You make your preparations, ready for the enemy to arrive at any moment. But you don't see anyone approach that first night, nor the second. Clearly, they have elected not to send their fastest forces, or to magically expedite them. That gives you a little more time to make preparations for a battle.
Over those two days, various different goblins pop in and out of view of the scrying glass. Once or twice, a low ranking bugbear joins them, but you don't see Grin or the other woman again. None of them appear particularly smart or competent, so it doesn't seem their task is to spy or collect information. They are simply there to send the message that you are being watched.
"Without more knowledge of when they arrive, we are left with defensive posture unless we send a scout. I suggest we send Miya or myself out to keep an eye out for the enemy. Once we know they are approaching we set up two groups of ambushes. They hide nearby in the jungle, and attack as soon as they come up to the bubble either on their own, or with bait. Those inside the bubble attack with magics or ranged weapons that are not halted by the bubble, the rest of us attack viciously from the flanks! You want a captive, that's the best way to get one too."
Jolis brings up all the crates from the floor hatch and arranges them to provide cover in a nearby corner of the temple and to look as naturally placed as possible. The big warrior asked Lera if she can make the crates look just as dusty as the rest of the temple using magic . The absalomian decides to leave his heavy crossbow and bolts behind the crates, in case he needs to fall back or if others can use it from cover.
With his preparations done, Jolis makes himself free to help anyone else with theirs. Once everyone was satisfied with their little bits of a larger plan, Jolis remains in the center of the first floor, pasing and waiting.
It might be prudent to ask our new friends (Tree Huggers) to use their trickery to help divide and confound the enemy forces. In the mean time, I'll need to reset the field.
Maya spent the 1st day walking around the porimitor area.
The as knight falls she places in pathways in, her Twine liked to
a hidden pot or pan so that if tripped the sound could be hurd,
Then she comes back for Vitranna.
"Vitranna I need your eye, which paths some one coming here would take. I will place pits and traps on the ways you think they will come."
+06 Craft (Traps) (+2int, 1rank +3class)< uses Canny Effort [+2] as well for each trap.
Takes 20 +8 = 28 per trap.
Once she is done, she will then seek too take watch once more.
Then she comes back for Vitranna.
"Vitranna I need your eye, which paths some one coming here would take. I will place pits and traps on the ways you think they will come."
Vitranna will attempt to aid Miya in finding good spots to put traps to their most effective use.
During the two-day attack prep, Jolis speaks to both Valeriya and Richard about the robed skeleton and his globe medallion, giving the medallion to Richard for possible study, and asking Lera on her thoughts on the possibility the robe the skeleton was wearing was magical.
Grelda finds a good vantage point to create bait for the trap. When the scouts report that the enemies are coming, she will create an illusion of the old man they think they are coming to meet. She'll have the illusion move towards the ambush site to hopefully lure them in to prime killing range.
After helping Miya, Vitranna will find a large tree with a good view and hide there, waiting for the enemy to arrive.
Richard examines the robe and medallion.
He resets the field and tries to aid in whatever set up the others need. Richard will prepare with invisibility and a shield spell. He only emphasizes that the dominatrix needs to be subdued not killed.
Richard examines the robe and medallion.
Richard checks for traps on the door, careful not to release some ancient powerful magic then tries to open it.
Lera casts detect magic on the robes at Jolis' request.
"Speaking of spells, big guy, I've picked up a new spell I think you'll appreciate. I can make you grow to the size of troll if you like. It takes a bit of doing so I'd have to cast it on you before the battle starts. Sound last about six minutes or so. Whatta say?"
Jolis dwells on Lera's offer. "Wow! Big as troll, you say. I..think I heard of that spell. Sure. What the hell, babe! Hope I'll be just as effective at my new size."
"Besides", the big warrior chuckled, "I thought you couldn't handle my head getting any bigger?"
"It's not that head I'm worried about being too big..." Lera says with a wink.
Jolis looks deep into Valeriya's eyes.
By the Gods, she's awesome. The other side of my bear token.
"Please do me a favor", spoke Jolis in a serious tone. "Don't die. Live. Be the unbelievable woman who flirts in the face of danger always". The big warrior then pulls the witch into an embrace, filled with words he wants to say believes they will fall on deaf ears.
Lera is surprised but pleasantly by the warrior's embrace. She melts into him and looks up into his eyes.
"Don't worry, Jolis, I plan to live forever," Lera says in a weakly joking tone of voice.
"Good." Jolis smiles. "Hopefully that's another thing we can do together."
The door is currently too warped to open, but looking through the hole reveals only a dark, empty tunnel stretching for as far as you can see.
Richard: With your practice on the field, turning it on and off is relatively trivial as long as you leave the other settings the same. Recalibrating does take a bit more time. You're confident you can time the closing down to the second as soon as you receive a signal
Miya and Vitranna: The two of you make a surprisingly shrewd team. With Vitranna's knowledge of the area, and Miya's killer instinct, you're able to place a pair of well-hidden, very deadly traps along the path anyone would most likely take. You take shifts keeping watch to the north. Nothing should escape your watch.
Jolis, Grelda, and Valeriya: With your extra time, you're able to coordinate your plan of attack. Jolis is able to make the crates look aged with a bit of moss and dirt (and some prestidigitation from a helpful hand.) When the time comes, your strikes will be timed perfectly.
Grelda's foot taps in a nervous rhythm as she waits to spring the ambush.
Jolis plays his part of 'hired swordarm' to 'Subhash': standing in the open as 'bait'.
Moves about in Fox from waiting to see who comes.
Richard sits cross-legged in front of the globe. A invisibility potion at the ready for when he turns the field back on, he waits for Lera's magical whisper to close the trap.
Vitranna is the first to see the enemy coming, though Miya in her fox form smells them nearly as quickly. The increasingly familiar stench of death clings to the air, getting closer with each passing moment. As the woman said, goblin and bugbears lack the skill to survive the Carnivore Grove. But this is no obstacle for the undead - skeletons don't make the most enticing meal to those hunting for blood.
A cleric in heavy armor approaches, the unholy name of a demon lord emblazoned on her shield. A large helmet hides her eyes, but you can see that she is the drow from the memories Miya has stolen. She is surrounded by a small army of skeletal warriors. Their weapons are sheathed for now. They stop just outside the edge of the clearing and wait. The drow raises her arm and points to the top floor of the lab.
"Tell them we have arrived. You will receive instructions."
Jolis stands at the lowest floor and is the first to see the undead army walking in.
The big warrior concentrates on looking like this was expected. His blood boils as he drow cleric walks up to him. Come on, Jolis! Keep your cool!
"Tell them we have arrived. You will receive instructions."
"One moment, your grace." Jolis bows and walks up the stairway to the upper floors.
As the army approaches, Grelda chants several spells, cloaking herself in magical protections. With a final spell, she disappears and prepares to fight.
Undead? Curses! My hexes won't do much against them. Best focus on the Dark Elf.
Lera stays hidden as best she can. She clutches Viska tightly as he is unnerved by the stench of the undead.
Undead? Excellent. No need to hold back!
Richard looks up at Jolis as he comes in. He gives him a half smile. I'm going to chalk this up to luck. There's no way she has that much brains. He stands. Well...OK new plan. we pull the undead to us. And Vitranna and Miya capture her.
So I turn on the field, and make sure the drow can't enter. We'll have to pull her forces away from her. That means getting her to attack.
I'll piss her off. You and the others attack once and fall back to the facility. She'll be left out in the field alone for Miya and Vitranna. However, we could take a real ass kicking. What do you think?
Miya grins inside,
"Interesting, now is she really here, or is this just a projection humm. Now how to take her out."
The Ninja in her kicks in and she focuses on her target. She moves close and studies one of the undead.
As Jolis walks back down the stairs, he actively tries to send work to Miya, hoping she's still in her fox form.
We pull the undead into the building while drow is left outside. Capture cleric if possible.
::"Richard says he will pull the undead to him, then clack her, he and Jules will take out the undead while I and Vitranna take her out. Sound like a plan lets do it."::
She sends to her fellows only
Scowling at the need to capture the strange elf, Vitranna goes through her mind and twirls her thoughts among her abilities to impair and impede creatures rather than kill them. She then 'thinks' back at Miya...
"OK...let's do this on Jolis's cue. You and I will act once the skeletons advance. I can try and pin her to her spot with some tricky magic, then you move in to incapacitate her while I try to keep the skeletons off of you. Agreed? If you need more direct help Miya, just shout or think the word 'HAVOC!' at me"
Thinking to the telepathic fox, Jolis breathes a deep breathe of confidence.
Miya, please remind our bard and skald that when they regale this tale to their countrymen..and they will..make sure the capture my bravery and skill well.
Walking out to meet the undead army and the drow cleric, Jolis stops roughly 15 feet away.
"My apologies, your grace. Subash cannot come to meet you, but he wished me to relay a message. I hope this translates well despite our different cultures. I would hate to be misunderstood."
With that, the absalomian extends his outstetched fist up and then extends his middle finger to the heavens.
The Drow scowls, but seems unsurprised. She raises her arm and gives a single command. "Kill them all." With a gesture, the undead draw their weapons and charge. Only two stay behind to guard their master.
Once he activates the exclusionary field, Richard drinks his mutagen along with a shield and invisibility extract. He pulls his pistol and follows Jolis out. He was surprised the cleric was triggered so easily. It would have been a perfect time to insult her heritage, or how fat the armor made her look. Richard shrugs invisibly and giggles to himself at the absurdity of it all. What he wouldn't give for some holy water, or a shiny cross and bible.
Doing her best to stay quiet, Lera casts mage armor and the fortune hex on herself.
Maya knows full well that inadvisability dose not work on the undead, she sifted back to Human form, stealth it would be, as the trap was starting to be sprung she has slunk up close behind the Drow from behind. In the foliage and with line of sight. The as Jolis gave the Drow the finger, she cast her spell.
She moved her hand is if pulling all the jungle insects around and the pointed at the drow. Swram was the simple word she mouthed.
"Little Drow, Little Drow come out to playyeeaa! hehehhee"
Maya's voice is high, the unmistakable singing of a fey,and then moving back into the undergrowth,s shifting to fox form again and moves away.
::"We need to keep hitting her from cover, ware her down and keep her guessing. We have the advantage with cover, she will I think try for the cover of the buildings, she will be in for a shock when she finds she can't enter"::
The undead at the front are the first to step into Miya's trap. A massive swinging log, camouflaged in the treetops, comes down hard, knocking them prone. The others continue forward, ignoring the fallen skeletons.
The drow flinches as she's bitten by the swarming creatures, her bodyguards swatting at them uselessly. "I have no patience for games" she snarls.
The unholy symbol on her shield starts to glow and unholy energy radiates from her, blasting the swarm.
Richard looks over at Jolis and says Don't worry about me, Just beat them senseless.
Richard takes aim and takes measure of their Vulnerabilities. His invisibility fades as a fiery bullet traces it's way to the closest skeleton's skull.
Glancing around the massive tree she's hiding behind, Vitranna throws her first spell at the drow...hoping to the voice in thunder that it works!
Valeriya begins her weaving targeting the cleric. "Let their minds be weakened, Let their bodies be sapped, Let their courage whither, Let their senses be trapped."
Invisible, Grelda moves up to the nearest skeleton. She appears with a roar, her club coming right down on the undead's skull!