Ragnar steps on the south plate, and the same 'click' is heard.
Going off of Ragnar's description of the creatures he saw, Hector took a moment to think about what Tallos taught him.
"Hmm... sounds like goblins and a bugber, another goblinoid. If we were to confront them, we'd need to take down the bugbear quickly. They are much stronger and tend to enjoy causing terror to humans. Though, I am concerned. Typically, bugbears are more of the lone wolf type. If things go south, I'll pin him down if you all can handle the little ones."
Ragnar carefully tries to push open the door.
Ragnar's theory is indeed correct. With the pressure plate depressed, the south door opens without issue.
Ragnar steps through the secret door and moves down the corridor. If the other door has a keyhole, he looks through it. Else he tries to listen at the door. If he hears or sees nothing unusual, he waits for one of his comrades to move up to him and then steps on the pressure plate and goes into the next room.
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Crystal follows Ragnar and keeps an ear or eye out for trouble.
Crystal and Ragnar creep down the south hallway. The southern door does not have a keyhole, but in fact has peep holes around 4' off of the ground. The room beyond is dark. However, Crystal can hear the distinct sound of scratching and hammering coming from it. A quick peer through the peep hole, and Crystal can see two walking skeletons attempting to break through the north door, with little luck.
The room itself contains what looks like a gigantic well, and is circular, 20' in diameter.
Raven follows after Ragnar and Crystal as quietly as she can.
"Hmm... two skeletons in the next room. Looks like they're around some sort of well--" Crystal whispers to Ragnar.
"So, I can call upon Pharasma's favour--"
Crystal winces and turns around at the sound of the noise. It's Raven, tromping along behind them.
"--Raven! Shh!" She puts a finger to her lips.
"I don't know if I will be of much help in a fight with the undead. Has anyone maybe a stick or something? Just in case." The mage explains, stepping behind Crystal and Raven."Also, we might wait till the secret door closes again. Maybe that will muffle the sound a bit more, so that we don't crash the little goblin party before we want to."
"The only thing I can offer that will be immediately useful would make a lot of noise," Raven says, dubiously. "I do not believe noiseless bombs are even possible, given that gaseous expansion causes a violent disturbance of the atmosphere."
"I believe I can be of assistance." The massive half orc slides in to the corridor at a full crouch, coming to rest on one knee with the double axe in front of him.
Hector follows behind the others, but his withdrawn rapier scratches the walls and floors from time to time. He steps up to Ragnar and hands him a light mace.
This is the best i can do.
Seeing that everyone is advancing down the south corridor, Juid leads Pîsim after them.
On padded feet, Juid is barely discernible slinking through the shadows. Unable to spot his master, Pîsim lets out a Haw! at the halfway point.
"Wait wait wait! Someone needs to stay outside that door in case there's not a way of opening it from here."
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After several trips, clanks, Czein's loud voice, and finally the donkey's HAW, it seems the party has been noticed. The secret door closes with a click, sealing the party within as the sounds of the celebration immediately cease. A loud, deep voice which is presumably the bugbear, starts barking orders, which is answered with a chorus of jabbers by the many goblins. Footfalls are heard in the hall to the north, but nothing checks the secret door the group has entered. In the south room, the skeletons leave their attacks at the north door and start wandering aimlessly near the secret door.
The entire group now stand within a secret hallway. Levers protrude from the floor near the south, and north doors. To the north the sounds of the goblins can be heard. To the south, two skeletons can be seen through a peep hole.
Crystal sighs in resignation. "Why did I even bother trying the stealthy approach?" She whispers to herself, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Ragnar, I can call upon Pharasma's power to return the skeletons to their final rest. Since we've been noticed now, I may as well go loud." A mote of white energy coalesces into being in Crystal's hand as she eyes the door Ragnar is in front of.
"Good. I'll open the door for you." Ragnar says, pulling the lever and pressing himself against the wall, letting the Cleric enter the room.
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Ragnar pulls open the lever, and the door swings open easily to Crystal's touch. The skeletons have heard the group at this point, and are prepared for your entry!
Raven
Hector
Crystal
--
Something
--
Ragnar
Juid
--
Green Skeleton (flat footed)
Yellow Skeleton (flat footed)
--
Czein
"Return to your rest. By Pharasma's will, there is no place for you here." Crystal points a finger, throwing a mote of white energy at the skeleton before her.
Crystal fires off a mote of white energy, but in her haste to fire off the magic, it misses the skeleton entirely.
"This is most undignified," Raven sighs as she seizes her club and takes up a protective position near Crystal, taking a swing at one of the skeletons that starts to stray too close.
At the sound of goblinoids beyond the door, Juid teaches Pîsim to breathe quietly.
Hector nimbly darts in past the skeletons, pulling out his mace. He takes a whack at one.
Unfortunately his blow skitters off of the skeleton's hard bones. A strange screeching sound echoes up from the well. It appears that something, or somethings have heard you and will be here soon.
Knowing he isn't of much help in a fight against skeletons, Ragnar waits to see how his comrades manage the situation.
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Juid holds his action to observe what happens in the fight. The two skeletons spring into action, swinging at Raven and Hector with old, broken weapons.
Hector neatly manages to fence with the skeleton, keeping it back. Raven is a little less lucky and takes a shallow but nasty-looking wound from a broken scimitar.
A strange, howling roar comes from down the well.
Raven (3 dmg)
Hector
Crystal
Ragnar (holding)
Juid (holding)
--
Something
Green Skeleton
Yellow Skeleton
--
Czein
Seeing that the problem is abhorred undead, Juid moves forward ten feet and calls upon the power of Sarenrae to send them back to their final rest, hoping that the monsters do not have any unnatural protection from holy power.
Czein bangs his shoulders on the wall darting around Ragnar and Crystal to get to the skeleton.
He rams the second skeleton, trying to knock it into the well on top of whatever that is.
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Crystal winces when Raven takes a hit, but her eyes widen as she hears Juid invoking the will of Sarenrae.
Oh... s**t.
She tries to tumble past Raven and Hector, worried about the skeleton taking a swing at her as she moves past.
The monster in the well doesn't give her much pause either. She's more worried about Sarenrae's light burning her than some monster taking a bite out of her.
The green skeleton's mouth starts clattering wildly as Juid's healing energy washes over it. After a moment, there's a bang and it flies apart!
Meanwhile, Czein charges in at the yellow skeleton, which swings out at him, missing wildly. The gigantic half-orc gets right in close and hammer his shoulder into it. The skeleton flips backwards, and plummets into the open hole in the ground.
The skeletons are defeated, but the strange roaring sound from the hole in the ground gets louder.
Juid has a look of perplexity and horror on his face as he sees Crystal's reaction.
He looks at her more closely for signs that she might be some sort of abhorred undead in disguise. "Would the Lady of Graves allow such a thing?" he utters softly and pensively. However, the threatening sound emerging from the hole in the room ahead draws his immediate attention. He backs up and readies an action to protect himself with burning hands if a creature attempts to escape down their tunnel.
Ragnar gets ready for whatever might come up that shaft. The second anything enters the room, he will curse it's defense with his Evil Eye, making in easier to hit.
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Crystal readies her bow and points it down the well, getting ready to shoot whatever it is that's coming up.
Czein steps back to get a proper swipe at whatever it is, making sure to wait for the ranged attacks first and trying to be opposite Hector for a flank.
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Raven looks down at her injury, frowning in an annoyed sort of way. Pale, pinkish blood seeps from the wound.
"Oh, bother!" she grumbles. Still grumbling, she puts her club away and takes out her crossbow, fitting an arrow into the slot. Nestling the crossbow's stock against her upper arm, she dips her free hand into her pocket and brings out...
... a vial of yellowish-greenish liquid with a clay stopper. With odd dexterity, she positions a thin, metal rod against the clay and shoves it partway in, but not all the way through into the liquid.
With the skeletons now defeated, Hector puts the light mace away in favor of his rapier. He nods to Czein as he watches him get into flanking positions and adjusts to make it quicker for both of them. If time permitted, Hector readies an attack at whatever might make its way through.
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With a scream, two flaming skulls fly up out of the well! However, the group is more than ready for them. Czein, Ragnar, and Crystal all act at once. Czein swings his mighty axe, destroying one of the skulls instantly. Hectore manages to skewer a skull in the eye socket, holds it up, and Crystal's bolt slams into it, destroying the second skull.
However, after the group finishes their attacks, two more heads fly out after the flaming skulls! A tiny one soars out, snapping wildly at the air. However, one more float up, and it's enormous. At least ten feet wide, this gigantic severed head floats up, roaring ominously.
The creatures you're fighting are the beheaded, animated severed heads. The ones in front of you are a particularly large variant, and one which seems to specialize in grabbing people. They are mindless undead and come in a variety of different forms.
As the unidentifiable skull looms into view, Juid is surprised and disgusted by the never-ending creativity of those who create undead.
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Czein's expert knowledge tells him that there's a giant floating head in front of him.
"How repugnant," Raven mutters. Then she addresses the large, floating head: "I say, you there! Say 'Ah', please." She presses the metal rod home, causing the contents of her little flask to start fizzing in an alarming manner, and with an underhand toss, she lobs it into the floating head's mouth...! The bottle explodes with a roar to challenge the undead creature's!