Taldidri waits for Dahlia's responses, wanting to ask if there have been any other similar disappearances in the area. He knows people don't like to be bombarded with questions while deeply worried about someone in trouble. Also, if she did know about other such cases she likely would have offered the info anyway...
Greta's eyes are wide as she meets Min's gaze. "Yes. I fear for his safety. We should hurry." The halfling responds, and uncharacteristic note of deep concern in her voice.
"Oh of course," she gives you directions to his house, "but be careful. Remember how I said no one would think to look there? It’s because it’s not safe. The stairs are full of termites, and the attic’s full of bats. One good storm and the whole place might just fall down.”
“I dunno who his enemies are. He’s real private about his past, and I don’t like to pry when it’s not my business. Maybe it was slavers, like he said.”
***
Only weeds surround Justerian's once-majestic manor house, which now leans slightly to the west, sinking into the muck. The first floor is flooded, and its front door hangs open. Two staircases lead up to the second floor, their steps riddled with small holes. The ground floor seems to contain only floodwater, mold, and decaying furnishings.
The stairs to the second floor have clearly been compromised by a termite infestation.
Each of you can attempt either an Acrobatics check to climb the stairs, avoiding weak points, or an Athletics check to scale the rough inner walls of the building to bypass the stairs entirely.
"Hmph. NO way I'm using those stairs! Lets burn the bats out and I'll try to climb the walls. Betcha that will work. Gotta be careful we don't set fire to whole place. Any ideas?"
Min eyes the building with skepticism, then draws an oil flask from her pack. "Looks like Justerian stayed on the upper floor. That is, if he really lived here? This place looks about ready to collapse. Surely he could have got himself a corner at the tavern to live in instead?"
Min acknowledges internally that she's just delaying the inevitable. She's going to have to face those bats eventually. At least she has *something* to use against them.
She follows after Flynt, moving with great care on the stairs to get up to the second floor. As she balances, she calls back to Grinwald "You're welcome to climb, but if we get up and have a chance to breathe, I'll drop you a rope."
Sigh, more muck.
The wizard gets to carefully braving the rotten stairs.
Flynt and Min are able to scale the stairs, but Taldridi takes a nasty fall
Taldidri rubs a sizable knot on his forehead that looks like it might grow its own face, dusts himself off, and tries a different path up the stairs.
"Oh I know a few things about termites! Pesky little things, but they leave signs, if you know how to look for them." The halfling points out any such signs when they reach the house, so the others know to watch out for weak points.
The halfling makes the climb looks easy as she springs lightly up the steps.
Up top, Min anchors a rope from her climbing kit on the most solid piece of wood she can find and then lets the rope trail down the stairs. "Coming up with us, Grinwald, Sippit?"
She scopes out the upper floor.
Sippit manages to make incompetence look good as he climbs.
Grinny takes advantage of the rope and
has a few issues getting up, getting his axe caught on something.
but makes it on his second try.
Grinwald does actually make the ascent on the first try, but some of the brickwork crumbles, and he is showered in debris.
The doors on the second floor are unlocked. They creak loudly when opened and release a wave of acrid air. The light levels are dim, and as you look around its clear that the upstairs are somehow in worse repair. The floor in the main room seems to be covered with a think lair of acidic sludge, probably not strong enough to eat through your boots, but falling into it would be unpleasant, and the ground itself will be treacherous.
This moldering bedroom seems mostly empty. Other than the bed, which is adorned with fresh blankets and pillows, the rest of the furniture is decaying and covered in dust. But as you get close to the room, chaos strikes! A pile of moldering ooze slides out from beneath the bed, pseudopods questing for your flesh; startled by its appearance a swarm of bats takes flight from the rafters, and the roof begins to rain debris, dropping large chunks of miscellany into the goop, sending it splattering in a wide arc.
Taldridi
Min
Flynt
Greta
Bat Swarm
Grinwald
Ooze
Sippit
Falling Debris/Acid Splashes
Taldidri rushes forward and begins uttering spell worlds loudly. He thrusts his hands outward flatly, two thumbs touching each other as a fan of fire extends forward from his gesticulation.
Time for some pest control!
"Ew! This place is really gross, I've seen animals kept in better conditions than this. How can anyone live in this kind of a mess?" Greta asks plaintively, wiping a bit of nasty off her hand where she touched something sticky.
Then suddenly there are bats everywhere, and the rogue moves stealthily to avoid them, letting the others deal with the swarm. She figures her own weapons are ill-suited to deal with the hundreds of leathery-winged creatures and she hopes fervently that they don't carry disease. At the moment, she hasn't seen the ooze yet...
to avoid being attacked by the bats.
Min eyes the chaotic scene, unsure how to approach it. She tries to be stealthy to avoid attracting the bats' attention, then lights and throws the oil she's holding at the ooze.
Grinwald is still wiping the crud from his eyes from the climb when a new wave of crud hits him. No wonder he is slow to react!
Taldridi slips slightly in the acid-eaten floor, but is still able to unleash his fiery torrent. Flynt's arrows likewise find their mark, but Min's oil bath does little more than leave the ooze glistening
The bats stream away from the gouts of fire and ooze, engulfing Sippit and Greta in a cloud of fur and fangs!
Taldridi
Min
Flynt
Greta Bats!
Bat Swarm -14
Grinwald
Ooze -16
Sippit Bats!
Falling Debris/Acid Splashes
Grinwald finds a handy target right next to him and tilts his axe 90 degrees and starts beating down swaths of bats after entering a rage.
, Attack gets electrical, arcane and evocation traits
, Attack gets electrical, arcane and evocation traits
rage
attack
attack
Grinwald's mighty sweeps disperse the frantic bats!
Still simmering from Taldridi's flames, the ooze squelches forward, splattering the party with foulness. before battering Taldridi with its pseudopod.
Bold may Go
Acid marked spaces are difficult terrain
Taldridi -6 Save vs. Acid
Min Save vs. Acid
Flynt Save vs. Acid
Greta Save vs. Bats! Save vs. Acid
Grinwald Save vs. Acid
Ooze -16
Sippit Save vs. Bats! Save vs. Acid
Falling Debris/Acid Splashes
THUD
Medic...!
Not sure if I add my level to that or not, but it does not matter with that roll.
Grinwald barely feels the damage due to his rage, but the rage does not help him overcome the entangling goo.
The acid doesn't bother Sippit but the bats? The bats do.
Sippit spends two actions to conjure a ball of fire and fling it at the ooze!
for fire damage!
Min doesn't quite manage to dodge the acid splash, instead dropping into a fighting stance with her hands held in claws. She doesn't waste any words on this ooze creature. Instead, she just starts tearing away!
vs DC 15 = Success! 1 Damage?
vs DC 15 = Success!
Sippit's ball of flame scorches the walls, and then a large chunk of ceiling-debris falls in front of Min, sending a new spray of acid right at her!
Luckily after that, Min simply tears the ooze apart!
Acid marked spaces are difficult terrain
Taldridi -11
Min -1, hampered 10', Save vs. Acid (again)
Flynt Save vs. Acid
Greta
Grinwald -2, +2, Hampered 10'
Sippit -1[/b]
Falling Debris/Acid Splashes (Still going on)
Greta laughs shakily. "Haven't been that scared since the Haunted House exhibit back at the circus last All-Hallows Eve. Had a few bats, though not nearly that many, and even had an ooze that looked kind of like that one..."
The halfling continues to search warily. "You suppose Justerian could possibly still live here? Where is he, if he does? Justerian! We're here to help you!" Greta calls out softly, hoping for some kind of response.
Taldidri feels weak and dangerously battered. He slowly slinks out of the room amidst the action of his teammates to gather himself...
Min jumps away from the splash of acid. "We want to take a look around this room, yes? We need to try to keep the ceiling from crumbling before we can." Min takes out her 10ft pole and uses it to brace the ceiling!
Grinwald tries to extricate himself from the goo that is currently attached in very uncomfortable ways (i.e. trying to get rid of the hampered condition).
Min isn't able to brace the ceiling right away, but she's pretty sure that after a minute or so, whatever's loose will have already fallen...
The next couple of splatters don't land next to anyone who's still in the room, so after waiting out the falling debris, you're able to safely search the room.
You find a wooden trunk hidden underneath the remains of the bed. It contains two sets of simple clothing, 50 feet of hemp rope, a waterskin, 10 days of rations, a set of cookware, a minor elixir of life, a vial of nectar of purification, 12 sp, and a note...
"Justerian,
Again I ask that you find somewhere else to live. You don’t need to live in squalor — not when you have friends who can help you find a safer home.
–W"
The rest of the rooms on this floor contain nothing of interest, but the stairs to the attic are another story.
The floor bears several bloodstains, and a dribbled trail of blood leads all the way up the stairs and into the attic beyond. Clumps of flies and moths hover in the air near the top of the stairs. A club and a battered piece of painted wood lie discarded on the stairs as well.
The club has strands of hair still clinging tot he weapon.
The piece of painted wood is in the shape of a Rose growing amidst bloody cobblestones.
Ginwald is there but not using his brains. He's over by the bats admiring his handiwork.
Taldidri gingerly re-enters the room once it seems things are safe in there.
The hair is stuck directly to a piece of bone, but the bone looks dry, it hasn't been in a body in some time. It must have come from an undead creature.
Agreed, where there are flies, there is "meat."
Min nods along with her allies' conclusions. "Hm, it seems Justerian got some help, but never managed to take advantage of it. All these things here came from W. I assume that was one of Milani's followers?"
She looks up at the attic and adds "Those moths. Death's head moths, symbols of the goddess Urgathoa. Combine that with signs of undeath, and you have quite the unpleasant stew. Did an undead creature strike Justerian and drag him to the attic? Maybe..."
She steels herself and starts ascending.
Upstairs a body awaits you. It lies on the floor of the attic among abandoned furnishings, surrounded in a puddle of congealed blood. Sadly, it matches Dahlia's description of Justerian.
caused his death came from claws.
Taldidri crouches over the body and inspects the wounds like an investigator.
Hmm, the fatal wounds were created by claws. That could definitely be a skeleton.
He looks around the room for other obvious signs of the specific aggressor.
Grinwald lets the others do all that thinking. He's not sure what's the point of all this analyzing. Dead is dead. He stands by while the others point and talk, talk and point.
Greta is saddened by the developments, but not terribly surprised. "We should arrange to have his body transported from here. This hovel is no place for anyone's remains. But we should also be concerned about the others on that list. Perhaps there is yet time to save some of them."
Sippit watches with interest as the body is examined. "So we am leaving now?"
"Leaving? Sure, but where to? Who do you think this fellow 'W' is?"
Min spends a few minutes looking over the body with the rest of the group.
But in the end she ends up just trusting Taldidri's conclusions.
"Unlucky guy, this Justerian. But... I still don't understand. Why didn't he want the help of-" Min's eyes go wide.
Slowly, as the thought runs through her... "This might sound outrageous, but what if that follower of Milani- Wennel, if that is their name- what if the follower is the one killing the slaves? Obviously not a true follower of Milani. But it would give them excellent cover to meet a number of ex slaves to try to 'help' them while setting them up to be murdered?" She frowns in distaste.
"It might be idle speculation, but we should try to find Wennel if we can."
---
When the party makes their way back to Valsin, Min relays her theory after the others provide more concrete evidence.
While Grinwald waits in the office he fidgets. All the excitement has gotten his blood flowing and he's looking forward to more action. By now, though, he has gotten used to the fact that there has to be calm between the fun storms. So he waits.
"They don't pay me to figure out puzzles, but this Wennel does seem to be the key to whatever is going on here. So how do we find him? Look for a temple of Milani?"
Taldidri lays out the details of their encounter with the Muckrucker, her pointing them to the tavern, and their eventual encounter at the run-down house with the next, murdered, ex-slave. He ends with, it seems the undead who killed him were likely controlled by a worshipper of Urgathoa. I agree we need to look into this Wennel before they get further down their list. As far as we know there are three names of ex-slaves that yet live and with haste we can prevent it.
Taldidri suddenly remembers, adding...
Oh, and we should drop back by the tavern to deliver the bad news to Dahlia. She seemed particularly concerned with our checking up on Justerian.