Vibenia Scaeva |
"We're here to find things that'll help us fight a dragon. If there was something powerful that I didn't want in the wrong hands I place it in a room that was likely to kill the wrong person trying to get it." Vibenia says. " the unseen servant thing sounds like a good idea if you can pull it off."
"Either way we should all get out of the blast zone."
Zaijka Raven-born |
Zaijka joins the others in scurrying across the room, then conjures the lines from her arm into the faint silvery outline of a small humanoid figure. Carefully she unties the pouch at her waist and hands it to the figure. "Put one coin from the pouch on each alcove, then return when each alcove has one coin," she instructs the being once everyone is clear of the mosaic, and immediately it pivots in place and begins moving toward the pillars.
What happens?
GM Neirikr |
Everyone hurries into the southern alcove before the trap can reset itself. Zaijka observes as its magical energies rejuvenate in your wake, reaching their former strength within a minute. Her invisible servant does as it is bid, and makes a monetary offering to each of the northern alcoves. Unfortunately, the sorceress can perceive no change in the aura of conjuration magic which dominates the chamber. Gold does not appear to sate Red Azramo.
Feel free to keep puzzling over the trap if you'd like—you'll have to deal with it on the return trip, anyway! I'll reveal the next room, to keep things moving.
As you descend one more level into the crypt, you find yourselves in another oval chamber (E4), this one significantly smaller than the last. Near the east wall is a stone altar, the front side of which is carved to resemble a winged eye. A golden chalice and a small leather-bound book sit atop the altar, both of them remarkably well preserved by the dry sepulchral air. To the north, you find yourselves barred by a pair of verdigrised bronze doors. While heavy, they do not appear to be locked.
~
It is worth 875 gp for the price of the gold alone—perhaps more if sold to the right person.
~
It is worth 1,000 gp, to be exact.
Vibenia Scaeva |
Linguistics: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10
Vibenia Scaeva |
"Probably a good chance that it's trapped as well." Vibenia says wryly. "Any of these things ring a bell with you Khardir? You seem to have a pretty good grasp of history."
Zaijka Raven-born |
"No luck," Zaijka concludes after watching her unseen servant for several moments. "It seeks something of greater worth, apparently. I will consider the issue as we continue on - it is not going anywhere, after all." With a hand motion, she draws the unseen servant toward her as she continues down the passageway.
----------
Examining the strange signals, Zaijka waves her hands to conjure Zev in the air before her. The raven examines the symbols for several moments...
Knowledge (religion): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20
...before letting out an eerie croak of understanding. "The mo-o-rtal who flew to the heavens," he crows. "A-a-roden. The one resting he-e-re, part of his brood? The Death Mother would usually stand vigil."
With a nod, Zaijka examines the room more closely, both for magical auras and mundane details.
Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9
GM Neirikr |
With a nod, Zaijka examines the room more closely, both for magical auras and mundane details.
Perception: 3 + 6 = 9
There appear to be no magical auras in the room. A thick layer of dust covers every surface, but the floor and walls underneath are plain stone.
Vibenia Scaeva |
"Hmm... that's interesting." Vibenia says taking a deep breath and slowly walking across the room to pick up the book.
GM Neirikr |
Vibenia is able to pick up the book and leaf through it without any issue. The pages are thick vellum, and in a surprisingly fine condition—if not for the musty smell and the thick layer of dust on its cover, one would not necessarily think it had been down here for centuries. Most of the pages are filled with a precise runic script, with illuminated marginalia and illustrations of what appear to be haloed saints. None of you understand the language of the text.
Vibenia Scaeva |
Closing the book and stowing it for safekeeping, Aunt Bassy might have some idea what to make of it, she gingerly picks up the chalice.
GM Neirikr |
Closing the book and stowing it for safekeeping, Aunt Bassy might have some idea what to make of it, she gingerly picks up the chalice.
After a good dusting, the chalice is all but untarnished. There are no stains to indicate it was used to hold anything but water.
Meanwhile, Bernard moves to the massive bronze doors, both to inspect them a little closer as well as listen to see if he can hear aught on the other side.
Perception: 16 + 4 = 20
Bernard finds nothing untoward about the doors, and can hear nothing beyond—save for the incessant whispers of the dead, the place is quiet as the grave.
For expediency, I assume you are opening the doors once you've ascertained they're safe...
The former guardsman shoulders open the doors into a great, domed chamber (E5): the floor has a coppery metallic sheen, save for three mosaics of lithe dragons made of polished blue glass. All of them appear just as distressed as Red Azramo up above. Chiselled into the north wall is an inscription, which reads as follows:
"Baesterogh, Alamitatus, and Vernegash
Defeated by Lady Tula of Belhaim and the Slayers of Nazilli.
The Battle of Blue Note Hill, 3668 AR"
~
Bernard Hammersmith |
Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24
Bernard sniffs as he looks around the new room apprehensively. "Huh. Smells funny in here. Metallic? And there's a weird charge to the air, like just before a storm. We in for a lightning trap or the like here?"
Does my perception check above allow me to discover the doors to the east and west on the map?
Khardir Braktan |
Knowledge (history): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (18) + 9 = 27
Perception: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (18) + 10 = 28
"Hmm. This seems to commemorate the battle against a trio of blue dragon siblings who invaded Taldor during the Dragon Plague. Lightning-breathers, the lot of them," explains Khardir.
"I can smell the scent of lightning in here. Probably another trap, like the other rooms."
Vibenia Scaeva |
1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Roll for Nisany
Knowledge History : 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20
”Oh wow! The Battle of Blue Note Hill, where Lady Tula and her band defeated the three blue dragons trying to make a kingdom for themselves. They overcame their breath weapons using lightning rods made by Arturic Canteclure, her husband.” Nisany says as she looks at the mosaic. ”What? I did pay attention sometimes.” she says with a wry smile.
"$#!+," Vibenia mutters, "Sounds like this is most definitely a lightning trap, smells like a storm, copper floor....maybe Syksy's right, those of you wearing metal armor should hang back…unless you thin you can disarm this one Khardir.”
Zaijka Raven-born |
"Oh, what I wouldn't give to be able to dispel magic..." Zaijka mutters under her breath. But alas, the ability to undo others' spells was magic beyond her ability, so she waits as others attempt to puzzle out how to defeat the possible trap.
Syksy Kalma |
"Do we have any lengths of metal that we could use to conduct it away from us?" Syksy asks.
The mosaics were pretty, she didn't want to smash them, of course there was no guarantee that would actually accomplish anything.
Bernard Hammersmith |
"A trap this powerful wouldn't depend on folks wearing metal to trigger it," says Bernard dubiously. "I mean, what of the thieves and burglars who might have broken in wearing only leathers for armor? Metal itself can't be the trigger... can it?"
Khardir Braktan |
4 people marked this as a favorite. |
"The trap assembly itself almost certainly relies on some metal. Everyone knows that metals have a strong association to lightning! Because iron is tied astrologically to Akiton, the Red Planet, and it draws strikes of lightning from Liavara, where lightning elementals live. Sometimes their bolts fly past Akiton and then as they pass Golarion they come down from the sky because iron attracts them like it does on Akiton," explains Khardir as he looks for the metal points where the lightning trap almost certainly generates its shocking bolts for unwitting victims. "By the time the lightning leaps from the iron rods or wires, it can ground into any target - same way that a lightning bolt can fry someone in leather armor."
I did a little reading on Golarion astronomy and cosmology for this one. In "real world" terms, this would be saying that lightning comes from Jupiter (the sky god, with his lightning bolt) and flies past Mars (the god of iron) and sometimes accidentally hits Earth, and strikes iron because it resembles Mars.
GM Neirikr |
After a few moments of crouching down to inspect the floor, as well as flicking a few drops of water on the copper surface to examine their reaction, Khardir comes to the following conclusion: the floor does not appear to be trapped, per se—rather, there is a thin sheet of copper that conducts periodic bursts of electricity, assumably drawing on a magical engine or a bound elemental beneath. As there is no specific triggering mechanism, there is no way to disable the contraption without tearing up the copper sheets. However, Khardir believes the glass making up the dragons should be non-conductive, and that the bursts are predictable enough that he should be able to time them, allowing everyone to cross safely—if they move quickly, that is.
Knowing what he knows about the Battle of Blue Note Hill and Lady Tula's husband, Khardir assumes this must be his handiwork.
So, in game terms, there is a 25% percent chance each round that the floor electrifies, damaging anyone standing on the copper flooring. As long as you don't loiter in the non-dragon parts of the room, it should be safe to cross. However, if you were to, say, run across the room only to find that the door is locked... well, you'd have a one in four chance of getting zapped. There isn't really a way to determine that from a distance, either.
Khardir Braktan |
"All right, back up! The glass spaces are protected. The rest of the floor has copper plating that causes the lightning to flow through it. Anyone got a spell like mage hand that they can use to check the door on the far side, see if it's locked? 'cuz if we run across and it's locked, we're kinda stuck standing on dangerous ground."
Vibenia Scaeva |
2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Studying the faces of the group's spellcasters, Vibenia quickly comes to the conclusion that none of them had the kind of magic that would open a door from across the room.
Glancing across the room, she goes down to one knee and gives Nisany a kiss, before standing and doing the same with Syksy. "I'll be fine." she says with a smile before turning to flash Bernard a grin. "Wish me luck!"
Remembering Khardir's assessment, she nimbly makes her way across the room, sticking to the dragon glasswork unless necessary and spending as little lime on the coper flor as possible as she races to the door.
Syksy Kalma |
2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Syksy smiles after the kiss. ”I believe you. I’d also be tearing my nails off if I didn’t have my gauntlets on right now.”
She then moves to hold Dusk to make sure she doesn’t take off after the Ranger just yet.
Zaijka Raven-born |
Zaijka begins to gesture toward her unseen conjured servant...a moment too late, as she watches Vibenia rush across the room. "Vibenia, no, wait!"
I've got it, we may as well use it. XD
Vibenia Scaeva |
As Zaijka calls out, Vibenia hops up onto one of the intricate glass dragons, awaiting the sorceress' actions.
GM Neirikr |
After a moment, there is a sound from the western end of the chamber. Vibenia sees the door rattle lightly as Zaijka's invisible servant attempts to alternatingly push and pull it, apparently with little success. Eventually, it returns to its mistress, having been unable to fulfil its task. The door must be either locked or jammed shut—it should not be too heavy for the servant to handle, by the looks of it.
Vibenia Scaeva |
"Khardir's idea sounds like a safer first choice. If it doesn't work brute force is always a good last resort" Vibenia chimes in.
Syksy Kalma |
2 people marked this as a favorite. |
"Listen to the wise and beautiful woman currently marooned over on the subjective safety of the glass island."
Khardir Braktan |
"All right, here I go. Oh! Someone should tie a rope to my waist. That way if my plan doesn't work and I get scorched and knocked unconscious you can at least drag me back."
Once that is accomplished, Khardir runs as fast as his stubby legs will go to the door at the other side of the room, throws down his wooden shield, and stands on top of it as he fumbles for his picks and tools.
Disable Device: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (5) + 9 = 14
GM Neirikr |
Khardir's first attempts are unsuccessful. The metal fittings at the edges of the shield glow and spark intermittently, until finally the wood cracks and warps, and the tang of smoke mingles with that of ozone. Finally, the door clicks open, and Khardir stumbles through into a smaller chamber...
Standing on the shield is a clever idea, but rather arduous to figure out on a round-by-round basis. So, to make this simple, here's the deal: the shield gains the broken condition (at half HP), but that buys Khardir enough time to take 20 his way through the lock. I hope that's a reasonable trade-off!
For a brief moment, Khardir thinks he might have stumbled out of the crypt entirely: a mural of a blue summer sky covers the walls and the arched ceiling, dotted with white clouds and birds in flight. Painted statues of four human archers, bows drawn, occupy the western curve of the chamber. The two archers to the north aim toward the northeast, and the two archers to the south aim southeast, arrows nocked and ready. There are inscriptions on the four statues' bases, all identical:
"May your arrows strike centre and true."
Syksy Kalma |
”I think you answered your own question,” Syksy comments before carefully picking up Nisany and getting ready to dash to the door.
Vibenia Scaeva |
Hopping down from the dragon sculpture, Vibenia quickly makes her way to the other room, as Dusk runs over to her with a signal. Taking in the room ad the intricate statues, the ranger moves over to one of them, crouching to inspect the floor near the base. "Hmm... looks like the statues can be rotated based on the scrapes on the floor."
"'May your arrows strike centre and true.'....maybe we need to rotate the statues to that they all would be firing at the same central spot." she suggests.
Perception (Favored Terrian): 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (16) + 12 = 28