Seeing the problems of the others, Divel quickly pulls out his silk rope and ties it off at his waist. The bow and arrow clatter to the stone ledge.
Most of the rope drops near Eldon. And he prepares to spring forward.
EDIT: DM
Borondon slips on a rock and stumbles toward the cliff's edge, teetering...
Borondon teeters on the edge of the crumbling ramp. 50 feet below the stony ground surrounding the small ruined keep lies shrouded in wispy fog and darkness. He awkwardly balances right on the edge for a moment, then manages to throw his weight towards the ramp, stumbling into Sondergang. He feels a sharp pain as his knee impacts the ramp surface.
The group pauses to catch their breath. Eldon's torch flickers and crackles in the stiff breeze.
Sondergang helps Borondon to his feet.
"Steady there brother..it wouldnt do to lose ye now, not this close"
Divel collects his bow and arrow after he recoils the rope into his pack. The elf pays little or no attention to the dwarves stumbling around ahead.
His eyes keep on scanning the dark entrance above and the various good shooting points higher still.
Svetla sheathes her blade so she can lean against the rock wall of the cliffside. Carefully, Svetla checks to make sure she hasn't twisted her ankle. Satisfied that everything seems to be in order, Svetla places her weight back on both her feet.
"Be careful," Svetla cautions the group. "I tripped on a hole in the ledge rock."
Svetla draws her blade again.
"Ok We rope up..now...I'm not risking anyone going over the side on a mistep"
Divel nods and takes his rope out again.
The grey silk rope he passes forwards. It is already tightly knotted, for climbing, along its 40ft length. There should be enough left to get all the party tied off.
The party takes Divel's 40' silk rope and ties itself into a mountain climbing line. There is enough rope to give everyone 5 feet of play. After going single file and moving Eldon so he can shine the torch from the middle of the group, the party begins ascending again.
The rope steadies the party, and with a few stumbles, they make it up towards the defaced carven entrance. The ground below falls away into darkness, leaving only the crunch of gravel and the moaning of the wind.
As they approach the ramp's final bottleneck the moaning that the party had been hearing increases in volume. A crowd of shambling, nightmarish figures shuffle out from the cavern mouth.
It is hard to see details, but these things are most certainly undead. The stench alone guarantees that, a mixture of rotted flesh and resinous spices. From what little can be seen in the flickering torchlight the figures have been modified by evil hands. Every slack face has been painted like a grinning skull.
Rusted metal spikes have been driven into their greyish flesh at various angles as well. Each carries a stout wooden club with spikes as well.
It's hard to see, but it looks like their mouths have been modified as well. The dead grin wide, the glint of metal twinkling in the flickering torchlight.
Merzhan uses his afore mentioned prepared response to any warning sign to cast Dancing Lights if possible.
Initiatives RD 1:
Svetla: 23Navorn: 22
Divel: 21
Eldon: 20
Ingrahild: 18
Merzhan: 18
Borondon: 18
Sondergang: 16
Death's Head Zombies: 10
Merzhan waves his fingers and chants a few pithy words of Draconic. The night flares with light as his mystical flames spring to life around the group. The light outlines the shambling dead in stark outline. They moan sorrowfully as they slowly advance.
The dead are a mixture of Human, Orcish and Dwarven bodies. They wear little but rags, and carry only their crude clubs. They shuffle slowly, and there seems to be no intellegence behind their flat doll-like eyes. The various metal spikes piercing their arms, torso and faces give them a surreal porcupine look. The skull face paint is very similar to the work the group saw on the orcs they had vanquished.
Divel takes a snapshot at one of the outer zombies.
His arrow flies true and thuds into the creature's chest.
Sondergang unties himself from the rope..as he does he begins to gather the power of Torag around him in order to smite the undead.
Round 1 Untie self
Round 2 Channel positive energy
Sigh,Good old IC always comes through when you need it 1d6=1
Realizing the best way to fight the zombies with such confined quarters
would be allow the Zombies through so she and Borondon can fight them
two on one, Svetla takes a step back. Placing her hand on the dwarf's
shoulder she says, "Wait for it..."
""Wait for it..."
"Aye..." Borondon waits for the zombies to come to him.
Ingra unties herself on round 1
The group explodes into a flurry of action, untying rope and readying for battle as the shambling dead moan and slowly advance.
Initiatives RD 1:
Svetla: 23 [moves to D27, readies for attack]
Navorn: 22 [Pending]
Divel: 21 [Snap attack at zombie]
Eldon: 20 [Pending]
Ingrahild: 18 [untying self]
Merzhan: 18 [untying self]
Borondon: 18 [Readying attack]
Sondergang: 16 [untying self]
Death's Head Zombies: 10 [attacking]
Svetla draws back slightly, allowing the death’s head zombies to lurch past the bottleneck. A miasmic reek of funerary spices and rotting meat envelops her as the first few shuffle in towards her. Her blade flickers out and skewers one zombie through the roof off his metal-studded mouth. A quick wrench and kick sends the twitching corpse down to the canyon below.
Divel brings his bow up smoothly and an arrow jumps from his quiver and into his string like magic. He sends the humming shaft winging over the crevasse in the ramp. The arrow strikes one of the zombies in the shoulder. The dead dwarf seems not to notice, continuing to sway and moan as it tries to reach across the dark crack.
Ingrahild tugs hard at the silk rope encircling her waist, cursing the well-tied knot. Merzhan does likewise, but has a slightly easier time with his long sorcerer’s fingers. Sondergang patiently worries at his knot, mentally gathering the fires of his faith like a smith working the bellows of a forge.
Borondon stands side by side with Svetla, ready to face the undead horde. The first zombie snarls and approaches him, rude club lashed to its right hand with rawhide thongs. Borondon sweeps his axe in a flat arc, cutting deeply into the dead man’s side and sweeping the moaning corpse off the causeway. The zombie’s twitching body lands with a faint thump on the stones 150 feet below, joining its companion that Svetla sent over not a few seconds earlier.
"Wow! Didn't see you guys." Eldon fires his crossbow at the silly little zombie in D30.
Navorn slice tough the rope holding him back and scrambles forward toward the undead abominations before his companions .
Navorn slices the rope holding him and moves forward to face the undead foe. Divel feels the rope going slack at his waist.
Eldon's bolt snaps forward and buries itself in the body of the dwarf Divel had hit earlier. The undead creature continues to moan, seemingly unaware of the bolt's entry.
A zombie shuffles towards Svetla, swinging its rude wooden spiked club
The clumsy undead moans as its club fans the air by Svetla's face. Its rotting companions crowd behind him, arms reaching out towards the tasty morsels.
Sondergang looks over to Eldon
"Good try lad but light crossbows are nigh on useless against these things..even heavies don't really do the trick. You need edged weapons to really hurt them"
Sondergangs round two action was noted above..he channels energy but Torags power is weak here..a pitiful 1 damage
Borondon, enraged at the sight of his ancestors turned into zombies, delivers another vicious hack at the zombie in front of Svelta:
Ingra will use her sheildmaiden ability on Borondon
"BE steadfast my Brother, I will guard you this day, for our home and the warm fires of this clanhold's forge"
"Hook them."
Divel drops the bow again and starts collecting in the 40ft of rope. He will move up and help anyone who is tied, become free.
The elf takes his time to make sure he has the rope and then he will get out his grappling hook and tie that on.
Actions rd 2:
Svetla: 23 [attacks]
Navorn: 22 [Pending]
Divel: 21 [gathering rope]
Eldon: 20 [Shoots & misses]
Ingrahild: 18 [shielding Borondon]
Merzhan: 18 [firebolt!]
Borondon: 18 [attacking]
Sondergang: 16 [turning undeaders]
Death's Head Zombies: 10 [attacking]
Svetla slashes at the zombie that attempted to hit her
Her sword slash is ruined by a loose pebble rolling under her boot, sending her off balance just enough to make her sharp-honed blade whiz over the white-painted zombie’s skull.
Eldon’s shot grazes the zombie dwarf he hit before, but leaves the barest of scratches before vanishing into the darkness.
Ingrahild brings her shield up to protect Borondon from the grasping claws of the dead things that menace him.
Merzhan ululates and points his finger. A line of red flame springs from his outstretched digit, striking one of the zombies across the crevasse. Navorn ducks instinctively as the flame shoots past his head, the crackling flames roaring over him in a red lit haze. The moaning corpse is instantly set ablaze, its ragged clothing and resin-impregnated skin providing a perfect fuel for Merzhan’s eldritch fire. The flaming zombie teeters on the edge of the ramp, then falls. The zombie’s flaming carcass illuminates the walls of the canyon as it descends into the dark valley below.
Borondon brings his axe into a roundhouse swing, taking one of the dwarven zombies square in the neck. The rotted vertebrae part with a crack and the zombie’s gnashing head goes flying over Borondon and Ingra to land with a splat at the feet of Merzhan. The zombie’s headless body twitches spastically, then collapses to the ground in a heap.
Sondergang raises his hammer pendant and chants in a deep voice in Dwarvish. The party feels a pulse of power wash over them. . The party members feel better, as if a heavy weight is lifted off their shoulders. The moaning of the zombies changes pitch, growing louder in tone. Two of the remaining zombies turn about and shuffle towards the cavern mouth.
The two remaining zombies square off against Borondon and Svetla.
Svetla's zombie: 1d20+2=17, 1d6+1=6, Borondon's zombie: 1d20+2=14, 1d6+1=6
Borondon’s zombie swings its rude spiked club, but the rusty metal barbs clang harmlessly off Ingra’s sheltering shield. Svetla’s zombie finds a weak spot, the rusty spikes connecting just below her left armpit. Svetla notes the pain, but the red fog of battle lust is upon her and the injury doesn’t slow her a whit.
Divel unlaces the 10 feet of silken rope that surrounds his slender waist and goes on to help Eldon undo his knot.
Eldon’s shot grazes the zombie dwarf he hit before, but leaves the barest of scratches before vanishing into the darkness.
"Damn! What are these things made of... besides rotting flesh, of course."
Getting into a groove, Borondon sends the next undead ancestor to the grave for real.
attack (1d20+6=22)
damage (1d10+4=9)
Ingra maintains her vigil on Borondon, she casts guidance on Borondon
Saying a prayer of passage for the dwarven zombies finally laid to rest, "May yer dammed souls be set free by the axe of your offspring, may you find your way to a warm forge and a strong drink"
Sondergang waits..confident that the fighters can deal with the undead remaining before them..the one who fled will be easy pickings when they return.
He shouts again at Eldon..."Stop wasting you bolts lad..you need a slashing weapon to hurt them"
Divel hums a little tune to himself as he keeps working at the rope.
"Exciting!" he smiles at Eldon.
He shouts again at Eldon..."Stop wasting you bolts lad..you need a slashing weapon to hurt them"
"Really? Thanks for waiting after I fired three bolts to tell me!" :)
Eldon glares back at Divel: "You watch it, this zombie will bring me one closer to topping your kills."
Navorn seeing his blade is of no use brings his shield up in full defense to block the monsters from those behind him.
Blue eyes bland and smile wolfish, Divel adds with a sniff, "crossbow kills."
Watching the way the zombies struggle for footing and tumble to their doom he finishes, "we step back. They fall off. No danger."
But the fierce dwarves are too busy to hear his soft words. He shakes his head and laughs at the violence before him.
Actions rd 3:
Svetla: 23 [Swing and a miss]
Navorn: 22 [defensive]
Divel: 21 [gathering rope]
Eldon: 20 [Shoots & hits]
Ingrahild: 18 [shielding Borondon]
Merzhan: 18 [pending]
Borondon: 18 [attacking]
Sondergang: 16 [pending]
Death's Head Zombies: 10 [attacking]
Navorn's rapier lances out at the zombie facing Svetla . The slender blade furrows the moaning undead's face, an oozing pus welling from the shallow cut. After his strike he goes into an en garde stance, protecting the others from harm.
Svetla slashes at the pus-weeping zombie in front of her.
Her blade goes wide, casting sparks as she hits the ramp with its tip.
Eldon's third bolt strikes the zombie facing Svetla, with the same results as the last two.
Borondon's axe sings its hissing song, cleaving a zombie almost in twain. The rotted corpse's innards spill out onto the rubbled ramp, it's decayed brains dripping down Borondon's axehead.
Divel leisurely unties Eldon from the rope, then waits as the last few zombies are dispatched.
Divel watches for the last zombie to tumble to its doom.
He retrieves his bow and coils the small silk rope. "Shame."
The final zombie lights up in flames, but swings nonetheless at Svetla
The burning corpse misses Svetla. It staggers about, its hair and clothing lighting up like a candle. The zombie's skin begins to sag and soften, liquefying under the heat. Svetla hears a dull 'pop' as one of the zombie's eyes explodes out, spraying her with hot optical fluids.
Borondon grabs one of his spears and uses it to push the burning zombie off the cliff.
"Bleh, that's a putrid smell. Eldon, you can have my lunch, I think I won't be eatin' it."
Eventually Divel puts both ropes away and returns to the back of the party. He takes a moment to scan the ground below and ruins for movement and anything else out of place.
The elf leans against the cliff, waiting for the party to move on.
Borondon manages to tip the flaming zombie over the ramp's edge. The burning corpse traces a fiery trail down 150 feet before exploding on the rocks below and burining fitfully in several pieces.
Divel retreives his rope from the fighters. Svetla inspects the wound she received from the zombie she faced. The rusty spikes made some deep puncture woulnds that drip a sluggish flow of blood.
The group can still hear the faint moans of the two zombies that were turned by Sondergang. They will be returning soon.