The clouds disperse and Sauklas gets a shot at the vast, bloated thing in the webs. His bolt stick into a thick intervening web strand. Injured by the lightning bolt, Silas fires wide with his ray of frost.
STATUS
Spider-Creature 1 - 21 damage, concealed
Smaller Spider 2 - 1 damage, concealed
Tilver - 88/96 hp, Sickened 1, Slowed 1
Nekh-Mutf - 68/68 hp, Sickened 1
Dain - Sickened 1, Slowed 1
Silas - 90+11/124 hp
Sauklas - 92/96 hp, Sickened 1, Slowed 1
Master Nekht changed his actions to cast Mirror Images, and suddenly there are four of him.
When the putrid vapors disperse, Dain moves back up the stairs.
Following the gaze of the others, Dain looks up and spots the spider-creature. He whistles and calls out in spirit-tongue. A moment later a glowing spear materializes next to the creature and strikes!
Dain's spiritual weapon slices forward, but is blocked by the creature's thick webbing.
"Filthy bipeds!" it hisses. "The...I shall destroy you!"
The creature mumbles some half-heard words and starts moving rapidly. It then shoots out a long sticky tongue and tries to grab Sauklas! The gunslinger dodges aside just as the tongue slaps wetly against the floorboards, then zips back up to its owner. The creature shuffles behind some thick webs.
STATUS
Spider-Creature 1 - 21 damage, concealed, Taking Cover
Smaller Spider 2 -concealed
Tilver - 88/96 hp, Sickened 1
Nekh-Mutf - 68/68 hp, Sickened 1
Dain - Sickened 1
Silas - 90+11/124 hp
Sauklas - 92/96 hp, Sickened 1
”I can see it better with the cloud gone!” Sauklas says. ”Thanks Nekh-Mutf! Hold on to that Tilver.” Sauklas reloads his crossbow while looking wet mark left by the spider’s tongue. He moves along the wall. Thinking he has a decent chance of striking his target he fires the hand crossbow.
Tilver pulls out a flask from his pack and holds it for a moment, watching the creature. Then he hurls it up at the thing.
Annoyed at the intervening webs, his roiling stomach, and his lack of mass energy attack capability, Nekht traced out with his eyes the thicker webs where they attached to the walls. Making an experiment, he casually flicked his hand and spoke a word of power to fling an Acid Splash at such an anchor point.
It deals acid damage to that point and 1 point acid damage to everything around it. (5' around? It doesn't really say.)
"If Silas, or anyone, would like to get up there to melee with the creature, I can Levitate them." Master Nekht spoke in aside to his allies.
Dain moves off the stairs and into the room, calling out to the spirits to continue the attack. Noticing that more spirits have gathered, he asks them for protection.
The various assaults on the webs do some damage, but do nothing to clear away the webs. Sauklas and Dain hurl very accurate attacks, injuring the spider-thing. It shrieks and gibbers a moment in an unknown tongue, then snarls. "I'll make you pay for that!"
STATUS
Spider-Creature 1 - 49 damage, concealed, Taking Cover
Smaller Spider 2 -concealed
Tilver - 88/96 hp, Sickened 1
Nekh-Mutf - 68/68 hp, Sickened 1
Dain - Sickened 1
Silas - 90+11/124 hp
Sauklas - 92/96 hp, Sickened 1
Silas will aim at the bigger creature as best he can and fire away with another beam of cold.
Silas hits the spider-creature with a blast of cold and it hisses in anger. "Fine!" it roars. "The Quaan take you bastards! I've had enough!"
It scuttles up into the darkness, followed imperceptibly by its small companion, leaving you in possession of the tower!
STATUS
Spider-Creature 1 - 61 damage, concealed, Taking Cover
Smaller Spider 2 -concealed
Tilver - 88/96 hp, Sickened 1
Nekh-Mutf - 68/68 hp, Sickened 1
Dain - Sickened 1
Silas - 90+11/124 hp
Sauklas - 92/96 hp, Sickened 1
COMBAT OVER?
Nekht cursed quietly as his masked face stared after the spider creature..
"It has fled. And we have no means to pursue the creature."
He turned to his companions.
"Are you gentlemen intact?"
”I just need a moment or two to get that stench out of my nose,” Sauklas says peering to where the creatures retreated. He clears his nostrils on the edge of his sleeve. After spitting twice he sighs. ”That’s better.”
Weapons returned to their holders, he nods at Nekht-Mutf, ”Good thinking with your wind spell.”
He spits once more then chuckles. ”Now, let’s continue after the cult, right?” he raises an eyebrow to the three original investigators.
Silas drops his rage and rubs his wound. "It got me once, but I am prepared to move on." He then looks around and says, "There doesn't seem to be another way out of here. We will need to backtrack and look for another way to go." Silas will turn and head back the way they came.
”Good thinking with your wind spell.”
Nekht nodded in return.
He proceeded to complete his search of the attic.Assuming nothing of interest, He will return down to the ground floor and approach the eastern door.
He allows time for his companions to stack themselves next to the door, then opened it.
Nekht-Mutf finds only webs, dust and bones. Shortly thereafter, the team descended to the lower floor and went out the door to the east. Beyond was a cavern much like the one to the west, but here there is much evidence that the cultists have been widening and expanding the area. Boards and rubble lay here and there about the floor. To the east stands another ancient building (with a stout DOOR) facing the round tower. To the north a pair of lit tunnels of rough stone exit the large room, while a third tunnel of worked stone runs straight south.
Master Nekht's masked face turned back and forth, then focused on the door to the east.
"Mmm. This door looks interesting." He said to the others, then went over to look closely at it.
Silas looks to the north and says, "The sinister path lies that way. I think we should try and stick to the left most path as we move around. But if you wish to check out this door instead we can."
Silas will follow along with Nekht-Mutf.
Sauklas approaches the door Nekht-Mutf is looking at. Standing to the side, he runs his fingertips along the door frame. ”Did you notice anything in particular?” he askes the bandaged man. After looking for any other signs of a trap, he checks to make sure the others are ready then he opens the door.
He was a little to the north, but I moved him back with the others.
Nekht-Mutf, as you walk towards the door, the rubble beneath your feet crumbles and plummets down into a shaft, boards and stones of some ancient well giving way as you fall forward!
Sauklas, that was a good roll, so I'll let you keep it even though you'd obviously be distracted by the collapse of the floor. Remind me of your good roll later when you get around to examining that door.
Hero Point?
Tilver rushes over to the edge of the pit to look down and try to help Nekht-Mutf.
Dain moves towards the pit - whistling to attract spirits as he goes. He looks over the edge to see if his companion is in need of healing.
”Nekht-Mutf!” Sauklas says diving to grab onto his companion’s hand. Seeing that he caught himself on the edge of the pit, Sauklas clamps his hands on the sorcerer’s forearms and starts to drag the ancient one from the pit.
Sauklas helps Nekt-Muft clamber out of the pit. As you watch boards and stones fall, you see they plummet twenty feet into a pool of something slimy, viscous and green...
The unstable area identified, you can now proceed to the eastern door (or any of the three passages out of this chamber.)
Nekht, taking a minute to recover (and mark the unstable area) approaches the eastern door again, perhaps a bit more cautiously now.
Tilver searches the door for any traps with Nekht.
”Does anyone know what that is?” Sauklas says peering over the edge at the green and viscous slimy thing below. He treads carefully, not wanting to knock another stone or piece of debris to disturb it. ”I’m glad you didn’t fall down there.”
Studying the door frame and stonework, the man approaches Nekht. ”Let me listen behind the door too.” He puts his left ear to the wood and slows his breathing.
The door doesn't appear to be trapped in any way. Unlike the rest of the structure, the door is new and sturdy. Rubbish is strewn about and there is a heavy funk on the air, like the smell of too many bodies. From within, only silence is heard.
Tilver wrinkles his nose at the smell coming from the other side. "Well, that doesn't seem like a good omen. Shall we see what horrible thing is inside?" He tries to open the door.
Nekht's masked face nodded at Tilver's proposal.
"Let us proceed." He said hollowly, taking a prudent step back.
Silas nods and waits for Tilver to open the door.
Sauklas pulls out his crossbow and loads it, ready to rush through the door when it is opened. His nose twitches and he snorts repeatedly. ”This smell...” he shakes his head. ”My eyes are going to water if it starts smelling worse.”
I read that you are waiting for Tilver. Do you want to keep waiting for Tilver? Tilver, do you want to stop them from waiting?
Tilver opens the door!
Tilver opens the door. and doesn't immediately spot trouble. However, a cry of "Fire!" from within alerts everyone to trouble. Three arrows flash out of the semi-darkness. Two of them strike the door in Tilver's hand but the third hits him squarely in the breast!
+2 Initiative if Perception, wins ties regardless of which skill is used.
STATUS
Gavele
Dain
Sauklas
ORANGE
Tilver - 72/96 hp (poisoned?)
Nekh-Mutf
Silas
RED
Tilver shouts as he's hit with an arrow. "Incoming!"
Sauklas knows the pain of arrows piercing his body, and he feels sympathetic pain for a moment. He crouches and strides through the door, sliding about ten feet from the doorway. In the semi-darkness he sees three opponents. He aims at the farthest one and fires his crossbow. He pulls his axe from his holder and prepares to engage in a closer manner.
Dain runs to Tilver's side, calling for spiritual aid. He raises a glowing hand and places it on the half-elf's chest. With his other hand he slowly pulls the arrow out.
Sauklas's hasty shot with his hand crossbow goes wide as the human-seeming woman dodges out of its way.
The ratman next to her points a hefty tube and pulls a trigger. A huge flash of light, a deafening roar and a cloud of smoke follow. Despite the tremendous sound, the shots are poorly aimed and ricochet off the walls!
STATUS
Gavele
Dain
Sauklas
ORANGE
Tilver - 93/96 hp
Nekh-Mutf
Silas
RED
"Now Silas!" Tilver charges in after hearing the shots from the ratman. He moves to avoid any attacks on his way in and slices at the ratman with his elven blade.