GM Kate's Ruins of Azlant (closed) (Inactive)

Game Master Kate Baker

Joli sighs. "Silt, if we'd coaxed them out, this would've been easier." He summons fire into his hands and advances on fair Eliza. (Produce flame)

We were coaxing them out? Why?

He shrugs and, clutching his chunk of pale coral, casts Bull's Strength domain spell. He stays put, drawing the greats word and keeping a wary eye on the door behind him.

"I knew it! I knew some sort of stupid bullshit would happen! If we have to drag them outta here, fine, but I. WANT. TO. LEAVE!"

Water begins to stream from Toby's skin as his fear and anxiety get the best of him. He runs forward and fires over his smaller companions heads, remembering at the last moment to alter his blast so as not to kill Eliza.

kinetic blast, point-blank, elem. overflow: 1d20 + 5 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 5 + 1 + 1 = 27 Before cover.
nonlethal bludgeoning, point-blank, elem. overflow: 2d6 + 5 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (1, 2) + 5 + 1 + 2 = 11

confirm?: 1d20 + 5 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 5 + 1 + 1 = 26
crit damage: 2d6 + 5 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (4, 1) + 5 + 1 + 2 = 13

D'oh, forgot about the stupid mirror image.

mirror image, 2 hits: 1d2 ⇒ 2

Woo!

The mighty blast of water wallops Eliza, who turns in fury at Toby. "No dog-thing is going to take us down that easily."

Her eyes seem to flash with lightning, and something about her changes.

something fun!: 1d100 ⇒ 22

She stares in anger at Toby, who feels something terrible try to tear his mind apart.

Mind Thrust II: 5d8 ⇒ (1, 3, 2, 3, 6) = 15

Will save 16 for half damage

Also, 2 bleed on your next turn.

Joli
Toby
Silt
Eliza 24 NL
Cedar
Rayland
Purpose

Will save: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19

"Ahhh! Get outta my head!" Toby clutches his head and howls as blood begins to leak from his ears.

Cedar moves forward and calls to the celestial plane of poodles for aid!

”Mitzi, how soon can you get here? And bring as many friends as you can!’

Poodles: 1d3 ⇒ 2

With a storm of yapter, Mitzi and Scout appear and attack Eliza.

Mitzi Bite: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19 damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5 Smite +1 DMG if evil

Scout Bite: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9 damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4 Smite +1 DMG if evil

Mitzi succeeds on a 2: 1d2 ⇒ 2

Eliza crumples with the bite of the mighty poodle. So much for my DR.

Rayland stares at Silt with pleading eyes.

He slices his swords at the poodle in front of him, then bashes his shield into Silt.

sword, vs Scout: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15
ouch!: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

sword, vs Scout if still up, otherwise Silt: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22
ouch!: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9

shield bash vs Silt: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (1) + 7 = 8
ouch!: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Joli
Toby
Silt
Eliza down
Cedar
Rayland
Purpose

Everyone is up!

Seeing Eliza crumple, Toby turns his ire toward Rayland. "Just give up so we can all leave this creepy place!"

Blood continues to leak from Toby's ears (2 points of bleed damage), diluted by the water dripping from his pores, as he fires at Rayland.

kinetic blast, point-blank, env. overflow: 1d20 + 5 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 5 + 1 + 1 = 15
nonlethal bludgeoning, point-blank, env. overflow: 2d6 + 5 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (6, 6) + 5 + 1 + 2 = 20

Joli leaps up onto the wall and a wave of water slides down his long tongue, smashing against poor witless Rayland.

Wave strike: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 5 + 1 = 19
NL: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5
2 hits: 1d2 ⇒ 1 Assuming mirror image still there.

Scout goes to poodle heaven on the second hit! She had 8 hp.

The mirror image is still there, yes.

Well Purpose technically goes before Joli. :-p

Silt attempts to hit Rayland more with the flat of the greatsword than the edge, calling upon the the power of the battering waves as he attacks wildly. destructive smite & power attacking nonlethally

Greatsword +8: 1d20 + 8 - 4 ⇒ (20) + 8 - 4 = 24
Confirm?: 1d20 + 8 - 4 ⇒ (19) + 8 - 4 = 23

Mirror image -- I am going to use "2" for a hit, using the precedent Dennis set up.

1d2 ⇒ 2

slashing, non-lethal: 2d6 + 14 ⇒ (2, 4) + 14 = 20
if confirmed slashing, non-lethal: 2d6 + 14 ⇒ (2, 4) + 14 = 20

Well. He’s still up. But ouch!

The spear clatters to the grown, and Purpose Creche looses an arrow towards Rayland.
Attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24, before one poodle's worth of cover.
Damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

I'll call the poodle partial cover, so that hits.

Purpose launches an arrow into Rayand's side just as Silt delivers a mighty blow with the flat of the skum's greatsword.

Rayland looks at the both of you gratefully.

His sword and shield lash out at Silt, almost of their own free will.

sword vs Silt: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (13) + 9 = 22
ouch!: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9

sword vs Silt, iterative: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7
ouch!: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

shield vs Silt: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
ouch!: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

He looks sorrowfully at Silt.

Joli
Toby
Silt
Eliza down
Cedar
Rayland -4 hp, 40 NL
Purpose

Shoot, I got the whole post written up and then saw that Cedar hadn't actually gone yet. Cedar, we can retcon if you would have taken him down.

Mitzi tries to bite Rayland but misses!
Bite: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5 damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

And Mitzi gets another attack for the current round!

Silt does not pop the image but Toby does! Cedar, Purpose, and Joli are still up.

"We are sorry, Rayland. If you're in there."

Purpose Creche looses another arrow, aiming for armpit seam in the man's armor.

Attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20
Damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

Joli licks and gets a terrible look in his face from the slime.

Wave blast: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 5 + 1 = 10
NL + 5’ push: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

Mitzi moves in and attempts to bite.

Bite: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12 damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Rayland looks distraught at the missed attacks, and a second Rayland appears again.

He once again lashes out at his surrounding foes.

sword, vs. Mitzi: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (11) + 9 = 20
ouch!: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10

sword, vs. Mitzi or Silt if Mitzi is down: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 = 8
ouch!: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11

shield bash, vs. Mitzi or Silt if Mitzi is down: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24
ouch!: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Everybody up!

Mitzi goes down on the first hit!

"Grrr! GIVE! UP!"

kinetic blast, pbs, elem overflow: 1d20 + 5 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 5 + 1 + 1 = 10
damage, pbs, elem overflow: 2d6 + 5 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (2, 1) + 5 + 1 + 2 = 11

Down to less than a third of his health, Silt strikes more carefully at the well-armored man, hoping to bring him down with the flat of the blade. Not power attacking, but smiting.

Greatsword+9 nonlethal: 1d20 + 9 - 4 ⇒ (18) + 9 - 4 = 23
Slashing, nonlethal: 2d6 + 11 ⇒ (6, 3) + 11 = 20

Rayland finally collapses.

Out of combat! What would you like to do?

Bind them up. Strip them of their magic items.

"Unfortunate that we had to do that. Let's try to get them safely back to the village."

Cedar also investigates the magic symbol.

"A symbol of mirroring. Of course."

Spellcraft: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25

Joli kneels over Rayland and Eliza, confirming they’re alive. "‘Tis odd. It seemed Eliza acted in part of her own will, while Rayland showed some signs of regret as he acted. Methinks we ought to free him first. And keep them both in careful quarantine until they’re free." He keeps a wary eye on the doorway of the tank.

Silt stumbles over to the tank's door and props it shut. Anything else interesting in that room where the rune is?

I will post this evening with magic items on them/in the room. If you’d like, you can start discussing what to do with them.

Purpose Creche sits cross-legged next to Eliza. He draws a thin finger along the musculature visible through the skin of her arm. "Careful transport. Quarantine. More soap." He leans in close to her temple. "Return their minds to them."

He looks about the room. "Many questions raised by this tower. History, present, recent past. What controls them, what controls the skum. How the architecture foils my nonphysical perception. Maybe once we leave, I can search their belongings for residue of recent events. Surely they go other places but this room."

He begins removing their equipment and weapons, laying it out in orderly rows for cataloging. "I wonder, though, if freeing them will also free their memories. Whoever fogs their minds could have done so permanently."

To be clear, once we're out of the tower I'm going to try object reading on eeeeeeeverything they had, in the hopes of getting a bit more context to their time in the tower. Dunno if it'll work!

Eliza has 2 potions of cure light wounds, a wand of mage armor with 16 charges, 4 alchemist's fires, a longspear, a cloak of resistance +1, and a ring of protection +1. She also has a saltspray ring, which lets the wearer create a thick vapor, and could be used to keep the slimy individuals damp. Rayland has an elixir of swimming, a potion of cure moderate wounds, silversheen, +1 breastplate, a masterwork longsword, a masterwork spiked shield, and a cloak of resistance +1. There is nothing else interesting in the room.

I think everyone should have a cloak+1 now, right? Several of us probably want the RoP +1. That saltspray ring is neat. Do any of us have spells or abilities that let us see through mists? That ring would be amazing for a wave oracle or storm druid!

For saltspray ring: Joli doesn't have that ability, though he could potentially have it at lvl 7. But for now we may want to put that ring on Wayland, if we agree he's the one to trust more.

Joli definitely wants one of those cloaks. The RoP is also definitely of interest, but he's not doing too bad with AC and seems to be less likely to be hit. It'd be great if we gave him alchemists fires. Perhaps Cedar would like the wand for buffing eidolon and summoned petses?

I agree the RoP should go to one of the frontliners. Cedar will take an alchemist fire and he’s happy to take the wand too. Potions of CLW to the frontliners too?

elixir of swimming to Purpose? I'll take the RoP unless someone else wants it. I got that sword so I feel like silt got a lot already.

Object reading gives confusing and muddled results. Eliza and Rayland, but also not Eliza and Rayland.

It sounds like you want to bring them back to the village, so I'd like to do a bit of a time skip. You can use the ring to keep them damp and bring them back to Talmandor's Bounty. Everyone is elated that you've found two of the original colonists, but then horrified at what's happened to them, both their bodies and their minds. They're kept restrained, separated, and quarantined, until, 11 days after you found them, the domination finally wears off.

Ramona calls you in. "Well, I think you should probably talk to them first, since you were the ones who found them. Be careful, who knows what kind of lasting effects there might be. The Fathers say that their minds are their own again, though. Who would you like to see first?"

Joli consults with Purpose and Cedar while the party is preparing to leave the tower. "What do you know of magics that control the mind so utterly? I've heard few of Jalaitali's songs about such things."

Essentially hoping to get a better sense of what effect they're under and its properties.

The evening after the party returns to the settlement, Joli goes down to the shoreline. He sings softly in rhythm with the waves.

"The waters depths, they have no form
But currents ever guide their flow.
We found our freedom 'pon the waves,
But now we find our ourselves upon this rock
Amidst a storm enchaining souls."

He looks out across the waves and along the coast.

"Oh birds and ocean, sing to me
Of evil that would twist the soul
And prayers to untie
The tethers of our foe."

His hands cup water over his head as he continues chanting. Soon the notes turn into a droning trance as visions take him.

Water has its song. The song has meaning. Beyond the melodies of whales beneath the waves, the elements do speak their truth. You hear them now, my little prince? You know the words the endless oceans speak?

You understand the magic spoken by the lips of creatures of all lands. Their spells and prayers. You start to know. And speak your prayers with greater voice into the world.

You speak the truth and necessary tales, my goodly little prince. You bring your acts wherever they are needed, like great grippli heroes ever have.

Go forth, fair noble Joli. Ward this island from the storms that beat upon its shores.

After some time, Joli rouses from his trance. His first thought is his friend Purpose. What magic is he weaving? His second thought is worry: Why was his creche not his first thought? Shaking his head, he smiles and laughs. We'll need to laugh to weather what lies ahead, I wager.

The frog prince makes his way back to the house and up to Purpose' rooftop workshop.

To Joli, as they leave the tower:

"I've heard of such magic, but that kind of mind control is beyond any of my knowledge. It's terrifying what's happened to them."
------

A week after returning to the village, while waiting for Eliza and Rayland's mind's to clear, Cedar spends his time helping to establish the new pub.

He's rolling a barrel of cider from the storehouse one sunny day when he stops to wipe the sweat from his face. His bandanna is already drenched. His thoughts of enjoying a refreshing pint are interrupted by the low rumble of a running creature. A six legged creature. Cedar turns to see Karl in the distance charging straight for the village.

"What the...?" Squinting, Cedar can make out something on Karl's back. Someone is riding Karl right to the center of town!

Other villagers begin to notice too and start running for cover.

"Get inside!" Cedar yells, waving folks to safety. Silt, what're you thinking?!

But Cedar can see that it's not Silt on Karl's back. It's some kind of animal. A dinosaur!

Just as Karl reaches the edge of town he comes to a skidding halt, launching the dinosaur into the air. Cedar dives behind the barrel but the dinosaur has wings! The lizard flies above the village squawking triumphantly.

"Silt?!" Cedar shakes his fist at the flying dinosaur. "That better be you up there!"

As Cedar squints into the sky, he sees a human-sized lizard covered in creamy blue feathers. Rows of sharp ivory canines jut out at weird angles from its clumsy green beak; a round red eye stares into Cedar's as it banks in the air and emits a strange, warbling howl.

It's also wearing a battered old farmer's hat.

WHHHUUAAAARRRRKKKKPHHHH

At the edge of the village's main street, Karl lurches up on his hind legs — whether it's a gesture of camaraderie or of defiance, who can say?

SHHHHHAKKKKKAAAASSSSPHK

The long tail flutters behind like the pennant of a kite as, limned in the dying red sun, the dimorphodon vanishes into the distance.

The entire village is perfectly silent.

A potted plant falls off a ledge and shatters on the ground; a baby wails.

Tentatively Cedar rises from behind the barrel. Luetin Calewick pokes his head out of the nearby blacksmith's shop.

"It's fine," Cedar says. "Nobody worry. Everything is fine."

At the edge of town Karl chews on a fence post.

"I mean relatively," Cedar says with a smile and goes back to rolling his barrel.

Ramona calls you in. "Well, I think you should probably talk to them first, since you were the ones who found them. Be careful, who knows what kind of lasting effects there might be. The Fathers say that their minds are their own again, though. Who would you like to see first?"

"Rayland seemed the least in control of his actions. Perhaps that means he was less willing. Less likely to dissimulate. Let's start with him."