that its fragility would make the process fraught, and the castle's anti-teleportation field may prevent travel in, or even out."
"Alternatively, Vael, do you have a means of offering Whistle Pig a bit of luck in disarming it? I can shield the two of us, should the worst happen."
Does the Anti-teleportation field block interplanar travel?
"Aye, the Spirits of Fortune are willing to lend a hand to Whistle Pig, hopefully tipping the scales if need be," Vael replies to Raen. He turns to Whistle Pig. "Just tell me when you're ready, and I'll make the request."
Does the Anti-teleportation field block interplanar travel?
"I do not know. But I suspect that it would hinder our return. Planar travel is notoriously imprecise."
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A voice with a sultry, deep timbre responds to Raen, "Indeed, but travel to the Boneyard is certain." Raen looks about, shocked that someone invisible could sneak up on her.
Suddenly a pair of creatures, each equal in size to Sammi appear. Each is a large spider-like monster with an eerie, humanoid face surrounded by a shaggy mane of fur.
The source of the voice appears next, a giant. This giant’s skin is dead black, and she wears a gold-inlaid breastplate, a headdress, and armbands decorated with skulls. She wields a wicked looking spiked chain. This is a new type of giant.
Raen immediately tries to place each creature.
Raen recognizes the woman as a shadow giant! Shadow giants serve as a company of elite shock troops, kept a close secret and only used in operations where they are not expected to leave any survivors to tell the tale.
The "spiders" are Phase Spiders. Phase spiders are voracious predators from the Ethereal Plane who hunt on the Material Plane.
(Extra +4 Mountains/Hills, +2 Subterranean )
Round 1:
Raen: Go
Enemy: TBD
Hamilton: TBD
Whistle Pig: TBD
Ushyle: TBD
Vael: TBD
Doxon: TBD
Shadow giants don't have any special defenses, but their attacks, be it by fist or weapons drain the very life force out of the target.
"Indeed," Raen agrees, flitting to the left and unleashing a torrent of chaotic color at the new arrivals. She shouts warnings to her comrades:
ORANGE: 40 acid damage, DC 26 Reflex for half
YELLOW: 80 electricity damage, DC 26 Reflex for half
RED: 20 fire damage, DC 26 Reflex for half
Raen's opening salvo of light washes over the enemy:
The two spiders blink out of existance, even from Raen's eyes. They reappear next to Whistle Pig and Vael!
for
for
The shadow giant immediates speaks of divine judgement. A moment later she casts a spell as her chain bursts into black flame!
Round 1:
Raen: Spray
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Go
Whistle Pig: Go + FORT
Ushyle: Go
Vael: Go + FORT (Grabbed)
Doxon: Go
Black: 20
Krellen: 80
Blue: 10
Raen tries to place the spell, though divine magic is not her forte.
Meanwhile, she casts a staccato spell of her own.
Raen pegs the spell as Flames of the Faithful.
Round 1:
Raen: Spray
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Go
Whistle Pig: Go + FORT
Ushyle: Go
Vael: Go + FORT (Grabbed)
Doxon: Go
Black: 20
Krellen: 80
Blue: 10
Assuming that my potion hadn't worn off yet, based on Slack.
Ham thrusts out against the spider that grabbed Vael...
Power Attack with Heartspit (Longspear +1 in this size and form):, Damage on Hit:
Power Attack with Heartspit (Longspear +1 in this size and form):, Damage on Hit:
Power Attack with Heartspit (Longspear +1 in this size and form):, Damage on Hit:
"Nine bloody Hells!" Vael curses as he's bit and grabbed. He feels Raen's freeing magic wash over him, and is too surprised by it to capitalize on the moment.
Knowing that, as long as the spider has its mandibles on him, this will be a skirmish the shaman invokes the powers of nature and transforms his shape. Loud snaps and cracks as bone shift and reform, until what was once Vael is now a large tiger!
Tulia takes aim with her crossbow, firing it at the giant.
"Lykophos! If you can help either slow down the spiders or blind the giant, that'd be a big boon!"
Ushyle moves with ease away from the spiders to the far side of the riding dwarf. He rubs his hands together and touches Doxon, his hand bearing a rose-red light. Warmth washes over Doxon as he is warded from death.
Hamilton's triple thrust misses each time!
Vael fights off the poison, but he can't escape from the grab. It doesn't stop him from taking the form of a tiger! Tulia scores a lucky hit. Lykophos, looking to try and take the giant out with a single move, hurls some sleep dust in her face! and it ALMOST works!
Ushyle preps Doxon for the worst, lining up for the big counter.
Round 1:
Raen: Spray
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Miss
Whistle Pig: Go + FORT
Ushyle: Death Ward
Vael: Hoooooo!!!!!!
Doxon: Go
Black: 20
Krellen: 94
Blue: 10
Doxon nods in thanks to Ushyle with a grin and charges the spectral horse forward to engage the giant. As he does, gold light suffuses the dwarf and his hammers and he crashes into the enormous foe, the Hammer of Thunderbolts swinging across into it with all the fury Doxon can bring to bear.
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Pig nearly drops his sling as Vael's familiar form is replaced with a huge tiger. Pig instantly wonders where his cloths went. The snapping of mouth parts brings him back to reality. He quickly speaks a word in halfling and disappears (he really hopes these spiders can't see indivisibility) and moves away from it towards the giant. He's never seen a giant like this before.
Whistle Pig vanishes. He doesn't seem the worse for wear after the bite, just a small wound...
Doxon's mad charge brings the giant's weapon to bear as she tries to clip him before he arrives: for and but it doesn't stop him from connecting!
Round 2:
Raen: Go
Enemy: TBD
Hamilton: TBD
Whistle Pig: TBD
Ushyle: Death Ward
Vael: TBD
Doxon: TBD
Black: 20
Krellen: 124
Blue: 10
Raen judges Doxon to be just a little too far for her to reach safely and quickly, worried though she is for him as he goes toe-to-toe with the shadow giant. Instead she moves west and puts a wand into her hand, sending another wave of good cheer over those brawling with the spiders.
Raen brings forth some inspiration as the enemy brings their full powers to bear:
Both of the phase spiders ignore the tiger shaman, opting for smaller targets.
"Yesssss.... tasty targets!"
MISS
MISS
The giant steps away from Doxon and unleashes a torrent of attacks while pronouncing judgement upon him!:
for and
for and
MISS
MISS
Round 2:
Raen: Good Hope
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Go
Whistle Pig: Go
Ushyle: Go
Vael: Go
Doxon: Go
Black: 20
Krellen: 124
Blue: 10
Whistle Pig fires a stone while invisible, but the giantess sees it coming. Nevertheless, it still strikes true!
Round 2:
Raen: Good Hope
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Go
Whistle Pig: Hit
Ushyle: Go
Vael: Go
Doxon: Go
Black: 20
Krellen: 152
Blue: 10
Hamilton turns his attention to the spider before him.
Heartspit Full Attack w/power attack:
, damage on hit:
, damage on hit:
, damage on hit:
Thrice does Hamilton's spear strike! The phase spider is horribly wounded, but not dead yet.
Round 2:
Raen: Good Hope
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Hit
Whistle Pig: Hit
Ushyle: Go
Vael: Go
Doxon: Go
Black: 98
Krellen: 152
Blue: 10
Doxon summons the divine power of Torag to infuse Thunderbolt. With a squeeze of his knees, Doxon steps the phantom steed forward. He then brings all of his battle prowess to bear on the giantess.
+ +
+
Doxon's revenge is overwhelming! With a shout she cries out for ... something, perhaps vengeance, perhaps mercy. Either way it's cut short as Doxon's fury unfettered is her death sentence!
Round 2:
Raen: Good Hope
Enemy: ATK
Hamilton: Hit
Whistle Pig: Hit
Ushyle: Go
Vael: Go
Doxon: So. Much. Damage.
Black: 98
Blue: 10