Aurora is no connoisseur of demonic types, but she edges closer to the statuette to examine it cautiously, without touching. "What kind of demon is that?"
It appears to be a spider goddess--Aurora quickly sees that the eight arms and paired fangs are significant.
While it looks valuable, it is neither poisoned nor is it magical.
Talathel also examines the statue.
Knowledge (planes)
Appraise
After looking over the statue, we'll take it carefully and stash it amongst our gear after one more quick arcane check for poison that might have gotten on it from the bag.
As they start to turn away, Tragershen recalls Gelver and his crew, and the terrible end most of them met down here. He pulls out a piece of chalk and writes on the floor by the discarded bag poisonous.
We'll look around for secret doors to make sure this truly is a dead end. If we don't come across any, we'll go back out and continue on, looking for another door to brave.
Anzath recalls horrofic stories told amongst the slaves of their Drow captors and the things they did to appease spider goddesses, and decides to hang back with Bedlam.
Maybe he needs a friend. She hands him some whiskey.
Talathel recognizes the goddess of spiders, a demon-deity worshiped by the drow and other dark beings. Tragershen is content that it is free of poison.
The party is pretty sure that the room is indeed a dead end, so they return to the hallway and continue to the nearest door.
Perception
Brand (auto assist, plus one for traps)
They enter the room. Another dead end... or is it?
Perception
Brand (auto assist, plus one for traps)
This room contains two secret doors.
The party flips a coin and decides to open the door to the west.
They find a long-abandoned crypt--dryrotted coffins have spilled their bones to the floor in places, but three massive stone sarcophagi remain undisturbed.
Anzath pulls out her crowbar, ”Ve disturb dem, yez?”
Bedlam takes the whisky. He takes a long pull and he hands it back to Anzath.
Me be tank'n ye, laddie. Had sum webbing in me eye.
Bedlam takes his other Heightened Awareness Extract, before continuing.
"Yes, we disturb them."
Thinking back to the last time they opened a sarcophagus in this cursed place, Tragershen stands back and readies his wand of disrupt undead in one hand and his stout walking stick in the other.
Any magicks, elf?
"It would be hard to say through the stone, but I can try."
Before they bust in, he'll try casting detect magic and detect poison on the sarcophagi.
Randomizing the order you open them:
A=1, B=2, C=3
Sarcophagus A: No magic, no poison. You pop off the lid, and sure enough, a skeleton rises to attack you!
Tragershen and Talathel may act.
Tragershen levels his wand at the skeleton and barks the command word.
Disrupt Undead, touch ray attack to hit
Damage
The ray goes straight through the skeleton's rib cage without disrupting anything...
Bedlam nudges Anzath.
Seen Dat coming!
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Bedlam nudges Anzath.
Seen Dat coming!
Anzath smiles back at Bedlam, although her smile is dreadfully unpracticed and is more of a menacing scowl. “Yez yez,” she stands with her crowbar and new mace at the ready.
Talathel steps in, his curve blade seemingly leaping into his hands - and a potent downward strike.
Traveling, excuse the bad formatting.
Talathels and Tragershens futility is matched by that of their opponent
All others may act!
Bedlam nudges Anzath.
Seen Dat coming!
Bedlam looks at the lone skeleton. He looks at his heavy pick.
Me really do be needing a hammer!
Wooosh!
That had been too close. How could I have missed that the bag itself was soaked in poison. Your letting your attention slip. Perhaps I am hungry... When did I last eat? Ah well, may need to suggest we go camp and have a proper meal after we open these boxes of death.. Brand had been carefully inspecting one of the other sarcophogi when his companions suddenly launched the lid off the first, summoning one of the undead into their midst. Jumping over the middle sarcophogus, Brand draws his mace, summining his luck and swinging wildly at the creature's back as it faces down his companions.
"Bedlam, I am in similar need of a blunt weapon. As distasteful as I find the prospect, it would fulfil a niche need."
Bedlam claps as Brand shows his prowess.
The skeleton disintegrates. You find some non magical grave goods. A minute or two later, you pop the next:
Hey hey, another skeleton! But why is it jet black?
Full post later—initiative would be painful on phone....
I’m spoiled. Might be out of commission until Monday at latest—
As the skeleton begins to move with supernatural quickness, Tragershen and Bedlam react yet more swiftly.
Bedlam looks at his heavy pick. The dwarf shakes his head, as he positions himself for a flank, before swinging.
Bedlam's mighty swing clangs off the monster, leaving a patch of white where the pick has scraped some of the blackness off.
Tragershen tries his wand on this painted skeleton.
Disrupt undead, ranged touch attack ,
Damage
The ray of positive energy gently tickles Bedam's back as he does actual harm to our enemy.
The black skeleton rises to its feet, taking a shot from Bedlam, possibly Tal, if Talathel would be covering the tomb with his reach weapon, and, hells--anyone else who would have gathered around with a melee weapon in eager anticipation after seeing the other one pop out of its tomb.
Assuming that our undead friend is still up, he whips two short swords at Bedlam, grinning mercilessly...
...despite the corrupted soul of an ancient hero manifesting in this foul form, despite the years of malicious incubation within the sarcophagus, the skeleton botches both attacks. Proceed to dismantle, if you can.
Bedlam spits at the skeleton. He drops his heavy pick, takes out his crowbar, and swings.
The ever pragmatic dwarf steps back 5'.
Again, Bedlam clocks the skeleton a good one... again, he can tell he's made solid contact, but he's not too sure he's done damage.
Bedlam spits at the skeleton; again.
Anzath takes a shot at the skeleton as it stands.
Then, after watching Bedlam hit it with his pickaxe of futility, she strikes again from behind.
Ever-willing to return the dead to their graves, Aurora joins the swarm around the skeleton and lashes her quarterstaff towards it.
In the skillful hands of Anzath, Yaza Mongro's mace makes some headway against the skeleton.
Aurora's skill with the quarterstaff leaves no impression on the skeleton other than scuffing it up a little, like Bedlam's pick shot.
Tragershen tries to sneak another ray past the ring of allies keeping the undead monstrosity from him.
Disrupt Undead, ranged touch attack,
Damage
Tragershen's famous wand of Attempt to Disrupt Undead misses its mark.
Talathel's swing glances off the monster, just as those of his companions have (except for Anzath).
It comes down to the rogue...
Brand watches in morbid amusement as barely a moment after he put down one skeleton, his companions throw the lid off another sarcophagus and release another... and this one has black bones...GREAT!
As his companions throw a multitude of blows at it, Brand takes a quick step across, lining himself up opposite his companions, and swings at the creature, mace in one hand and sword in the other. "P'rhaps I shud be gettin' a second mace, seein' as 'ow many bony undead we be findin'..."
Brand's attacks rip into the undead, dealing far more damage than the others had managed. Incredibly lucky, sneaky, and finessed shots line up with vulnerable joints.
The monster wheels to face Brand, attempting to remove the direst threat first:
Brand takes three normal damage and 3 STR damage.
Something about the way the skeleton moves is utterly horrifying... the party feels an awful sense of terror creep through their veins.
Anzath and Talathel are overwhelmed with fear. Brand too, unless you would have opted to use a pre-roll Luck on it (the reactive nature of that power doesn't mesh too well with PbP, does it? But if not for the will save, when?).
Anzath and Talathel (and maybe Brand) are Panicked for rounds.