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"Ha! I knew the fun wasn't over yet..." Lord Braggett says as he raises his sword over his head, "We will wipe the floor with them and mop them up. For the glory of the Society, CHARGE!" He then charges into the room on the back of his trusty steed, roaring his Lion's Call.
The first time Kibble is hit in a round, Braggett will use the Mounted Combat feat, and as an immediate action to try and negate any damage. The hit is negated if the Ride check result is greater than the opponent's attack roll.
For the first two adjacent allies (including Braggett) who are targeted for an attack, Kibble will use the Bodyguard feat to use an AoO and boost their AC.
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"More molasses devils, you say? Wait, wait for me! Birdlathan may make a second appearance yet!" Erlathan dives through the hallway towards the others.
"Magic missiles always seem effective on these things, er, and most other things, don't they?" Erlathan squeezes his marble wand to activate it.
[dice=MM]1d4+1
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After Vegazi shoots an arrow into the red devil, Hanlin uses his wand to cast bless on the party.
Lord Braggett issues his Lion's Call to his comrades as Kibble carries him into the Crypt of the Elders.
Bishop places himself between the wounded lemure and Vegazi.
Nina enters the Elders Crypt as well, and she and Inky take a position next to Bishop and Lord Braggett, ready to swing both ways. Her fiery gem illuminates the crypt, the sarcophagi casting eery shadows on the walls of the tomb.
Erlathan points his wand at the yellow lemure and blasts it with a magic missile.
Bishop
Erlathan
Nina & Inky
Hanlin
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Red Lemure
Yellow Lemure
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Lord Braggett & Kibble
Vegazi
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Hanlin ducks a bit as a flying magical missile whizzes past his face "You're sure you've got control of those things right? Its bad enough I'm bald, I don't need any scars to go with it."
He hustles off into the room, drawing his silvered mace as he goes. Cursing his restrictive armor, he pulls up next to Nina and Inky, again touching her on the shoulder and whispering in her ear "The Dawnflower is nice, but Iomedae guides your hand this time."
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Erlathan laughs, hovering his hand over Hanlin's head. "Friend, my head was just as yours not two months ago. It is by some miracle that I've now managed to resprout these Kreighton Shaine-esque golden locks." He conjures a magic missile and holds it in his hand, winding up as if he's about to throw it at Hanlin, then turns and tosses it at the devil at the last second, giggling. "Hah! I don't think it'd hit you even if I wanted it to. The gods prevent injuring ones own ally, somehow."
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Bishop slips his dagger through sinuous layers of corrupted flesh to find the red fiend's heart.
Hanlin bestows The Inheritor's guidance on the gnome summoner, whose silvered mace sends the devil's soul back to Hell.
Erlathan sends another magic missile hurtling into the yellow lemure.
That creature pays its wounds no heed and lurches forward to sink its claws into Nina, but the dragoon's leathers turn its attacks.
Using the cavalier and his mount as cover, Vegazi nocks another arrow to her bow and fires, but the errant missile strikes the wall behind the devil.
Bishop
Erlathan
Nina & Inky
Hanlin
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Red Lemure
Yellow Lemure
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Lord Braggett & Kibble
Vegazi
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"Indeed, Lady Brightspark! Why I dare say we have found our true calling here today..." Lord Braggett cheers as he lines up the Lemure for a charge, pointedly ignoring Inky, "We are natural devil slayers!" Sir Kibble charges into the Lemure's flank, carrying the enthusiastic gnome on his back, and with tooth and blade, both throw everything they have at the remaining molasses devil.
Free action: Ride check to Attack in same round as Kibble
Full action: Charge Yellow (keeps AC)
Kibble:
Full action: Charge Yellow (AC 17 for one round)
The first time Kibble is hit in a round, Braggett will use the Mounted Combat feat, and as an immediate action to try and negate any damage. The hit is negated if the Ride check result is greater than the opponent's attack roll.
For the first two adjacent allies (including Braggett) who are targeted for an attack, Kibble will use the Bodyguard feat to use an AoO and boost their AC.
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Erlathan twiddles his thumbs as the duo of gnomes and animal combo likely lay waste to the remaining lemure. "It occurs to me that I'll never know what it is like hitting those devils with a blade. Lord Braggett, do their bodies offer resistance? Like a spoon through thick, tacky pudding?" He cringes, imagining the feeling of a blade slowing as it traverses their form.
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Lord Braggett displays his amazing equestrian skills, Kibble advancing on the lemure, enabling both gnome cavalier and lupine mount to bring their weapons to bear. The fiend's tough hide absorbs the blow from the longsword but is pierced by the wolf's teeth.
Not to be outshined after recent success against the hellspawn, Nina her attention upon the yellow lemure. Dragoon and eidolon attack. Silver mace crackling with arcane energy and feline fangs aglow with divine blessing take down the yellow devil.
The priest of Iomedae swings his own silver mace, and Hanlin ensures the lemure stays down.
Bishop steps in, and wielding his silver dagger with a killer's efficiency, ends its infernal existence.
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A search of the Crypt of the Elders reveals nothing of interest, and the sarcophagi were undisturbed.
The party moves south into the Hall of the Honored. A long row of stone sarcophagi lines this narrow chamber. Three passageways to the north lead to other rooms.
Bishop, Erlathan, and Vegazi notice the lid of one sarcophagus sits slightly ajar. With soft steps, Vegazi approaches the sarcophagus and swings open the lid.
His hiding place discovered, a scared Arwyll Stead militia member holds his eyes shut and cowers, waving his guisarme in front of himself feebly. "Iomedae, save me! Don't let these devils take me!"
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Hanlin slings the shield to his back and hooks his mace on his belt, stepping up to the coffin, he reaches out his tattooed hand towards the man inside "The Inheritor DID just save you, step out of there and regain your wits man."
He looks him over for injuries "I am Hanlin, warrior priest of Iomedae, and these are the rest of my group," pointing them out and introducing them. "Tell us what you know as we finish clearing the crypt."
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Bishop listens to the guard's story as Hanlin helps him from the sarcophagus he was hiding in.
Once the conversation ends with the militia member and the party is ready to move on Bishop heads towards the west most passage. There he pauses and once again invokes the divine nature of his wand as his dagger is surrounded by the blessing.
Right by the tunnel he listens trying to hear anything ahead.
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"Now now, I'm not entirely sure the Lady of Valour should take all the credit." Lord Braggett says, riding up behind Hanlin and wiping lemure goop off his blade, "After all, it seemed an awful lot like we did all the hard work, what with all the stabbing and slicing and heroism."
When introduced properly, the knight bows graciously at the feeble militiaman and adds, "Indeed, if you saw anything of import while you awaited rescue, we should be grateful to hear it."
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"My name's Jerem," the young man says in a quivering voice still struggling through puberty. "I ran into the Catacombs when the siege started. I thought the rest of the Steaders were right behind me. I was unpleasantly surprised to find myself alone in here with all these devils. One of 'em had a two-headed axe, and one looked like a wolf as big as a horse."
Jerem glances down, embarrassed. "I'm not ready to die a hero. I decided to hide in this empty sarcophagus until help arrived."
Jerem sees Bishop over by the narrow passage at the west end of the Hall of Heroes. "That's the way I came in."
He shakes his head at Hanlin's and Lord Braggett's questions. "I didn't see much, but I heard the axe-devil telling the others to help her find another way out the Catacombs."
Listening and looking down the passage, Bishop doesn't hear anything, and all he sees is more sarcophagi.
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"You used your head Jerem, there's nothing wrong with that. You need silver weapons to harm those devils there. Stick with us and we'll get you out safely. The woman with the axe and her pet dog are dead, thanks to a Panthion of Gods to include Iomedae, Sarenrae, Desna, Cayden Cailean, and whom ever Erlathan hangs out with." He responds, giving a smile to Lord Braggett.
As they head back into new territory he rearms himself with his shield and wand of bless.
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The young man's eyes grow big, "Wow, you guys are like the heroes of olde. I can't wait to tell everybody what you did."
Jerem pulls out a piece of parchment, with a rough but accurate charcoal sketch. "I might not be a skilled warrior, but I like maps. Here's a hasty layout of the sarcophagi chambers I was drawing--before I realized the Catacombs were crawling with devils." The map displays exceptional accuracy, an indicator of his potential as a cartographer.
"Say, would you guys mind autographing it for me?"
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"You want our autographs?" Nina repeats, eyes wide and smile of delight on her face. "My first autograph request! This is a day to remember!" The little gnome begins fishing into her pack for an inkpen but catches the looks that both Hanlin and Inky are giving her and seems to think better of it.
"Um, but Hanlin's right, we'd better make sure the rest of the crypts are safe and secure...guess it wouldn't look too good for our image if we got caught with our pants down while we were signing autographs..." she quickly adds, though there's an obvious hint of disappointment in her voice just the same.
"Come on Inky, let's go have a look at the rest of these rooms! Sooner begun, sooner done, right?"
Barring any objections from the rest of the group - such as Bishop wishing to scout ahead - the pair move down and begin looking around.
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Lord Braggett looks up from the map, his autograph already half scribbled into the parchment, "Hmm? Oh yes, the raid!" He says, suddenly remembering the urgency of the situation, "I'm sorry young man, but duty calls..." He practically springs back into the saddle, drawing his fancy silver sword, "Quite right, Lady Brightspark, these devils already struck once whilst I was pantless. Never again! We shall just have to ask the steaders to form an orderly queue for autographs once we are victorious." With that, the humble knight rides off deeper into the catacombs.
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"If you give me your vial of ink, Nina, I can gladly oblige our friend here with a one-of-a-kind autograph," Erlathan says, deadpan, then makes a circle with his fist and motions as if to dip one of his chin-tentacles into ink and use it as if it were a pen. Watching the others walk off, he hurries ahead. "Don't look at me like that, I was only kidding! ... I think..."
Once these things fall off entirely, they're going to wish they took me up on the offer!
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Searching through the Hall of the Honored, the party establishes that nothing significant in the room has been disturbed.
Having studied Jerem's map, the party enters the series of sarcophagus chambers. A nervous Jerem, following the party near the back with Erlathan, explains, "Important or wealthy citizens of Arwyll Stead sometimes wish to be interred in sarcophagi rather than have their bodies cremated."
Each sarcophagus bears an inscription that details the name of the deceased, the years of the deceased’s birth and death, and a short epitaph.
Enough of them have been damaged to keep you on your toes, alert to possible danger.
A small, childlike blasphemy conjoining the features of a plump human infant and a gigantic, gore-fattened fly emerges from the southwestern sarcophagus room. It's about two feet tall and might weigh about 25 pounds. Its wings make a soft buzzing sound, and it licks its lips.
As you spot one another, an excited chitter erupts in your minds.
Erlathan
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Baby-Fly
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Bishop
Vegazi
Hanlin
Lord Braggett & Kibble
Nina & Inky
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Erlathan points and shoots, and a magic missile plinks the infernal tantrum.
The zebub giggles and spits a gob of slime that conjures up a grease slick beneath Bishop, Lord Braggett, and Kibble.
Vegazi can barely see the creature, so she tries to move around to its flank.
Erlathan
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Zebub
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Bishop
Vegazi
Hanlin
Lord Braggett
Kibble
Nina & Inky
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Bishop easily dodges the glob of slime and maintains his balance. Choosing not to wait to see if this creature needs more than just mundane silver to damage it he tries to call upon the magic of the wand but nothing happens.
"Can this creature be hurt by silver weapons or does it require something stronger?"
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All four of Kibble's legs start sliding in different directions, *Arf?* Lord Braggett does his best to help, but being as he is just a weight on the poor wolf's back, there is little he can do...
Thankfully, the nimble wolf recovers his footing and, at Braggett's command, scurries towards the hideous fly creature, "Aha, I recognise this one!" The surprised knight cheers, yet the knowledge Bishop asked for has slipped his mind for now, "I shall have an answer for you, Sir, in but a moments time." He says confidently as he swings his silver sword at the devil.
Free action: Ride check to Attack in same round as Kibble
Standard action: Attack Zebub
Kibble:
Move action: Move 20'
Standard action: Attack
The first time Kibble is hit in a round, Braggett will use the Mounted Combat feat, and as an immediate action to try and negate any damage. The hit is negated if the Ride check result is greater than the opponent's attack roll.
For the first two adjacent allies (including Braggett) who are targeted for an attack, Kibble will use the Bodyguard feat to use an AoO and boost their AC.
Hanlin holds up his hand tattooed with the holy symbol of Iomedae and channels the power of The Inheritor, sending forth a wave of divine energy that buffets the evil outsider.
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Neither Bishop nor Kibble loses his footing on the grease-covered flagstones. While Bishop stands fast, Kibble carries Lord Braggett forward into battle.
Closing with the enemy, Lord Braggett swings his silvered scimitar in a slashing arc, slicing into the accuser devil. Kibble's jaws snap shut with an empty clack.
Hanlin remains on the far side of the puddle of grease and channels energy, the power of his goddess further injuring the fiend.
Erlathan
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Zebub
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Bishop
Vegazi
Hanlin
Lord Braggett
Kibble
Nina & Inky
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"I have heard that the sound a gunslinger's weapon makes is often summarized by the words pew pew. Might I use my wand in the same way?" He squeezes the wand tightly, generating a magic missile, but frowns when he notices the aura beginning to fade. The charges must be running low!
"Pew-pew!"
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Erlathan pulls the trigger on another round arcane ammo, the bolt slamming into the buzzing fly-baby.
Inky takes Nina the long way round, and they pull up between the zebub and Vegazi.
The hungry accuser devil opens its grotesque maw and tries to eat a piece of Lord Braggett, acid spittle hisses where it drips on the gnome's armor. Then the fiend flies backward, seeking cover.
Vegazi nocks an arrow and fires from cover behind Nina and Incandescence. The missile overshoots the zebub and strikes the wall.
Erlathan
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Zebub
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Bishop
Vegazi
Hanlin
Lord Braggett
Kibble
Nina & Inky
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"Sorry, sorry!" Nina yelps as Vegazi tries to fire past her and Inky and only manages to strike the wall. Then, she scowls as the zebub falls back a pace - just enough to prevent her from being able to strike unless she and Inky wanted to get in Lord Braggett and Kibble's way next.
"Biscuits! We'll have to wait our turn..." she sighs.
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"There's no need for such strong language, Lady Brightspark." Lord Braggett calls as he rides by, "We shall all get a chance at cracking this piñata, of that you have my word!" He then urges Kibble to run through the devil, laughing all the way.
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The first time Kibble is hit in a round, Braggett will use the Mounted Combat feat, and as an immediate action to try and negate any damage. The hit is negated if the Ride check result is greater than the opponent's attack roll.
For the first two adjacent allies (including Braggett) who are targeted for an attack, Kibble will use the Bodyguard feat to use an AoO and boost their AC.
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When the accuser devil retreats westward down the corridor, Nina hesitates, unsure of her next move.
Lord Braggett urges Kibble to overrun the fiend. The wolf rolls its eyes, but attempts the maneuver anyway. With a howl that sounds like a frustrated curse, Lord Bragget's mount pulls up short, just as he reaches the zebub. The devil tries to bite him for his troubles, drooling acid on the wolf's coiffured pelt.
Hanlin draws his wand and utters a command word, casting bless on everyone within his line of effect.
Erlathan
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Zebub
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Bishop
Vegazi
Hanlin
Lord Braggett
Kibble
Nina & Inky