"Lena!"
Whiskeyjack dropped to the ground beside the halfling, and stretched out a hand to her. He doubted he could fully cure her wounds, not in a single go of it, but he could bring her back from the brink of death...he had to.
"Angradd, guide me." he muttered.
HP 47/47. Current AC: 22/10/22
Active conditions:
Active spell effects:
Fervors remaining: 5/6
Blessings remaining: 5/6
Spells remaining: 1st 4/5, 2nd 2/4
Whiskeyjack presses a hand to Lena, and healing magic flows into her, saving her from what would have been a certain death. Lena's eyes blink open, and she is greeted with the worst headache of her adult life.
Inspire Courage active
Whiskeyjack
---
Kawrock
Arval
Eldon
Lena (28 dmg)
Wren
---
Guardian (11 dmg) (in a pit) (on grease) (trial acid/fire)
Kawrock was ready to aid Lena, but was relieved to see Whiskeyjack rush to her aid. "Don't know if we can repel these kind of attacks for long." The tengu says as he swings his blade at the golem.
If it can just toss Lena aside like that, what could it do to me?
Round 3, Init 21
Wren moves up to touch and guide Arval from behind.
"Don't fall in, Dearie. You won't like that one bit."
Arval!:
HP: 37/37
AC: 17 (3 dex, 4 mage armor)
Arcane Bond: 0/1 used
Open spell slots: none
Left Hand: wand of acid
Right Hand: { }
Sage Advice: (7/8 used).
:
Wand of Acid Arrow: 2 charges left
Eldon turns to Lena and does the worst thing he can do while she has a headache: talk to her. A lot.
"See, Lena? That's why I always tell you to be careful with things roughly a dozen time your size. You're not me, after all. I could handle it, of course. Here, let me alleviate your pain a bit further..."
With the golem now in the pit, Eldon moves inside and up to Lena. He places a hand on her and casts another healing spell.
"Feel better now? Of course you do, I healed you. Now, listen carefully as I repeat all of the advice I've ever given you on flesh golems..."
Kawrock, a little less gutsy than he was, misses his attack wildly while Eldon moves up and offers Lena some more healing. The headache mostly abates and Lena's brush with death is largely over.
Arval goes in for another strike at the creature, hoping to score a hit for once. He stabs at the creature below him.
This time, Arval's sword makes good contact as he swings it down brutally at the golem, connecting twice with solid, ringing shots. Lena's fire continues to burn away merrily at the enormous creature while she is healed from all sides.
The golem makes a leap as it attempts to get out of the pit, but its feet give way and it barely stays upright. In response, it swipes out at Arval once who blocks the attack!
Whiskeyjack
---
Kawrock
Arval
Eldon
Lena (5 dmg)
Wren
---
Guardian (48 dmg) (in a pit) (on grease) (trial acid/fire)
Round 4, Init 21
Wren supports Arval again and backs up.
Arval!:
HP: 37/37
AC: 17 (3 dex, 4 mage armor)
Arcane Bond: 0/1 used
Open spell slots: none
Left Hand: wand of acid
Right Hand: { }
Sage Advice: (8/8 used).
:
Wand of Acid Arrow: 2 charges left
Whiskeyjack chanted in dwarven, and then reached out to touch Arval's shoulder once more. The blue-white power of Angradd left him, sporting the shape of a charging bull as it drove into Arval, sending a surge of strength into the young man.
Arval grunts as his muscles enlarge. He takes another two swings at the creature. The first is so powerful it gets stuck in the creatures tough hide, getting him to fail his second attack.
Kawrock changes tactics and through a sudden burst of flame transforms back into his phoenix form.
The group rallies around Arval, who cracks down with another terrific blow on the golem.
The golem is rocked back by the attack, and as it starts to fall back, the burning acid and fire on it seems to complete the jobs as something twitches in it. With a thunderous crash, the golem collapses in the pit, burning away into nothing.
End of Combat
Wren squawks with pleasure as the golem is felled, weary from her efforts of watching others try to kill it.
"Oh dearie, maybe we should take a break for the day and finish this place up tomorrow," Wren says, remembering the comfy bed in the other building. "We've had a full day and can't expect to keep this up if every room has another horror."
"Like me da' always said, when faced wi' an ugly monster, pour power int' th' bigges' friend ye ken find an' stay behind 'im. Good work, lad."
"Lena, lass, how ye be? Ye took a grea' wallop there."
"Go' some taps left in th' wand, an mebbe a few more spells. Ain't a lo' though. Could pro;;y use a bi' o' rest, though I ain't bein' sure this be th' place t' do i'."
You look up at the top floors of the tower, vowing to return shortly. The hallway at the top of the menagerie looks to be the best, most convenient place to rest without climbing down, and through the dangerous waters once more. No noises disturb you aside from some splashing in the unexplored towers, but your rest is undisturbed. The next morning you awaken, and return to the base of the tower.
Returning to the tower, you ascend to the next level.
This circular room is choked with webs. A stone staircase curves
along the wall to another trapdoor in the ceiling.
Wren coos and cackles happily as her full night of rest restores her magical reservoirs. She chitters much more happily at everyone, discussing this and that and offering her opinion freely as other sleep or are working on things.
"I used to have a mug just like that one, WhiskeyJack. Well, it wasn't so much a mug as a bucket that I really liked. You see, it was *wood*, 'Jack, made out of wood. And not your ordinary wood...but wood from a *tree*!!! Isn't that interesting...let me tell you more about the tree that I think the wood came from..."
* * *
Upon spying the spider's webs, Wren again pulls the chicken's feather from her armor and begins to dust away the webs, worried for what they might hide, but moreso not wanting to walk within them.
Arval refreshes himself and goes to sleep. After a good nights rest he is ready to move on.
"No spiders... Hate the little things. Shall we go on?"
He says as he moves up the staircase before inspecting the trap door.
"Th' buildin's made ou' o' stone. Mebbe we jest set fire t' th' webs an' clean 'em ou' afore we move on?"
Kawrock returns to his normal form before resting. He moves to a quiet corner away from Wren for his morning meditation.
Reaching the room with the webs Kawrock claps his hands together. "Ahh spider webs, that means there may be some tasty snacks about." Kawrock then starts looking for any spiders that he might snatch up with his beak.
The webs are incredibly strong and sticky, and not quite like anything a spider would make.
These look like they're from a web spell.
As Kawrock carefully avoids the web, combing through the room he finds a few things that are of interest.
The first are chalk marks on the east wall of the room which are partially erased, but it appears to be a diagram and some text.
A crude chalk diagram depicts the iron spire atop of the tower, and two strange apparatuses at its pinnacle. An arrow points to the larger of the two devices, next to the words “The Storm Caller must be activated to energize the Bondslave Thrall.”
The second is that he feels a bit of vibration on the web, but looking to the source, doesn't see or smell anything tasty. As he's about to investigate more, a homonculus suddenly appears on the floor amidst some webbing. It is missing a wing and one leg appears broken. Slowly, it crawls its way towards the group waving its hands frantically in front of of it. It does not appear hostile.
Know (Arcana)
Wren casts Mage Armor just in case and still declines to enter the room with the webbing. "Strange webbing, it is. I don't know what to say about it. Kawrock, can you make yourself useful and burn it away?"
Wren notes the homonculus, but does not feel ready to engage with it yet.
"No' another o' these things. Hang on, I be gettin' i'." Whiskeyjack hefted his warhammer and moved towards the creature.
"While your still in here?" Kawrock askes the feathery elf. "As fun as that sounds, I do not think it would be a good idea.
His thoughts of engulfing the elf in flames are interrupted by Whiskey Jack's intent on dealing with the wounded creature. "Wait! Not everything in here will be hostile. Remember Bigguns came from this place as well."
The homonculus silently holds up its hands, palms wide-open as it stares at Whiskeyjack. It then turns to Kawrock, nodding frantically. The tiny construct's jaw is a solid piece of metal - it apparently cannot speak.
"Normally, I ain't being th' hi' first, hi' again, hi' some more, an ask questions o' wha'ever's left kind. Bu' this here place's got me wound up a mite." Whiskeyjack lowered his weapon and stepped back a pace.
The little homunculus drags itself over to Lena, who is delighted to find someone shorter than she is.
It points upwards in response to Lena's question, and then wraps its arms around itself and mimes as if it is struggling. It then stalks around a bit, trying its best to make a fierce face before letting out a silent roar.
Wren watches Lena play with her little friend.
She says little, waiting to see what happens.
The homonculus nods once to Lena's first question, and then shakes its head to Lena's second question.
It then hobbles over to the stairs, and slowly makes its way down, beckoning for Lena and the rest of the party to follow it.
In the destroyed room that held the fearsome golem below, it makes its way over to a pile of scattered notes, and starts pointing at them repeatedly. A quick look at the notes shows a cramped, nearly illegible shorthand that a different hand has then added notations and diagrams to in red ink. The result is a mess.
Gesturing at the notes, it moves to the door, and mimes a the slow stiff walk of a creature entering through the door. It then gives an enthusiastic thumbs-up.
Wren, chastened by Lena's explaination, tries to figure things out. She casts Tongues and begins a series of chirps and caws in response to the homonculus and the notes.
Linguistics
Perception
"Go on, creature. Tell me more..."
Eldon stays awkwardly quiet, having no idea what's going on.
Another fight with a flesh golem? What about the notes? The handwriting's a mess!
Thankfully, Wren's tongues spell does the trick just fine. As the homunculus can't speak, it doesn't aid anyone in deciphering its mime, however.
The notes details the operations of a device called the Bondslave Thrall. It does not state where the Bondslave Thrall is located unfortunately. This device, which is a combination of alchemy and magic, when powered with enough pure electricity can be used to summon, and then control "my greatest creation". The notes in the margin translate this to "Control Beast of Lepisdadt." In addition, the controller can impart abilities to the Beast through the mechanism of control, and multiple controllers can be used to apply their own benefits to the Beast one by one, but not singly.
The homunculus grows excited as Wren reads this out to the group, hopping up and down. It then limps back upstairs, and repeatedly points to the chalk markings. It points straight up, making a point with its finger, before it drops its finger down, mimicking something falling. It then vibrates violently.
Wren's tongues spell can't bring back the faded chalk diagram, but he makes the best of the caption.
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Lena stares for a second. Then she laughs weakly.
So that explains it. Constructs cannot be affected by mind effects, they are known for it. But this...This explains why Bruder helped with the robbery. He was controlled. And the device that did it is...
Lena looks up.
is up there, I bet ya.
She taps her chin.
So the count made the Beast. Tch, tch, that was naughty of him. Poor Bruder was simply a pawn, by...the whispering way, his master?
She thinks of all the damage she has seen in the castle, the damaged museums, the monsters released, the wreckage.
So all this damage, the ruin this place is in, the arrest of Bruder and his trial, was all collateral damage of a theft?
Lena focuses on the homonculus.
Little one! Was your master constrained? Locked away somehow? and still is. Was this done by men who whispered?
Lena looks at the others, her face concerned.
I am basing this on guesswork and and a few assumption, but I think that the monster above might be too much for us. This count likes experimenting on different flesh golems, and I'm guessing the next one will be very dangerous. Like a dragon golem thingy that breaths fire, or a rabbit golem...scratch that, no one would ever do that, or...
She looks at the webs
A spider Golem? She scratches her head.
Anyway, I bet Bruder's father is imprisoned above, and this last beastie was set to guard him. And it's the biggest and baddest of all of them. Except maybe...Bruder? Could he help.
Lena snaps her fingers
The, er, stormcaller? It could reach and control Bruder all the way to Lepidstadt. We could use it to get him here to help. If he is close enough, he might be, he did say he would meet us here didn't he? So a plan.
She looks at Wren and Eldon.
Wren, Eldon look at those writings. See if you can glean any more information. Then when we ascend, both of you find it, and work out how to use it. It is a storm thingy, so I reckon it will be high, maybe at the top of the tower.
Suddenly she thinks of something.
Wait little one. This... Lena copies the homonculus's mime, pointing a finger, bringing it down and vibrating. do you mean lightning? Well it is called a storm caller. You might need that to make it work. She finishes to Wren and Eldon.
Call Bruder, and get him to help. Arval, whiskeyjack and She gulpsand I will keep it busy. We will probably need all our magic for this, so any items you have squirreled away for a rainy day, now is the time to use them. Didn't we find some adamantium blanches for weapons? An antitoxins? This thing might be poisonous, you know, spider
Well let's get moving
Arval looks more and more worried with the explanation.
"The last one almost killed you... I don't want to know what is up there..."
The homonculus watches Lena, reacting as she tries to puzzle through the situation.
"Little one! Was your master constrained? Locked away somehow? and still is. Was this done by men who whispered?"
The homonuculus jumps up and down as best it can on its broken leg, nodding repeatedly. It then wraps its arms around itself, struggling before collapsing. It points upstairs.
"I am basing this on guesswork and and a few assumption, but I think that the monster above might be too much for us. This count likes experimenting on different flesh golems, and I'm guessing the next one will be very dangerous. Like a dragon golem thingy that breaths fire, or a rabbit golem...scratch that, no one would ever do that, or..."
The homunculus looks at Lena, confused, and then nods slightly. It extends its right hand and twists it back and forth while shrugging.
"Anyway, I bet Bruder's father is imprisoned above, and this last beastie was set to guard him. And it's the biggest and baddest of all of them. Except maybe...Bruder? Could he help."
The homunculus looks confused at Brodur's mention, but nods anyways.
"do you mean lightning? Well it is called a storm caller. You might need that to make it work."
Once more, the homunculus nods excitedly. It steps back and does the following:
- Walks towards the stairs, and then up just a little, pointing up.
- Raises its arms menacingly, making a fierce face.
- Points up again, and walks up the stairs a little bit more.
- Sticks out its index fingers, and rapidly jabs at the air in front of it.
- Drops a finger from up high, and then vibrates violently
- Runs back down the stairs a bit, jabs at the air some more
- Makes its way across the room, and then does a stiff-legged walk up the stairs before giving a thumbs-up and cheering
Wren, Eldon look at those writings. See if you can glean any more information. Then when we ascend, both of you find it, and work out how to use it.
With a look at the suddenly verbose Lena, Wren begins to glean like she's never gleaned before.
When watches the full performance of the homonculus, trying to puzzle out the mannerisms with her superior intellect.
Intelligence Check
Wren will interact moreso with the homonculus, trying to get more details.