GM Blake's Gallows of Madness Part 3 (Inactive)

Game Master Blake's Tiger

Hidden amid a copse of gnarled trees sits a large mausoleum of polished granite. Statues of weeping angels of green-tinged bronze flank the closed entrance. A tarnished silver doorplate on the black steel door reads, “Sarini.”

Following his brother's orders, Dumont attempts to open the tomb door. The skeletal servant finds the door soundly locked, and--upon rattling the door--the bronze angles each swiftly unfurl their wings, slicing through Dumont like a scythe. Fortunately, the wings pass through the empty spaces on the skeleton.

Lock: Simple; Door: Good Wooden Door

I think none of us has disable device, and none of the spellcasters have knock. So our only option seems to be to bash it down?

"That's quite the trap on that door. Unless one of you knows their way around the lock, we may have to search within the main structure to acquire a key," Faust points out with irritation. That trap would have been uncomfortable too. Dumont you are already proving to be quite the useful companion. Perhaps you'll be as useful in your death as you were in life.
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To the NE structure then inside the mansion?

Abyssia shakes her heads "Locks aren't my thing, I'm not overly great at bashing either..."

Maria instinctively twitches back as the trap triggers. Seeing that it doesn't seem to do much damage to their skeletal friend she questions, "I'd prefer trying to get this open. I'd guess something that is still trapped like that is likely still undisturbed. Might be protecting exactly what we are looking for. Can your brother bash the door down or does someone have a crowbar? I can give it a go with a bunch of kicks, but that probably isn't the quickest way in."

"The forces that grant his body movement do offer some strength, however nothing that living flesh couldn't do itself. I could have a go at it as well, perhaps we could all work together?" Faust offers.
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Could we use Dumont to figure out the reset time of the trap? Then we could aid another to make the strength check to break it down? We could also just start wailing on the door between reset times too.

The wings remain splayed, so you could deduce that the reset is likely manual or, at least, you would have plenty of visual warning that it was resetting.

Abyssia looks down at her tail, "Door kicking isn't my forte but I can lean a shoulder into it as needed."

Sounds like we're going to spend some time trying to bash down the door.

Looks like we are mostly in agreement then... Faust throws his shoulder into the door and begins to push. "Please, join me at your leisure," he says dryly through gritted teeth.
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Strength Check vs Door: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19
Thanks GM! Can Dumont aid another or would that be beyond his abilities?

Maria, not one to avoid getting her ears dirty, attempts to aid. "I think *GRUNT* that if we leverage it here *GRUNT* we might be able to wedge it open."

Strength Aid DC 10: 1d20 ⇒ 18

Shalendra stands watch as the group attempts to open the door. "I'm afraid my strength isn't up to helping with the task at hand.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (15) + 9 = 24 +3 if we are in bright light

strength aid?: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

Abyssia does her best to push as well.

Lydia contributes a bony, but unnaturally forceful, shoulder.

aid Faust's Strength check: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19

Dumont could certainly Aid Another in a Strength check to break a door or move an object. However, aid was not needed this time.

Faust slams his shoulder into the door and the old, weathered wood cracks loudly down the middle. One side falls down and hangs gee-hawed off of the lock. The other side swings uselessly on the hinges.

Inside the mausoleum, two stone coffins stand on a dais, and several more coffins lie on shelves built into the walls.

Know History: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (17) + 8 = 25

"Interesting. That's the holy symbol of Aroden." Faust do you mind having your brother pick up the journal."

"But of course. Dumont, would you be a dear?" Faust asks while gesturing towards the book. I see she has developed beyond her prior notion of 'it is shiny, I must get it.' Expendable minions have so many uses!

"I wonder what Aroden will have to do with this mess, but I suppose we shall have some inkling once we inspect that text."

Abyssia stays back, not particularly interested in checking out the coffins herself.

The skeletal servant does as bid, unceremoniously removing the large, ancient diary from the corpse's grip and handing the tome to Faust.

The journal has been rendered mostly illegible by the intrusion of moisture over the years, although the beginning of the inscription can be read: to Luca.

It is clear that it will take good light and a great deal of patience to mine information from this large journal as ink has bled, brittle pages are stuck together, and spots of mildew have grown over the text.

Maria looks through the crypt and then watches as the old journal is retrieved. Glancing over a shoulder she comes to a quick conclusion, "I'm all for sitting down and working through a complicated journal to figure out all sorts of interesting details, but we should proooobably do that later."

Abyssia nods, "Where should we check next?"

"I concur," Faust agrees, pocketing the journal for later perusal. "There appears to be one more structure to inspect before the main building. Shall we?"

"I agree with Faust." as much as it pains me to say that. "Let's check the rest of the out buildings before heading to the main building."

You turn and head into the untamed garden in the back corner of the yard. Here you see many different types of poisonous plants: hemlock, poison oak, belladonna, and many other plants.

As Faust's skeletal brother makes his way into the garden, a long, sticky appendage darts from inside the hedges to both sides. They fail to connect to the servant's body.

Combat! Round 1. Bold may act.
Takumi
Faust
Abyssia
Lydia
Frogs x 2
Maria
Shalendra

K: Nature DC 13: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (2) + 6 = 8

K: Nature DC 16: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (4) + 6 = 10

K: Nature DC 12: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12

Maria apparently hasn't studied most things about nature at all... but Herpetology? Yup that's her thing!

She hollers out as the creatures become visible. GIANT POISONOUS FROGS! WATCH OUT!"

"It doesn't matter what they are, they'll all crumble before us just the same! Dumont, rend their flesh!" Faust snaps as he prowls up to the intersection of hedges. "Let them come!" he challenges as he winds up his sword in anticipation for an approach.

Dumont dutifully steps up to the nearest amphibian and does his best to dig his claws into it.
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Faust
Readied Action (Attack) vs Hostile Approach: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 201d6 + 12 ⇒ (2) + 12 = 14
Dumont
Claw vs Blue: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 151d4 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
Claw vs Blue: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 91d4 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7

knowledge(nature): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (10) + 9 = 19
knowledge(nature): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (3) + 9 = 12
knowledge(nature): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29

"Beware! The hedges' thorns are poisonous!" Takumi yells out in warning. He studies the area and does not like the limited space for everyone to maneuver. He can, however, bring in an ally that does not have a problem with that, though. He steps forward and again, calls forth a celestial eagle at his maximum range. The eagle flaps a short distance to flank the (blue) frog with the undead... Dumont.

bite vs blue: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 3 + 2 = 18 dmg: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5
claw 1 vs blue: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 3 + 2 = 13 dmg: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3
claw 2 vs blue: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 3 + 2 = 19 dmg: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5

Summoned Eagle: AC:14 T:13 FF:12 | HP: 7/7 | Resist Acid, Cold, and Electricity 5

"Frogs, why did it have to be frogs..." mumbles Abyssia.

Anyssia moves up as fast she can managing, taking some cover from the poisonous hedge while defending the tiny gap to her northeast.

The eagle pins the giant frog within the concealing hedges. The frog backs away, and Dumont's claws come away with nothing but leaves. The eagle takes advantage and scores the thick, moist hide.

The wounded frog strikes from within the hedge and clamps onto Dumont's leg but does not harm the skeleton and cannot seem to hold onto the skeleton. A tongue emerges from the hedge to Faust's right and sticks to his torso, threatening to pull him into the hedges.

Faust: I'll let you switch your roll (14) to a roll to break the grapple, which may or may not be sufficient, if you like.

Combat! Round 1. Bold may act.
Takumi
Faust (grappled)
Abyssia
Lydia
Frogs (blue -13 hp, red -0 hp)
Maria
Shalendra

Maria slips around the hedge in front of her and with only brush between her a one of the frogs, pulls her bowstring taught and looses an arrow into the foliage, hoping to hit. "Thanks for the heads up about those plants! I just couldn't quite figure out if they were dangerous."

"Honestly, frogs? We come all this way for an authentic haunted mansion, and the best they can give us is frogs??? I suspect the degree of hauntedness in this place went up by multiple hundreds of percents when WE entered the grounds...."

Fomalhaut takes a half-hearted swat at the underwhelming peril.

slam vs red frog: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12
1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5 plus -2 penalty to Strength for 1 round on hit

Lydia tries her 'impending doom upon the weak-willed' trick on the frog trying to reel in Faust - how hard can it be to scare a frog?

Doom SLA, DC 10, on red frog before moving in.

Know Nature: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23
Know Nature: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20

"The hedges have poisonous thorns. Passing through them risks suffering their effect. Be careful."

"That's interesting. Some of the poisonous plants come from lands far from Isger, as far away as Sargava."

She moves up and gives the blue tinged frog the Evil Eye.

DC 15 Will save or -2 to Attack Rolls for 7 rounds otherwise it's one.

Faust tears the sticky tongue off of his armor. Maria loses an arrow into the leaves. Fomalhaut glides forward and strikes the giant amphibian within the hedge.

Lydia senses the frog throw off her curse of doom while Shalendra's evil eye affects the other frog to its fullest extent.

Combat! Round 2. Bold may act.
Takumi
Faust
Abyssia
Lydia
Frogs (blue -13 hp [-2 to hit, 6/7], red -5 hp [-2 STR, 1/1])
Maria
Shalendra

Hearing about the hedges, Faust darts around to the back and tries to run the frog through with his sword. "Our victory is assured, the harbinger of your doom has materialized!" he cries when he sees Takumi's eagle.

Dumont continues to obey, trying to rip up the other frog with help from the eagle.
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Faust
+1 Scimitar (PA, Flank) vs Red: 1d20 + 6 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 6 + 2 = 161d6 + 12 ⇒ (5) + 12 = 17

Dumont
Claw (Flank) vs Blue: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 4 + 2 = 111d4 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7
Claw (Flank) vs Blue: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 4 + 2 = 141d4 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
Takumi, do you imagine your summons to be the same creature or a different one each time?

Abyssia double moves through the path down the middle, her tail being more a hinderance than a help in these bushy lands.

Faust swings his blade into the concealing hedges and strikes something of significant resistance. Something heavy falls within the hedges and blood spills onto the dirt on the opposite side of the dhampir.

The skeletal servant, meanwhile, tears at the hedges. One hand comes away with a fistful of leaves. The other strikes down the frog within.

Combat Over

There seems to be no enemy left alive in this garden of poisonous plants. The gazebo is old and weathered but the roof is still solid and useful for shielding its occupants from the rain.

Shalendra carefully moves in and looks the gazebo over. "At least we have a dry place to say outside of the house if needed. I'm going to guess that the hedges will keep most creatures, except giant frogs of course, away from this area." She'll cast detect magic just because.

Abyssia looks around "Everybody okay?"

"Dumont and I are in perfect health," Faust responds to Abyssia. "Once we are collected, shall we move to our raison d'etre?" has asks as he carefully brushes off any leaves from his body and Dumont's bones.

"Dumont and I are in perfect health," Faust responds to Abyssia.

She raises an eyebrow at this, "um... Dumont appears to uh be a bit emaciated though. I mean, maybe a little skin and tissue would help improve his uh.. never mind."

Maria does a quick check of the gazebo, looking for possible hidden entrances.

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18

If none are found she heads to the front door of the residence and follows their usual tactics, waiting for the skeleton to proceed.

Finding no secrets in the gazebo floor or magical auras within the limits of Shalendra's abilities, you follow Faust's skeletal servant back to the dilapidated front entrance. The doors part easily and with no consequences.

Paintings of people and landscapes adorn the walls of this once-grand entrance hall. A few small vases, most of them cracked or broken altogether, sit on semi-circular tables set against the west wall. A faint smell of mildew hangs in the air.

Landscapes

Maria enters and not seeing any immediate threats, starts looking around at the paintings. "Smells old, like the library from...' she trails off, lost in thought as she looks at the paintings.

K: Geography (Landscapes): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11

A small smile of some good reminiscence, "oh this is a beautifiul depiction of the Aspodell mountain range in... Iskger is what they call that nation now I think. I'll have to try to take more time next visit, it is gorgeous."

K: History (Portraits): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22

"As you can clearly see here these are paintings of the Sarini family. There is Baron Marcius Sarini, next is his father, Baron Lucius Sarini and then of course Baroness Sadira Sarini."

After her musings on the paintings she waits near the skeleton, continuing to eye it closely.

Abyssia listens carefully to Maria's explination, impressed at her knowledge.

Know Nature: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13

Pointing to the painting of the mountains that Maria pointed out, "The plants were from there as well. It seems they had quite a connection to that land."

If she sees no threats she will take the time to look closely at the entrance and cloak room.

I found some shiny things. I wonder if I should point them out to Faust. She pulls the items of value out, and takes the painting off the wall setting it carefully by the door. "It might be worth taking it back with us."

"Hmmm.... Yes, this must have been quite the estate. Obviously not in its present condition, but if it were renovated..." There would even be rumors and superstition to keep the peasants away. A more permanent establishment here is worth pursuing a little further.

"Shalendra, I hadn't noticed you ran off into another beast's lair! Good to see you weren't eaten," he remarks, doing that pained facial expression that you've learned to be his "joking" face. Why is the humor of life so much more challenging? A pack of ghouls at a party, not a problem, but our menagerie? The toughest crowd in existence.

We'll go clockwise.

Dumont continues through another unlocked door into a grand drawing room.

Once-fine furniture, now ripped and faded from neglect, adorns this chamber. Two large mirrors have been set on the north wall here, but cracks and dark stains mar their silvery surface, and many pieces are missing. A lute rests against the back of a stained red velvet sofa.

"Who would like to search in here?" Shalendra casts Detect Magic as she examines the drawing room.

"You never know when a cloak is going to attack." Shalendra replies to Faust dryly.

Abyssia smiles and nods "No need to rush, we should be thorough here I think."

She doesn't even know the half of it, I've seen pieces of clothing squeeze the life from their wearer! Though I doubt any of that would be just lying around in here. Faust looks around the room briefly. He picks up the lute to inspect it, then tosses it back to the floor with a shrug.

"More junk, the next room then?" Maybe an otyugh in the basement? I hear those things eat EVERY thing and are good security to boot.

"Who's that!" Takumi calls out in faint alarm, his usual decorum broken. Seeing the his teammates' stunned faces, he whispers to them, "Did no one else hear that voice? It was in my mind..."