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Valerio like the others, takes the chance to investigate the middle room, paying particular attention to the books Iliyana pointed out on the eastern wall, though inspecting them briefly to make sure they aren't too fragile first.
"Thank you, for your assistance..." Not one who is familiar with having people help him, Valerio's thanks is quite curt, but he is sincere.
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Cesare will enter the Senior Lions Blade room (left) and look for anything interesting.
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With so many people in the ancient text store room, Iliyana follows Cesare over to the Lion Blade's study room to do what she can in assisting his work, leaving Mohok with the key to the glass cabinets. She's able to guide the bard around, informing him of the research topics of the Lion Blades who stay here.
Cesare finds the information quite useful, for it allows him to avoid disturbing all but one of the desks--and remembering the locations of materials on one desk is a lot easier than four! Beside a hefty tome collecting various failed prophecies of Arodenites since the disappearance of the deity (a few bookmarked pages here and there seem to be referring to the prophecies of one Arodenite in particular, for some reason), he locates a long and ornate scroll tube. Inside are a few wound-up maps, in a rather delicate condition from their age. However, Cesare realises with some shock, that they are exactly the sort of information you've come here to find, for the maps detail the movements of armies in the Shining Crusade. A useful find indeed!
Encarthan Maps: These maps depict Lake Encarthan, the Isle of Terror, and the nations that surround it. Of particular interest are the hundreds of hand-drawn notes and lines showing troop movements, preserving the changing plans of the brilliant generals who orchestrated the Shining Crusade.
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Meanwhile, the dim light of the ancient text storage room makes it difficult for the researchers within to proceed, although the darkvision of Valerio and Mohok helps them out quite significantly. Tippy points the group in the right direction at first, able to locate some particularly expensive tomes that would be worth a fortune to the right collectors--most of the library is like that, but these ones in particular would put your Pathfinder Society wages to shame.
Valerio can perhaps more truthfully understand the significance of these books, though, and he unlocks the cabinet to read them reverently. One text speaks of ancient relics and artifacts throughout Golarion's history, from the Shield of Aroden and the Codex of the Infinite Planes to the Thorncrown of Iomedae and the Scroll of Kakishon. Perhaps of most use is a minor reference in the back pages to an unnamed silver horn, said to have been used by Taldor during the Shining Crusade.
While Valerio is happily lapping up that information, Mohok notices that right next to the book about artifacts is a book by an author he vaguely remembers from the main library. Taking the tome in hand, he skims through it and realises that it's incredibly useful indeed! What a gem to luckily find.
While goofing around with Cademon, Zherohd feels something strange in the air around him--like an invisible force had just whisked by him, though he is unable to see anything. Using detect magic, he realises that many of the shelves have some kind of magical enchantment on them... a very faint one, mind you, but it's there. After some messing around, he thinks he figures out how to activate these 'magic points'.
A Silver Horn: This text describes in detail an enchanted silver horn capable of granting courage in times of need, which Taldor used for the fifth Army of Exploration and much later during the Shining Crusade, when it was shattered into several pieces. A priest of Aroden prophesised that even if re-forged, the instrument would never sound again, and it was given a hero's burial. The text mentioned nothing of the horn's present location.
Hidden Gem: Right next to one great discovery, you make another incredible find!
Clue: Use this clue when you or another PC discovers a clue or text to find one additional clue or text, if any remain in the room. (If attempting to use this in a room that doesn't have any more clues, it doesn't count; this clue can be used again.)
Magical Assistance: Some of the bookshelves bear a minor enchantment that aids researches, such as briefly granting the benefits of read languages or creating an unseen servant to aid in collecting documents.
Clue: After the PCs roll skill checks to find documents, any of them may reroll the check before learning the result.
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During your research, Tippy looks up with a blink. He kind of recognises the song being played... and it's about to hit a rather operatic peak. The halfling shrugs and continues on, unconcerned. You're busily researching, after all...
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Realizing he's got the keys in his hand, Mohok approaches the center shelf on the east wall, the cabinet that Iliyana was told never to touch. He studies the door carefully for any indications of traps or other surprises and says, "Anyone care to check this bit of shelf for magical surprises before I put the key in?" Once these checks are done, and if no surprises seem imminent, he'll open the case.
Clue: Use this clue to learn how many clues or texts remain in any two rooms.
Esoteric Alphabetisation: This library uses a strange system for organising its texts: it alphabetises its texts based on the progression of major musical scales instead of using the Taldan alphabet.
Clue: You may use this clue to grant a +2 bonus on all checks made to find texts in a single room for the rest of the scenario.
Taldan Cipher 1: This text describes a cipher in which one must read the message backwards, reading only every third letter; all other letters are ignored. The example the book provides is "RMNEB SISWD IILPL OTRSES," which means "soldier".
Ruined Book: This book is a testament to why libraries should prohibit food and drink; someone spilled a beverage on it and sheepishly put it back on the shelf, where it has sat for several months at least.
An Exciting Read: You have found several particularly engaging texts, and you find it particularly easy to concentrate on the reading.
Clue: Use this clue before a PC rolls a skill check to find a clue or text. He rolls twice and takes the higher of the two rolls.
Cross Reference: A book references another promising text. If only you could find where that other text is...
Clue: You may use this clue to gain a +3 bonus on a single skill check made to find texts.
Hand-Written Notes: There are extensive notes scribbled in the margins of this book. These hand-written insights could be key to your next big discovery.
Clue: You may use this clue to gain a +3 bonus on a single skill check made to find texts.
Prolific Author: It appears that a long-dead historian wrote more than a dozen books on the topics you're researching. Perhaps you can find other insightful books by this author.
Clue: You may use this clue to gain a +3 bonus on a single skill check made to find texts.
Taldan Cipher 2: According to this text, one common cipher involves changing each consonant into the letter that comes three places after it in the alphabet and changing each vowel into the letter that comes two places before. For example, D would become G, U would become S, and Z would become C. (Since the vowels rotate backward and the consonants rotate forward, it's a particularly puzzling cipher to break.)
Failed Prophecies: This text gives a detailed analysis of hundreds of proclaimed "ironclad" prophecies that have failed since the disappearance of Aroden. The author speculates that any prophecy made by Arodenites should be viewed with considerable skepticism. (This is one of those "bogus" clues again that doesn't do anything.)
Encarthan Maps: These maps depict Lake Encarthan, the Isle of Terror, and the nations that surround it. Of particular interest are the hundreds of hand-drawn notes and lines showing troop movements, preserving the changing plans of the brilliant generals who orchestrated the Shining Crusade.
A Silver Horn: This text describes in detail an enchanted silver horn capable of granting courage in times of need, which Taldor used for the fifth Army of Exploration and much later during the Shining Crusade, when it was shattered into several pieces. A priest of Aroden prophesised that even if re-forged, the instrument would never sound again, and it was given a hero's burial. The text mentioned nothing of the horn's present location.
Hidden Gem: Right next to one great discovery, you make another incredible find!
Clue: Use this clue when you or another PC discovers a clue or text to find one additional clue or text, if any remain in the room. (If attempting to use this in a room that doesn't have any more clues, it doesn't count; this clue can be used again.)
Magical Assistance: Some of the bookshelves bear a minor enchantment that aids researches, such as briefly granting the benefits of read languages or creating an unseen servant to aid in collecting documents.
Clue: After the PCs roll skill checks to find documents, any of them may reroll the check before learning the result.
Valerio can detect a rather strong transmutation aura, bright and yellow like the colour of daffodils, emanating from some of the books in the glass case.
Curiosity killed the cat, as they say...
Initiative: Tippy | Mohok | Zosimos | Zherohd | Valerio | Cesare | Book Swarm
Knowledge (arcana) to know more about this... creature(?).
Status
Cademon: 2 damage, plus bleed 1
Valerio: 2 damage, plus bleed 1
Zherohd: 2 damage, plus bleed 1
Zosimos: 2 damage, plus bleed 1
Valerio unlocks the glass cabinet, reaching out to grab one of these amazing and magical books. As soon as his fingertip brushes lightly over the spine of the nearest, there's a sudden flurry of movement as the book leaps up! Suddenly, the entire cabinet comes alive as all the books swarm out through the opening over you invaders! Each cover and half the pages seem to form the wings of some bizarre butterfly, intent on nothing but the destruction of ye who would dare to disrupt their rest.
Cademon, Valerio, Zherohd and Zosimos are in the initial line of fire, and they find themselves facing the brunt of the sudden hard covers bashing them around the side of the head. The worse part is probably when the edge of a page nicks you, giving you the most painful paper cut you've ever experienced. This is even besides suddenly drowning in the overwhelming smell of old books...
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Though he knows they're supposed to hide signs of their presence in the library, Mohok sees his new-found friends - something he's had precious few of in life - being sliced and pummeled by the bizarre, flying books. Hoping to minimize the damage he does, he slips a smallish mace off a hook on his belt. Wielding it in a two-handed grip, he swings it through the air, and through the storm of books.
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Raising an arm to shield his eyes, Valerio unleashes a tirade of Abyssal curses; to those who speak the demonic tongue they will know he is not entirely pleased with his carelessness and curiosity. While attempting to peak through his self made barrier to identify this... Perversion of literature, he draws back towards the eastern most wall. His weapons are his knowledge and his words - both of which he is almost definitely in outmatched by their current adversary - though he does relay whatever he can remember about these hard-backed demons to the rest of the group.
Initiative: Tippy | Mohok | Zosimos | Zherohd | Valerio | [b]Cesare | Book Swarm
Status
Cademon: 3 damage, plus bleed 1
Valerio: 3 damage, plus bleed 1
Zherohd: 3 damage, plus bleed 1
Zosimos: 3 damage, plus bleed 1Book Swarm: 14 damage
Mohok shows up to the party in stunning fashion, bashing numerous books out of the air with ease with his mace. When knocked to the ground, the books, like feeble insects or turtles knocked on their shells, flail around and seem to have trouble getting back in the air. Luckily, sans a couple of dints in the covers, the books themselves remain relatively unharmed.
Valerio realises this is... wait for it... a book swarm! Each of the books is an animated object, essentially harmless by themselves, but hoarding so many in one place makes them quite the menace (as you've all no doubt noticed). However, despite having a limited ability to move on their own, they're still books--and we all know what happens when you set fire to paper, if you're willing to ruin the information contained therein... aside from that, as you've seen, the books rely on bashing people around and inflicting painful paper cuts. Because, uh, they're books. Paper cuts are probably the scariest thing they can do.
Initiative: Tippy | Mohok | Zosimos | Zherohd | Valerio | Cesare | Book Swarm
Status
Note: Damage total includes the damage from the swarm itself and the bleed from rounds 1-2.Cademon: 4 damage, plus bleed 1 (and he goes poof back to the Eido-plane)
Tippy: 7 damage, plus bleed 1
Valerio: 4 damage, plus bleed 1
Zherohd: 10 damage, plus bleed 1, dying, unconscious
Zosimos: 4 damage, plus bleed 1
Book Swarm: 14 damageParty: Inspire courage (+1 to hit, damage)
Cesare charges down the hallway; he can't tell what's going on exactly, but he knows that Zosimos is looking terrified (or bewildered, possibly) and there's a lot of shouts of pain coming from the next room along. He offers his words of encouragement to help, though he has no idea what is going on just yet!
Cademon charges at the swarm with the last vestiges of his energy. Alas, it's not enough to stop any of the books, and it does little but make his paper cut wound hurt more. He swats harmlessly at the air for a while before succumbing to the blood loss and disappearing back to whatever otherworldly plane he comes from. Zherohd uses this as an opportunity to start calling some other, hopefully more useful minion in to help...
While the rest of the group are caught by indecision, the swarm is a mindless construct and knows nothing but death and destruction! The few remaining books continue to flap maliciously around, combining their attacks to slam into Zherohd and Tippy repeatedly, one after the other! It's all too much for Zherohd, who collapses onto the ground.
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Seeing Zherohd fall, Mohok tries to look through the swarming, swirling books and gauge how badly wounded the half-elf is, but can't really tell.
"Best way to help him is to break up this swarm," he rumbles, swinging his mace again in a flat, two-handed swing, like a large, shockingly ugly child playing a ball game.
Tippy slashes at the books, taking the covers off a couple of them, but he can't stop all of them, and they proceed to whack him and Zherohd around. Luckily, Mohok manages to step up and bravely take down what remains before they can do any more damage.
Characters taking continuous damage, such as from an acid arrow or a bleed effect, automatically fail all Constitution checks made to stabilize. Such characters lose 1 hit point per round in addition to the continuous damage.
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As the storm of books flutters to the ground around him, Mohok sees just how many of his companions have been injured. He hurries over to Tippy, pulling a bony, white wand from a pouch at his belt as he moves.
He lays the wand on Tippy's shoulder, near where one of the flying books has made a long, thin cut on the halfling's neck. The cut seals itself up as the wand's magic courses through it, but there are other injuries still paining the little rogue.