GM Tyranius Giantslayer (Inactive)

Game Master Tyranius

Farin pulls a potion out of his pack and drinks it. (Potion of displacement)

Kraygan ref: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (16) + 11 = 27
Haggis ref: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (9) + 10 = 19 *improved evasion

Kraygan fort: 1d20 + 24 ⇒ (5) + 24 = 29
Haggis fort: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (19) + 12 = 31

”Nasty!!” Kraygan wipes muck from his side. Having been the stable master for the Steelkeg brewery for a few years, the stuff just annoys him rather than make him sick.

”Looks like th’ tower kin see us somehow.” Kraygan says, forgetting that he’s no longer invisible. ”Let’s take it down!”

Urging Haggis forward, they begin barreling toward the siege tower, passing Jorgan going the opposite direction.

”Wren! Where are ye! We need a way up top!”

Just as Kraygan calls out for Wren the Castle lurches violently and the southern chain snaps. The resounding crack of the chain dislodging itself sounds like a crack of thunder through the sky as the chain whips across the crater leveling a long section before flinging to the ground. The cloud castle only remains tethered by a single chain as it rocks in the air. Though how long will it last as the Castle seems to be trying to take off.

Wren nods at Kraygan invisibly, having gotten the plan he wanted...until the 2nd to last chain snapped and they might not have enough time to do anything.

"Do we have time for that tower? Might be we just send a few air elementals to clash with it as we take the other chain!" Wren suggests, pouting furiously and invisibly.

You still want the tower, Kraygan? Alysendra? Or the elemental distraction while we bugger up the chain? Wren will again handle the big scorpion.

Kraygan and Haggis slid to a halt as one of the chains breaks.

”Gorum’s iron balls!!” He exclaims. ”Bah. Send those elementals and lets make for the castle!”

@Wren: the southern chain broke. We are currently at the northern chain, so we should be able to climb here.

Is flying to the castle possible? If not Kraygan will shrink down Haggis wth a carry companion oil and use his spider climb slippers to scale the remaining chain with others in tow. I’ll use a potion of haste to speed our ascent if climbing.

Flying is indeed possible.

Wren looks at Farin.

"You good with this plan, Yaktender?" Wren asks, still invisible. "I think it's the best we have."

"Alleycatbra? You agree? We need to plan something."

"Sounds good," Alysendra says. She will cast fly on one character who can't, and use her [i]boots of flying to head up tot he castle. "Penthae, make as many of them invisible as you can,". (She has 3 uses of invisibility left.)

"Plan? Sure, we can call it a plan... let's do it!"

Farin heads for the chain, trying to find a way to climb up. He fingers the snapleaf on a chain on his neck, to reassure himself that he can grab it if necessary.

Should have held on to that spider climb potion.

Round 5

"Okay. Let's get a move on."

Still invisible, Wren moves out of sight of the tower. He begins to cast Summon Monster VII.

Kraygan breaks out a vial of magic oil and slaps it on Haggis head. The yak shrinks down to a small figurine that the dwarf pockets.

Jorgan can shrink Spirit, and he has a potion of fly for himself.

To Alysendra, ”Make me fly and I’ll get Farin.”
To Farin, ”Hold on ta me.”

Kraygan drinks a potion of haste and races up the chain.

Slippers of spider climbing, plus haste. Should be able to climb pretty fast even with Farin in tow, and the fly spell is backup in case the chain goes or something knocks Kraygan off of it.

Alright looks like everyone is flying but Kraygan and Farin. Which takes away the climb checks on the chain for 600 feet :).

The group quickly gathers behind cover as they one by one turn back invisible while Wren opens one of the largest gateways to another realm that he has ever before.

Meanwhile the ballista continues to assault the group from the tower. Once ready Kraygan speeds the group up as the colossal scorpion and her babies begin to close in on them. Kraygan grabs ahold of Farin as Spirit and Haggis shrink back into their pockets.

With most flying Kraygan and Farin quickly begin to skitter up the chain. These chains are considerably larger than the ones used to moor even the biggest galleys of Golarion; each link is made out of foot-thick iron and is 5 feet in length. The chains stretch from the ground to the chain anchors just below the engine level, nearly 600 feet up.

A ballista bolt rips through the air right past Kraygan's head as climbing the chains for the first 200 feet is easy. At that point, the chains enter the cloud surrounding the castle’s base and become slippery with condensed moisture, though thanks to his slippers Kraygan doesn't even notice. At about halfway up the chain Kraygan begins to get assaulted from a different direction as ballista bolts fire at him from platforms above, though at a much slower pace.

Firing every other round it looks like they can only get 2 shots off at you before reaching the top.

The ballista firers seem completely unhindered by the thick mist surrounding the castles base as well as well as the invisibility as Kraygan and Alysendra each have a bolt fired in their direction.

Ballista 1 vs Kraygan AC 38: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (9) + 12 = 21
Ballista 2 vs Alysendra AC 31: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (4) + 12 = 16

The bolts miss by a large margin, though nearly a dozen strange creatures circle clumsily about in the air as well. Though thankfully they aren't able to see through the mist, nor invisibility as the Trunau Militia finds where the thick chain connects to the base. One of the giant anchoring chains has penetrated the castle’s base here. Around the chain, the bluish crystalline rock seems to have melted and then solidified again, encasing the metal and creating an unbreakable weld.

All of the anchoring chains hit the castle’s base near the engine level, but at slightly different heights. The inverted cone of the castle’s base forms an overhang that is wet and slippery, though just 10 more feet up from where the chain connects is a propulsion duct.

A network of conduits runs through the castle’s rocky base approximately 20 feet beneath the engine level. These 9-foot-diameter circular ducts channel winds from the engine room through 12 vents on the exterior of the base, providing propulsion for the entire cloud castle. Although the ducts are rather tight for Huge creatures, they are wide enough for Large creatures to move.

A constant, cold breeze (equivalent to a moderate wind) f lows through the ducts from the engine room to the exterior vents, but this increases to windstorm strength when the castle is moving at high speed, potentially making movement through the ducts difficult for creatures smaller than giants.

You each fall to the floor as the castle suddenly lurches! With one final thrust the final mooring chain snaps free and the cloud castle takes to the air. The climb becomes a bumpy and potentially terrifying experience as the floating fortress breaks free and begins to fly upward as the chain wavers in the wind and the castle picks up speed and altitude.

New map is up. Squares are now 15 feet. This is a massive map so you may need to scroll around a bit. I placed an arrow next to where your starting location within the ducts are at.

I know it doesn't matter, but the action was started.

Wren finishes his spell, summoning a whirlygig* (1d3 ⇒ 2) of Huge Air Elementals into the crater. He points to the fog covered tower with ballista and catapult. His breath turns to an airy rumbling whisper.

Wren waits for them to soar away before following the party up the chain. He listens intently for sounds of destruction, crying, and hopefully the sound of broken glass as a very stupid lens is broken.

* * *
Wren keeps an eye out for trouble as he floats near the chains as they climb to the castle. He stays very close to the chain not only because he fears his powers of flight might disappear at any moment, but he wants to use the chain as cover should any enemies approach.

"C'mon Farin. Let's get moving. We have a lot to do."

Yeah, that map is huge. Welcome to our home for the next 8 years as we explore it all. Wow.

Wren enters and takes to his feet for a while, uncomfortable after all the flying and wanting to feel the 'ground' under his feet.

"That was...unpleasant," Wren mentions, looking around. He will cast Detect Magic and check for any default auras in the castle.

1d20 + 19 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 19 + 2 = 27 Perception
1d20 + 20 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 20 + 2 + 2 = 28 Spellcraft

Once secure in the castle Kraygan glances around the duct, measuring it with his eye. Taking out the Hammer of Thunderbolts. He looks to Jorgan.

”Too Small fer Haggis n Spirit methinks. Let’s leave the steeds in our pockets and use Aggrimosh ter make us big.”

Once ready, Kraygan leads the way, stomping down the duct and looking for trouble.

Aggrimosh can cast heightened mass enlarge person for 20 minutes. Did Wren ever pass out any Heroism spells? Other buffs should still be good for a while.

Alysendra whistles as she comes to a landing inside the duct. "What kind of magic can power this flying mountain?" she wonders aloud. "And what wields it?"

She and Penthae follow the group, obviously uncomfortable being inside this mechanistic monstrosity.

Haha Whirlygig.

Wren watches for a moment as the Castle breaks free and takes flight. Though the wind, sounds of battle are heard below. First it sounds faint, like the elementals wrecking havoc for a bit. The cloud below the castle provides small glimpses of what is happening below. First the tower crumbles underneath the wind of the whirlygig. Though the elementals are quickly overcome as the scorpions close in on them, to include the wounded one returned from Wren's Maze.

The Castle clips the edge of the crater as it rises. Below is a massive battle, unlike any has ever seen. The giant encampments are surrounded with their backs to Ashpeak. From a frontal assault is Vanderhoff and the Knights as they press through the camps. From the forest look to be nearly a dozen Dwarven Clans. Torgan seems to have rallied enough to coordinate an assault as a Dwarven warsong gently rises in the breeze. From the north wardrums sound, quickly drowning out the dwarves and battle alike as Rogzul flies in with a small warband of freshly armed orcs. Together the unlikely trio seem to band together to give the giant army a run for their money.

The Castle picks up speed and the battle quickly goes out of view as the wind picks up to windstorm levels.

Those tunnels pass through their rooms and come out at the center circle where there are ladders. It is hard to tell on the map. Assuming you want to make you way straight there? You also know from King Tytarian that there is a bomb somewhere on this level as well. Info in quote below.

The second piece of information is that the engine that magically propels Ironcloud Keep and keeps it aloft is outfitted with some kind of dead man’s switch that can trigger a powerful explosive hidden somewhere near the castle’s engine room. The switch is somehow connected to the magical crown that the Storm Tyrant wears. Tytarian learned this during a meeting with Volstus, where the Storm Tyrant made it very clear that even if someone were to betray him, it would mean the traitor’s own end once the castle was in the air.

The Castle clips the edge of the crater as it rises. Below is a massive battle, unlike any has ever seen. The giant encampments are surrounded with their backs to Ashpeak. From a frontal assault is Vanderhoff and the Knights as they press through the camps. From the forest look to be nearly a dozen Dwarven Clans. Torgan seems to have rallied enough to coordinate an assault as a Dwarven warsong gently rises in the breeze. From the north wardrums sound, quickly drowning out the dwarves and battle alike as Rogzul flies in with a small warband of freshly armed orcs. Together the unlikely trio seem to band together to give the giant army a run for their money.

Wow. Not sure I've ever read a more fun storylined and built paragraph in all my years of PbP. +1. Good stuff. +1 to Torkey and Vandergan doing what they wanted to do. Wow.

Kraygan looks back at Wren floating near the exit. ”C’mom elf, we dinnae come ter sightsee.” He says gruffly.

Kraygan can only imagine the terrible battle below, and does not want to witness it. His imagination doesn’t include the sudden arrival of Jorgan and Rogzul to the fight - he believes that Vanderhoff and Calrienne and the knights are standing alone, giving the giants a black eye in a doomed last stand while the Axes of Trunau strike at the Storm Tyrant above.

As the castle clips the crater wall, Alysendra turns back towards the entrance. She sees the vista of battle below, and smiles grimly. "It has begun. Now it is up to us to make sure this Storm king cannot turn the tables back in his favor."

Thinking back to the fire giant queen's warnings, Alyesendra fills Penthae in. She then follows the dwarves, assuming they have some sort of plan on how to stop this flying mountain fortress.

"A self-destruct mechanism keyed to the Storm King's crown, which can destroy this mountain?" Penthae repeats in disbelief. "Forgive me, Alys, but this seems like a difficult situation to extricate oneself from."

She begins to count on her fingers. "First, we'll need to defeat the Strom King and get his crown. Second, we'll need to seize control of however this mountain is controlled, and steer it into an appropriate spot. And third, we'll need to destroy it, and hope that several hundred million tonnes of rock falling from the sky doesn't inconvenience anyone below." She smiles broadly. "Life with you is never dull, my friend!"

She turns to face the dwarves expectantly. "So, which of those do we do first, and how do we get there?"

"I suspect Kraygan may just go straight for the self-destruct, so be prepared to jump at a moments notice!"

”Ain’t that the plan?” Kraygan grumbles back at Farin.

"I suspect Kraygan may just go straight for the self-destruct, so be prepared to jump at a moments notice!"

"Exactly," Wren says fatalistically. "We die. They die. But this menace ends. We trigger it and wait for the end of all and it will be better for the world."

And then, maybe then, then I might have my redemption. Maybe. I have failed so much. Failed so hard. But maybe. Maybe dying in the wreckage here will earn me a place in the Elysian Fields.

Wren waits for the Yakkenhorde to move forward, he will follow.

"Nice rah-rah speech, wizard! Still, I would rather have an escape plan."

Farin will lead the way, checking for traps as they go.

Perception: 1d20 + 28 ⇒ (15) + 28 = 43

Farin leads the way through the ducts. They wind all throughout the complex, with vents that only a tiny creature would be able to crawl through. Soon the group makes it to the center of the complex. No visible traps in sight. The center chamber opens up to a ladder leading up to the next level.

Out of the corner of his eye Farin seems some strange alchemical liquid on the ground. The dripping trail leads south east.

Wren follows the Yakkenhorde, invisibly.

Though Wren doesn't have a lot of training with alchemicals, he does pause to examine the substance if Farin points it out.

1d20 + 25 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 25 + 2 = 35 Know (Arcana)
1d20 + 7 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 7 + 2 = 22 Alchemy (untrained)

* * *

Given a moment of reflection on the battle below, Wren pearls back his Fog Cloud and casts Extended Heroisms on Farin, Jorgan, & Kraygan.

Wren believes the component to be small specks of an explosive alchemical salt. 100 times more powerful than black powder.

Alysendra and Penthae follow, watching the group's back and marveling at the powerful magic it must have taken to create this monstrosity.

”Up we go?” Kraygan asks. ”Or do we keep lookin fer the bomb?”

"The bomb. We detonate that and we're done here. Get it? Ha!" Wren utters from invisibility, happily willing to detonate the bomb and cause this castle (and everything in it, including himself) to plummet to their deaths.

Ayep. That's my ticket to the Elysian Fields.

Wren follows, letting the Yakkenhorde lead on.

"I don't know what this stuff is, but let's see where it goes."

Farin heads off following the liquid path, carefully checking for any traps.

Perception: 1d20 + 28 ⇒ (5) + 28 = 33

Following the trail is not incredibly difficult as the tunnels seem to flow in a pretty smooth pattern underneath the entire keep. After another 20 minute walk through the pressing winds Farin finds the bomb itself.

The ash giant alchemist used the empty exoskeleton of a giant spider as the bomb’s case and attached it to the ceiling of the duct with sovereign glue. The exoskeleton has been magically hardened and completely sealed The bomb inside consists of three elements: the fuse in the head of the exoskeleton, the primer in the thorax, and the charge in the abdomen, each contained inside a crystal globe connected by a metal rod. Only the fuse, a magical glass bead within a 6-inch-diameter globe, is externally visible as a faintly luminous point of light in one of the dull eyes of the dead spider. The primer consists of several reagents, including alchemist’s fire and a powerful acid, which are stored in compartments in the second, 18-inch-diameter globe. The charge, contained in a 3-foot-diameter globe, consists of 200 pounds of explosive alchemical salt that is 100 times more powerful than standard black powder.

As you are aware from King Tytarian's notes. The glass bead of the fuse is telepathically connected to the cloud diadem worn by Volstus, creating a dead man’s switch that triggers the bomb if Volstus is killed or incapacitated. The bomb is also set to detonate if the exoskeleton is damaged in any way, the reagents of the primer are exposed to light, or the bomb is handled without proper care.

Most of the group recognizes the dangers of prematurely exploding this device through improper handling. The immediate blast would likely kill all within 90 feet. Even if the blast didn't kill them outright, the force of the blast would reverberate throughout the entirety of the castle wounding all within. The explosion would wreak immense havoc on Ironcloud Keep’s magical engine, causing the flying fortress to plummet toward the ground, likely killing thousands of innocent people. Even if a small chunk of the foundation were to break free it would cause 50,000 tons of rock to fall to the landscape below.

"OK, now we know what this looks like," Alysendra states. "But we can't set it off until we can move the castle away from populated areas." She looks around at the group.

"Unless you think we can disable it, we need to find a way to move this castle away from here. I don't mind becoming a martyr for the cause, but I'll not be party to the deaths of thousands of the people we're trying to save. Any ideas?" She starts to look through Tytarian's notes, looking for ideas on how to wrest control of the castle away from the giant king without him blowing it up.

Wren takes his time examining the bomb and pondering exactly which words of ignan he might speak to a mix-tape of fire elementals to explain how to wait one minute before burning the heck out of it.

"Populated? I think from what we saw outside, there are a bunch of giants under us. Might be the perfect time to blow it," Wren offers, thinking he would be happy to die in the effort.

What are we above except the dwarf, human, orc, & giant armies? Are we above Korvosa or something? How big is the castle? Aren't we in the mountains away from most cities?

”How fragile do ye s’pose this thing is?” Kraygan ponders the bomb. ”Could we take it down n’ bring it with us? Seems th’ giants’d give us a wide berth if’n they saw it. Might be able to drag it right up to th’ Tyrant n’ demand he give up th’ war or suffer mutual destruction.”

"I don't know... I am not a bomb expert, but this looks bad. Maybe we better figure something else out, like how to land this flying castle safely?"

Wren shakes his head, equally unsure, but certain that the halfling can't see his head shake because it's invisible.

"Maybe. Or maybe we should summon some friends while we blow it up now. We might get out in time. But destroying this place and killing every giant within is worth the risk."

The explosion would wreak immense havoc on Ironcloud Keep’s magical engine, causing the flying fortress to plummet toward the ground, likely killing thousands of innocent people.

If this isn't the case, and the mountain is above the giant and dwarf armies, then I'm less worried... taking out all the giants is definitely worth the loss of an army and a few heroes. Unless there is a significant settlement below us, we could blow it up now - if we think it will take the whole mountain down.

Kraygan continues to look at the bomb. ”Hmmph. We cannae jus leave it here. What did ye say it was stuck to th’ ceiling with? Sovereign glue?” Kraygan digs deep into into his giant bag of holding and pulls out a couple vials. He peers closer at a label upon them. ”Universal solvent. Can this unstick it?”

GM: how big is the bomb? Could it fit inside the giant bag of holding?

Wren looks at Kraygan.

"Why can't we leave it here? What do we need to move it for? We should just blow it from a safe distance," Wren asks, wondering what the dwarf is thinking.

”The Storm Tyrant won’t set it off in his own face.” Kraygan looks at Wren, a strange expression on his beard. ”But we could if the fight don’t go our way.”

I doubt Kraygan could hypothesize the following, but blowing up in the bomb in dimensional space within the bag might prevent it destroying the castle too if we actually succeed in taking down the Tyrant.

Wren still considers, weighing the words of Alysendra and Farin and Kraygan against his own death wish.

"Maybe we should go scout things out before making any deadly decisions? We know where it is now. We can come back for it."

"You all might want to step back a ways and let me and the Yaktender handle this," Wren says to the party, encouraging the party to go far away.

Wren would love to care enough to take care is trying to disarm the bomb, but the truth he doesn't care enough if were to accidentally set it off or not.

He's willing to take his time, but not enough to really make sure about things.

Take 10 Disable Devices to aid Farin's disables: 31.

They will put the bomb in the bag of holding.

Just to make sure I am clear. You are not trying to disable the bomb but rather just safely remove it from the wall to put in the bag of holding?

Just to make sure I am clear. You are not trying to disable the bomb but rather just safely remove it from the wall to put in the bag of holding?

To be honest, Wren doesn't care. We'll let others decide that when they post. Heck, Farin might even have an idea about that.

Kraygan empties the giant bag of holding of vital equipment, stuffing Haggis normal saddlebags. He then holds the giant bag up to swallow the bomb once it is freed from the ceiling.

Kraygan plans to put it in the bag. Assuming universal solvent will help here somehow.

"I thought we decided to leave it..."

Fuzzy looks at it again, using the universal solvent to try to dislodge the bomb. "Get ready to catch."

Disable Device: 1d20 + 30 ⇒ (13) + 30 = 43

Using the universal solvent Farin gingerly drops it into the crevices along the wall to slowly dislodge the bomb. With careful hands the halfling, with the help of Wren is able to dissolve the glue holding the deadly bomb to the wall. Down below Kraygan holds the empty bag of holding and slowly adjusts it around the spider casing to seal the bomb.