GMTrex's Devil We Know Part III -- Crypt of Fools (Inactive)

Game Master Andrew Trexler

Will Save, Charmed Life: 1d20 - 1 + 3 ⇒ (11) - 1 + 3 = 13

Parry: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14
Reposte: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
Damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 17
Damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8
add +1 to damage from whetstone to first hit

Isabella easily parries the club, but her return swing is off. Falling into a familiar pattern she slashes again at the orc's face while shouting

"Miaka, shoot the caster! We can manage here!"

Isabella's dueling sword cuts a wide red smile across the half-orc's armored chest.

Round II - bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric (in the mist), half-orcs (top @ 8 dmg, bot @ 8 dmg)
3. Grenda (darkness)

Drystan whips out another wand and fires a missile of force at the orc Isabella struck.

Magic Missile: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

As Jamamros fights off the sting from the club, he has just enough time to harden his senses to attempt and ward off the spell.

Will Save: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

With the spell seemingly having no effect on the dwarf, Jamamros focuses his attention on returning the attack back at the half-orc that struck him.

Attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 = 8
Damage: 2d4 + 3 ⇒ (2, 1) + 3 = 6

But, despite the spell having no effect on the dwarf, the time Jamamros had to use to overcome the spell's effects was enough to detract from his focus in hitting his target.

Drystan fells one half-orc while Jamamros struggles with the other.

Just Grenda to go!

Round II -- bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric (in the mist), half-orcs (top @ 8 dmg, bot unconscious)
3. Grenda (darkness)

I can see the ladder on the map but could Grenda see it when she moved into the room? If not could she figure out where it would be though a perception check?
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29

I'd take a wisdom check to notice that you didn't pass a ladder on the way in, so it must be further down--your nat 20 suffices.

Grenda watches the priest above move into the fog and follows suit, locating a ladder and beginning to climb up. (10 foot tall ladder)

1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18
1d20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 2 = 16 1d100 ⇒ 42 1d10 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9

"Gronn!" shouts the standing half-orc, watching the other fall. "You'll pay for that!" He clubs at Isabella this time, but his wild swing connects with the banister instead in a spray of shattered wood.

Club @ Isabella: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4 MISS

Round III - bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric (in the mist), half-orcs (top @ 8 dmg, bot unconscious)
3. Grenda (darkness)

Still need a Will save from Drystan and Grenda.

Parry: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14
Reposte: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14
Damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
Damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10

Grenda continues to climb happy in that though that Jamamros is stuck battling minion while she goes to take on the leader on her own.
1/4 speed means I make it to the top with a double move.

Grenda clambers to the top of the ladder, clanking all the way up. At the top, she comes face-to-face with the enemy leader, who, hearing someone on the ladder, decided to set an ambush. Luckily, the priest's heavy flail bounces off Grenda's armor. Readied action rolled above.

She notes the skull moon motifs on Grenda's outfit and laughs. "FOOL! You know not the purposes of the supreme god, Groteus of the End Times! This, he has granted to me!"

Down below, Isabella "parries" the half-orc's clumsy complete whiff and takes the opportunity to reply, dropping him alongside his brother. This frees your action if you want to do something else, Isabella.

Round III - bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric (in the mist, visible to Grenda only)
3. Grenda (darkness)

Ha! You are the fool! Groteus IS the End Times! Your petty schemes mean nothing to him! You are being used bu the Undead Whore Urgathoa! Why else would you play with such filth in the CRYPT OF FOOLS!

Round 3 Precise Shot
Miaka will move toward where she saw the cleric disappear ...

Drystan hustles after Miaka, reaching the bottom of the ladder. "Ladder over here!" he shouts toward his companions that remain in the main area.

Isabella tries to determine how bad the gnome is faring

"Are you ok?"
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (20) - 1 = 19

Wow, she might actually have a clue!"

Queck (the gnome) looks to be badly bruised from the beating, maybe a couple of broken ribs, but is not in any immediate danger of death.

Round III - bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric (in the mist, visible to Grenda only)
3. Grenda (darkness)

Jamamros has had a while to post so we'll move on.

Up in the mist, the cleric steps away from Grenda, disappearing into the fog. Over the clanging of machinery, you hear the sounds of spell-casting. "Ha! Fool, fool...!"

Party is up!

Round IV - bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric (in the mist, visible to Grenda only)
3. Grenda (darkness)

Miaka continues forward towards Grenda, finding the ladder and beginning to climb.

Isabella waits with the gnome "I will keep you company for now, just relax. We will wait for your story when this caster has been dealt with"

Meanwhile she goes through the pockets of the halforcs, hoping to find some kind of ranged weapon.

Drystan impatiently waits at the bottom of the ladder, unable to see above, and unable to climb while Miaka is on the ladder.

Time to die fool! Grenda calls as she steps towards the cleric and takes a swing with her ax.
Attack: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (16) + 5 - 1 = 20
Damage: 1d10 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 3 + 2 = 8

Grenda's axe strikes true, but it's not quite enough to strike down the enemy. Isabella goes through the enforcer's pockets and finds, unfortunately, that they're carrying next to nothing.

The cleric strikes back at Grenda with her heavy flail, guided by foresight granted by Groetus. The flail-heads land on Grenda's stocky frame with a sickening crunch.

Flail @ Grenda: 1d20 + 2 + 20 ⇒ (6) + 2 + 20 = 28 HIT
Miss Chance: 1d100 ⇒ 67 HIT
Damage: 1d10 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

Round V - bold may act!
1. Miaka, Isabella, Drystan, Jamamros (9/17hp)
2. Cleric @ 8dmg (in the mist, visible to Grenda only)
3. Grenda (3/10hp, darkness)

Isabella decides to go after the others and bumbs into Drystan "Hurry up! We need to aid the others above us!"

Miaka finishes her climb up the ladder and rushes toward Grenda ...
... and will attempt to fire at the unseen cleric Point Blank; Precise Shot.
Long Bow: 1d20 + 7 - 4 ⇒ (14) + 7 - 4 = 17 for Piercing: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8 if Miss > 50: 1d100 ⇒ 36
... but mist makes it difficult for the arrow to strike true.

Grenda lets our a roar as she presses forward through the pain swining her ax low trying to get the cleric's legs .
Attack: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (4) + 5 - 1 = 8
Damage: 1d10 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 3 + 2 = 13
YUCK! Using shirt reroll!
Attack: 1d20 + 5 - 1 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 5 - 1 + 3 = 19
that should do it!

Grenda fully amputates one of the cleric's legs! She passes out from the blood loss and falls to the walkway floor! Out of initiative!

The mist fades after just a few more moments.

Status:
Grenda 3/10hp
Jamamros 9/17hp

B*%@#. Grenda spits at the dead woman. She cleans her ax and puts it way before retrieveing her wand to heal herself.
CLW: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
CLW: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6

She heads back down the ladder and then over to sift though the cleric's possessions.
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (10) + 9 = 19

She isn't carrying too much either. Masterwork heavy flail, chain shirt, and a holy symbol of Groetus.

Miaka follows Grenda back down the ladder and returns to where the gnome captive is.

With the party gathered around the gnome Isabella asks her "can you tell us what happened here?"

After taking a few moments to recover and gather her resolve, Queck happily answers your question(s). "They just broke in! I don't know! About an hour ago, most of them left with six of my engineers! They were the most knowledgeable about ancient Cassomir construction. The rest of my engineers are locked up down the hall. They've been beating me to try and get more information, about blueprints and stuff! You came in after them, so you must know something about this, too, right? What's going on?!"

They wanted to get rid on any information you might have on a place called "The Crypt of Fools". Sound familiar?

"Oh! Yes! They demanded we turn over any blueprints that detailed the Crypt of Fools! It's a secret graveyard, long fallen from use, where traitorous families were buried, or in some cases re-buried, to scrub their stain from Taldan history. They said something about keeping the location of hidden tunnels secret. Then they ransacked our guild and absconded with the prints--and six of my best engineers!"

Great another rescue mission. Where would they have headed? Do you know where these secret tunnels are?

Despite her wounds, Queck's head bobs in a excited fashion. "The entrance lies under an ancient fountain hidden somewhere below Old Cassomir, though the knowledge of its exact location was lost some time ago and finding it presents a bit of a problem. A legend among engineers tells of a series of hidden clues within three Cassomir monuments. These clues yield three locations which, when triangulated, give the location of the surface entrance to the Crypt of Fools; they also show the combination required to unlock the entrance. We should look for old buildings built by the Ismacco family, whom we’ve long suspected used the Crypt of Fools as the base of their heinous operations after it fell from use!"

There is no "we" here. You are not coming with us gnome. If we need your help we'll come back here.

"Now now Grenda! Queck is just trying to help us! And we need her to find these monuments. Or are you such an expert on architecture that you can deduce which buildings where built by the Ismacco's?" Isabella intervenes

"Isabella makes a valid point; it is even possible Queck remains in danger should she stay here where we can't ensure her safety either."

Apologies, thought I had posted last night and I had not.

"Hmm, well let's see. I know they built the Imperial Hall of Records, the Admiralty Citadel, the Harbor Watch...
the construction of the entire Swift Prison was headed by Ismacco engineers and I've been asking the city to destroy that Groetus-festooned statue for years. Oh! And they laid the stone that makes up the square around Pharasma's Pulpit. And bult retaining walls to shore up some ruins at Quickfall Abbey. They've really done quite a lot over the years, you see."

Wisdom: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19

Of coarse! That daft painter! He's hidden clues in his paintings to find the Crypt. I can't belive I missed that, I feel as dumb as an gnome!

"Well, let's have another visit to the crazy bastard then." Drystan suggests.

"We just need a peek at the other paintings right?"

Grenda's comment flies right over Queck's short head, so distracted is the engineer. "Wait, wait! Before you go, take these! They might help. And if you need anything, I'll be right here cleaning up. I'll notify the city watch and I should be safe enough. Please bring back my engineers!"

She gives you four potions of cure light wounds and a wand of detect secret doors with five charges remaining.

Garver is happy to lead you back to the crazy cultist, who is busily painting a new 'masterpiece.' "For my master, the world! FOR YOU! All, all!"

Yeah, yeah praise Groetus. Grenda says in a annoyed voice. Alright you mad old coot, lets see these paintings. You got any with little secret bits that show how to find the Crypt of Fools?

The painter continues to shout nonsensical gibberish about his 'master' until Garver hands you the little metal rod he used earlier. Banging it against the bars once again manages to get his attention.

"Paintings? Oh yes, yes! I have paintings! I'm a painter, see?" He grin stretches from ear to ear, covered in paint just like the rest of him. He brings out two new paintings that bear similar iconography to the one you helped him with earlier (unlike the completely abstract smears of paint piled on the floor and pretty much everywhere else).

One painting depicts a stately, white stone building. Three-foot-tall bas-reliefs circle the building’s outside walls at ground level, though they are warped and twisted in the crazed painter's art. Derros stand atop the hall’s steps and seem to punish criminals--all of whom are wearing the robes of Taldan government officials. At the southwest corner of the building, the bas-relief glows a bright white. The same lone figure from the other paintings attempts to sooth a group of frightened children by playing a flute--the notes are actually painted above him on the canvas.

The other painting depicts a retaining wall that shores up parts of a ruined building. It shows dozens of angry derros smashing brightly-painted urns against the retaining wall, while the same lone figure from the other paintings frantically attempts to push down an obviously barred door in the middle of the wall, presumably to escape another group of menacing derros that seems to pursue him.

Knowledge (Local): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
"That painting looks like the Imperial Hall of Records."

Knowledge (Local): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20
"This one looks like the Quickfall Abbey."

"Is this enough to figure out the rest?"

"hmm, so we now have the three buildings. Does anyone have a map of Casomir? If we triangulate those three buildings on the map we should get to the location of that Crypt of Fools."

Queck would likely be able to help you.

Where to, folks?

Back to Queck to get that information!

Arriving back at the Hall of Wonders Isabella shouts "Queck, where are you!?"

The paintings are 1gp each. I'll assume you bought them.

"Hi again! What can I do you for?" Queck exclaims excitedly, poking her head into the hallway.

I'll pay for them.

"We need a triangulation between three buildings. If you could find the building on the map and then triangulate a location with them, it would greatly help us."