GM Turmoil's GD V: Black Waters (Inactive)

Game Master ckelley83

Fung keeps to the rear of the party for now, somewhat confused by the changing attitude of the caretaker.

"The name is Deris Marlinchen. I thought I'd tend the grounds while I wait for Cassiel. My daughter Cassiel attends this school. You should see how she’s grown. Those beautiful long braids!" He pauses as large smile creeps across his face as he stares off into nothingness. After a few moments, Deris snaps back, almost startled to see you all standing in front of him.

Oh dear, how tragic! He is still waiting for his daughter!

Uncertain how to respond, Fung looks to his teammates. His heart sinks, starting to regret taking on this mission.

Hervey is greatly relieved to see that the man is actually living. But some part of him still seems to be dead- possibly the memory of his daughter's passing. Hervey feels very sympathetic.

"Deris, we are here to visit the children and give them aid. Can you show us to the school building so that we may see them?"

Kelumur sheds a single tear, sympathizing with the man, as he knows what it's like to lose family.

Oh no. This poor man. This impact this tragedy has had on the community; it's overwhelming.

Mūn holds the handshake a little longer than he otherwise might, drawing the man in and patting him on the back. "My dear man. When we're done here, you should really head home. The children...." His voice catches, finding it hard to continue. "The children will be in our good hands. Please, Mr. Marlinchen, if you could point us the way, we'll be on our way, and then you should be too."

Garekk bows his head as the import of the mans words sinks in. "It seems the stress may have been too much.." he mutters, letting the others take the lead in this delicate situation.

Deris gets really excited when you ask to see the school, and is happy to assist. "Come on, I’ll introduce you to Mrs. Heracks. She's in Headmistress Kiwu's old office now. You can meet Cassiel too! Oh yes, I saved her, you know. I saved many of them, teachers and students. Some still call me a hero." He excitedly runs ahead of the group.

The ruined paths of the Tri-Towers Yard wind their way around black ponds and gray, shattered buildings. Powerful fragrances precede one roofless hall where a thin path meanders through an abundance of flower arrangements in wild bloom. These are the original funerary flowers from 10 years ago, unnaturally preserved by the magic of the necropolis and growing into a small flower garden. Just off this path is the entrance to a small classroom.

Ten students dressed in checkered uniforms sit stiffly at wooden desks, staring straight ahead. No one moves. At the front of the class, a conservatively dressed woman leans against the wall. Deris turns to you and put his finger to his lip. "Shhh they're in class right now. I'll see if I can get Mrs Heracks' attention. Excuse me, Mrs. Heracks? These fine people are from the Pathfinder Society and they say that they'd like to see the school. Is that ok?"

"Look students, we have guests! Now be polite and say hello." The teacher motions to the Pathfinders, but the motion is off, too jerky to be natural. All of the students turn and look at the group in unison, with a movement similar to the teacher's. They all begin to talk as one monotone voice, "Hello, Pathfinders. It's nice to meet you!"

Perception: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9
Sense Motive, hunch: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17

Mūn turns to the man, a look of growing horror rising on his face. "How do you... What did you... This isn't right."

perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23
sense motive: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20
My training never prepared me for this. Awkwardly, unsure how to react to the situation at hand, Kelumur holds his daggers on his belt a little tighter but does not draw them.

"G..go..good day." Turning to Deris then." How exactly did you save them?"

perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21
sense motive: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 1 = 11

Fung stares intently at the teacher and students, his attention captured solely by them that he ignores Deris completely. He walks forward slowly towards the teacher, trying to examine her more closely. When he reaches her side, almost as if hypnotised, Fung reaches out his hand towards her.

sorry for my absence RL got busy.

Perception:: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (4) + 8 = 12

Sense Motive:: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22

Helen recoils in fear bordering on terror as she silently whispers a near constant stream of prayers to sarenrae.

"This...this isnt right...are they undead or? Does anyone know what this is?"

Helen grabs her holy symbol in her free hand and holds it before her ready to channel divine energy if needed.

perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (9) + 8 = 17
sense motive: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

Hervey feels bad for Deris, obviously thinking that these spirits are real.

"Undead? What are you talking about? Be careful talking about such things, you may scare the students. They've been through enough, after the quake and all. Now didn't you say you were here to investigate something? I'm sure we can help you."

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11
Sense Motive: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

Garekk completely misses out on the signs until the others point them out to him. With a shiver, it takes everything for him to hold his place.. He can face any manner of man or beast, but this is so far beyond his his superstitious mind can hold.

"Of course.. they are clearly alive.. my question was not answered dear sir, how exactly did you save them?"

"I... I don't really remember. But I saved Cassiel and her class, just ask anyone!"

The more you converse with him, the more that it's becoming clear to all of you that he really has no idea what the issue is. He fully believes that they are alive and does not realize the control he has.

Garekk takes a hold of his quivering.. heart.. and says "Well.. umm.. Good job, sir... Perhaps you could show us the caverns that opened up under the school?"

How can he not see that they're not real?!

Fung still doesn't realise that Deris is controlling the ... phantasms(?). :)

Fung waits till he is certain the Deris is looking his way, and actually puts his hand through the spirit (image?) of Mrs Heracks.

"Mr. Marlinchen, I'm going to have to ask you to leave now." Mūn says this with compassion, but his voice leaves no doubt that there is little suggestion to his words; it's an order. "We are fully equipped to handle things from here, and we truly appreciate your help. Please go home, and in the morning visit the Grand Lodge of the Pathfinder Society downtown. Ask for Venture-Captain Dreng--any Venture-Captain, really--and explain where you come from. They will be very interested in your tale, I promise. You've done fantastic work here."

"Now, go."

Diplomacy, influence attitude: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19

"I'm sorry friend, but I can't do that. Cassiel and the others rely on me to keep the grounds in order. This is where I belong. Now I don't know how to get down below but perhaps Mrs. Heracks knows more."

Before the phantom teacher is able to offer her assistance, all the children start to talk in unison again. "We know where to look. It's our secret place, we like to play games there! Follow us, we'll show you." They all start to silently giggle and whisper among one another.

Definitely not ready for this.
"I guess... we should follow them to the secret place." Kelumur hesistates to say these words, but clearly is curious to know more about the secret place.

This is perfect for Halloween!!! :) I'm really curious, did Fung's hand actually passed through Mrs Heracks?

The sudden change of behaviour of students alarms Fung and he quickly withdraws from the phantasms. He turns to Kelumur and replies, with a faint quiver in his voice, "I don't see much other ... options. Other than to get this quickly over with."

Garekk jumps in surprise as the kids erupt into noise. He grips his sword with a sweaty and.. possibly.. shaking hand. Silently, he follows the others behind the children.

Marlinchen's blind commitment to his role seems almost as disturbing or more than the oddly synchronous children. Clearly not happy about what is going on, but feeling like his opportunity to have prevented any of this is long gone, he resigns himself to this... strange... event.

"Lead on, then. Lead on. Let's see where the children will lead us."

He retrieves his spear, holding it like a walking stick with the point in the air as he pulls a wand out of his backpack. He quickly activates the wand and then returns it to his bag.

Casting Heightened Awareness for a +2 competence bonus on Perception checks and Knowledge checks that I'm trained in, which can be burned for a +4 bonus to my next Initiative check (10 min duration)

Helen continues to follow the group silently one hand clutching her holy symbol the other on the pommel of her dagger.

Two lashes of ectoplasm tethered by wispy tendrils manifest around Hervey as he follows the children. Something about the children doesn't seem right.

He still doesn't know Deris is controlling them.

sense motive on children: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17

Now it's dawning on him :D

@Xuan: Yes, your hand passes through hers :)

The school children all get up in unison without making a sound, and begin to file out of the classroom single file, with their odd jerking motion. They lead you to a black pool of water with an occasional bubble coming from the middle. You easily spot a fully-submerged, severed human arm jutting up from the blackened silt near the center of the pool. The little girls all point to the middle of the of the pool, near the hand "Our special place is under therrrrre." The children all begin to giggle, and without any notice, disappear before your eyes.

Sorry, there's no map for this. The pool is about 30 feet in diameter though.

Seeing the (dead?) hand in the pool, Fung starts the recall the horrifying hordes of undeads after undeads in his first mission. The memory sends shivers down his spine.

Putting that aside for now, Fung examines the pool and the area around to see if there's any passage that leads below the pool.

perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21

Garekk moves about the edges of the pool, trying to find some indication of what the children were talking about. The dead arm doesn't bother him over much.. except to wonder what diseases exist in the water from rotting flesh.
Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17

Kelumur maintains silence during the whole walk, questioning his life choices, Maybe I should have been a rich merchant.. but that would do the world no good I guess.
At the sight of the pool, he decides that it's only right to be cautious, and does what he does best knowing probably there's nothing wrong, but what's the harm? The whole encounter today was already too odd for him to understand.

perception, looking for traps/hidden doors and objects!: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29

Watching the children's images waver and disappear, Mūn only feels more disturbed. As if their presence weren't nerve-wracking enough....

Is Mr. Marlinchen still with us, or did he stay behind?

Mūn cautiously approaches the pool's edge. He murmurs in a soft voice as he waves his hand slowly in front of him.

Helen draws her dagger as the group approaches the pool.

"I am not a skilled swimmer myself but that being said i stand ready to assist anyone who wants to go across."

Helen begins to cast her own detect magic before seeing that Mun has already done so and drops the cantrip.

You do not detect any magic. Despite the murky water Kelumur is able to just make out what appears to be a metal handle under the water that the hand is gripping.

Deris did not join you, he went back to the yard.

" Well, the day just keeps getting stranger.. I see that the hand is holding a metal handle, could it be a secret door or some sort? Anyone willing to jump in?"

Mūn frowns at Kelumur's question, then looks down at his beautiful shoes. "I don't think I'm the one for this...." His voice trails off as he tries to not make eye contact until one of the others steps forward to make the attempt.

I assume the pool is not that deep since the arm is jutting out.
Kelumur ponders and looks at the rest of the group. I guess if you want anything done... Without removing any clothing, he starts to waddle into the pool towards the door, grabs the hand and throws it in the direction of the party unknowingly landing at Helen's feet. He thrust his arms into the pool and yanks on the handle!

"Here goes nothing."

The half-orc wades out into the murky, waist deep water where the semi-submerged hand is located. As he grabs it, he notices that the hand is also covered in bulbous, white eggs. Before Kelumur even has a chance to tug on the handle, a large black insect like creature emerges from the silt.

Surprise Round
Garekk
Xuan
Hervey
===========================
Round 1
Garekk
Kelumur
Xuan
Helen
Mun
Hervey
===========================
Bug

The water is considered difficult terrain. Also, there isn't an actual map for this so I'm improvising. You are not at an oasis ;)

Surprise round: Garekk releases a bellow of warning and battle adrenalin as he rushes to the aid of his fellow half orc as the beetle bursts from the detritus of the shoreline.

Round 1: Once he is close enough, Garekk draws his greatsword from over his shoulder, and brings it down in a powerful two handed stroke.

Attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

Fung dashes around the perimeter of the pond, and let's loose with a bolt of electricity at the insect.

electric blast, pbs: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 4 + 1 = 23 vs touch AC, for dmg, pbs: 1d6 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 2 + 1 = 7

Xuan, surprise round is only a move or standard action, not both.

Oops, sorry forgot. Have moved him back to his starting position, but proceed with the attack. So there would be a cover bonus to the bug's AC.

Everyone can go ahead and post their actions for round 1 as well since the bug goes last anyways. I would be surprised if it lasted that long though.

Fung runs around the perimeter of the pond to get a clear shot, and fires another bolt of electricity at the insect.

electric blast, pbs: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 4 + 1 = 24 vs touch AC, for dmg, pbs: 1d6 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 2 + 1 = 4

Mūn moves to the other side of Hervey, where he blesses the man with guidance. +1 competence to single attack, save, or skill check within 1 minute

"Ugh I hate bugs."Claims the half orc as he casually draws his daggers and swipes the creature.
[Ooc, move action to draw two daggers (twf) and get adjacent if I'm not already, std action to attack.[/ooc]

dagger, sneak attack, weapon finesse: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 171d4 + 1d6 ⇒ (2) + (6) = 8

Hervey thanks Mun, then sneaks around the pool behind the bug, then attacks it with his ectoplasmic lashes.

Move action in surprise round. He has enough speed to get around the bug without triggering an AoO I believe.

Next round, full-action attack.

lash1+flank+guidance: 1d20 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 2 + 1 = 5
damage1: 1d6 ⇒ 4

lash2+flank: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15
damage2: 1d6 ⇒ 4

Botting Helen to keep this going.

As Kelumur is tossing the decaying hand aside, Garekk, Xuan, and Hervey hear the skittering of the water bug right before it emerges. Garekk and Hervey both make their way towards the bug while Xuan quickly lets off a blast of electricity. Garekk reaches the bug, but almost loses his balance with the weight of his sword and misses. Kelumur stabs a dagger into the creature's carapace just while Xuan is unleashing another bolt of lightning. Mun calls on Ashava to assist Hervey as ethereal whips lash out at the insect, but neither one connects. Helen fumbles with her crossbow and almost hits Kelumur, the bolt splashing into the water. Screeching in pain, the beetle retaliates and sinks its pincers into Kelumur, and doesn't let go!

Helen attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 61d8 ⇒ 2

Bug, bite: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 222d6 + 4 ⇒ (1, 2) + 4 = 7
Grapple: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (6) + 10 = 16
Bug, sting: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 151d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

Round 2
Garekk
Kelumur (-7, grappled)
Xuan
Helen
Mun
Hervey
===========================
Bug (-19)

Mūn moves to the edge of the pool where he has enough room to strike at the critter with his spear. He lunges the point forward, hoping to dislodge the beast from Kelumur's arm.

Longspear: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
Crit?: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10
Crit damage: 2d8 + 6 ⇒ (7, 5) + 6 = 18

Garekk feels his rage rise within him in shame at his missed attack. These ghosts and scares have really unnerved him. He embraces the rage, allowing it to make him stronger and faster. He pulls back, and steps into his stroke, smashing into the beast with all of his considerable strength.

Power Attack+Rage: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (19) + 5 - 1 = 23
Damage: 2d6 + 6 + 3 ⇒ (3, 1) + 6 + 3 = 13

Confirm: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (14) + 5 - 1 = 18
Crit dmg: 2d6 + 6 ⇒ (3, 5) + 6 = 14