Orovan strikes out again with his spear, trying to give the automaton something else to think about.
[dice=Spear]1d20+8, [dice=Damage]1d8+6
[dice=confirm]1d20+8, [dice=Extra Damage]2d8+12
Lucifer is able to barely focus through the pain. Orovan strikes out with his spear and stabs the construct in a vital spot. The construct starts to spark and electricity begins to crackle around it.
Hovok attempts to swing at the creature with his longhammer, but the bars provide too much of an obstacle.
Jafit moves next to Lucifer.
The automaton steps back and swings its weapon at Lucifer, but the attack bounces off the wall next to him.
Initiative
Round 2
Hovok
Lucifer
Jafit
End of Round 2
Round 3
Orovan
Automaton
Lucifer flips the lever the other way and the bars on the west side move down into the floor as bars on the opposite side raise up blocking the other side.
Orovan strikes the construct and it crumbles to the ground.
End of Combat
Lucifer listens at the door, but doesn't hear anything. Opening the door reveals a corridor that turns to the right.
As Lucifer peaks around the corner, he sees:
A wide staircase descends into darkness. A panel with a red-handled lever and a black-handled lever is located on the eastern wall of the room. A destroyed automaton lies in pieces near the stairs.
Finding, the staircase you finish your mission. You make your way back to the Venture Captain with information on this floor of the Spire. A team goes in to clear the floor, capturing the Numerian Klarkosh.
The journey from Absolom was a long one and you breath a sigh of relief at the sight of the stone walls and battlements on the shore of the Sellen River, your destination. As you approach the large timber door clad in iron plates, your feeling of relief wanes a bit at the sight of the Hellknights guarding the entrance. Your are stopped at the entrance, but a quick flash of the letter you received 2 weeks ago provides you hassle free access to the fort; as well as a curt, “Welcome to Fort Inevitable.”
Just inside the gate of Fort Inevitable is a bustling market filled with merchants, farmers, and townsfolk, as well as Hellknights patrolling the streets. As you walk a few paces in you glance at the letter you received in Absolom. It simply states, “Meet me at The Red Shield Tavern in Fort Inevitable. Show this note to the guards at the gate. - Venture Captain Gorak Behn.” Imprinted on the parchment is the Glyph of the Open Road.
Just as you go to ask someone where to find The Red Shield Tavern, you notice a wooden sign with a simple red shield painted on it. Inside, the Red Shield is actually quite busy. There are at least a dozen off-duty Hellknights, enjoying drafts of bitter and stout. You get a few sideways glances as you are clearly out of place in this establishment, but as you scan the room a massive half-orc, seemingly just as out of place, stands up and waves you over. The half-orc at 6’7” tall has quite an intimidating presence, but his demeanor is jovial and inviting. In his presence you actually feel less self-conscious and not as out of place as you initially felt. He wears a wide brimmed hat, mithril breastplate, a greatsword strapped to his back, and as you get closer you notice burn marks on the left side of his face. "Ahh, welcome! I am Gorak Behn. You must be hungry. Have a seat." Gorak calls the barmaid over who seemed to be waiting for his cue. She brings over a plate of food and mug of ale. "Eat up. The others are waiting back at the lodge." After the meal they head out of town leaving Fort Inevitable behind and Gorak fills Dana in on the Emerald Spire and the group of Pathfinders that have been exploring it.
After about a three mile walk, you see a small cabin with smoke coming out of the chimney. The glyph of the open road is burned into the door. Gorak smiles and motions to the door, "After you." You open the door and step inside the cabin. What couldn't have been more than 10 foot square on the outside, you walk into a grand hall 30 feet across, 60 feet long, and the ceiling 30 feet high. There is a seating area in the entry with trophies and artifacts of various kinds from all over Golarian and a large feasting table beyond that with a massive fireplace at the far end. To the right is a staircase that goes up to a loft with a modest library and sleeping quarters. Motioning toward the table, "Welcome to the Traveling Lodge of the Angry Muse."
You make your way back to the Lodge and report your findings to Gorak. He calls upon a few friends, a more experienced team, to find and capture Klarkosh. While this is going on you have time to visit the Fort and purchase gear for the next part of the spire. After a few days in Fort Ineveitable you make your way back to the Traveling Lodge of the Angry Muse, but find it empty. About an hour later the door opens . . .
About a week after the previous level was explored the door opens and the venture captain walks in with two new recruits. He motions to table and the wanyang and half-orc sitting at the table, "Have a seat and get acquainted. Tomorrow you head into the spire."
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Seeing the Hellknights at the gate, Ting freezes for a moment, lifting his left foot up, standing only on his right. Looking from the gate to his new friend Aroden he whispers in his raspy voice, "If'n I's knew's 'air's was 'is many floggin' 'ell knights, i's bloody-well may's of stayed back in's Absolomy, wroight." Dropping his foot and nervously shaking his tail feathers, he rolls his eyes, 'Aint nothin's ta be done but continues, wroight." He walks up to the gate, presenting the letter of introduction and lulling his tongue in a tengu smile responding to the guard, "Wroight, an' wecomes ta err, I means t'anks!" Moving quickly into the market.
Shifting his goggles as he eventually notices the sign he heads to the tavern. freezing at the door momentarily until he sees the large half orc, he takes an inderect route, avoiding as many of the tables with Hell Knights as possible. Eventually making way to the table and the Venture Captain. Tipping his hedgegrass conical hat, "A pleasure, Cap'ain, I's be Ting Tang, but you's can bloody well call's me ting, wroight." Taking a seat and nodding his beak, "An' you's is wroight, we's be hungry." When the food is delivered, he immediatly grabs up the mug of ale, sticking his beak into the mug loudly slurping the beverage in a bird like fashion. Drawing out a large wooden spoon he shovels the stew in his froth covered bent beak, loudly chewing. "Tank's yer cap'ain ship, I's appreciates tha grub!" Belching loudly after the meal, he follows the Captain out of the tavern.
Listening carefully as the Captain explains about the spire and the team they will be joining. Seeing The glyph of the open road Ting realizes that they have arived at their location, Nodding his head in approval, "'At's a top notch cabin you's got 'ear cap'ain." As Gorak opens the door, he steps over the threshhold 'T'anks!" Pausing as he steps in, he looks from the room to the other two pathfinders. "You's don't see's 'at every floggin' day, wroight." His eyes wide as he walks through the room, eventually taking a seat at the table.
Seeing the Half-Orc and Wayang enter, ting stands then turns and extends a claw. His outfit an amalgamation of things he had aquired while adventureing: the emerald robe, the darleaf lamellar armor, the unusual bastard sword over his shoulder, other weapon handles sticking out from belt and bandoleers, the magical goggles and a hedge grass conical hat topping off the outfit. Though his most unussual feature is his asymetrical cracked, scared, bent beak. He lulls his tongue in a tengu smile, croaking in a raspy voice that sound very much like a Rook. "A floggin' pleasure's ta meet you's blokes! I's be Ting Tang but you's can bloody well's calls me ting, wroignt. I's been workin' wit tha' pathyfiner's fer a bit now's as a trap tickler an swordsman, wroight."
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Aroden travels with the Tengu. He is polite enough, but seems a bit ill at ease. It may be the Tengu's off-putting personality and limited intellect (7 Int and 7 Cha). Or it may be that the wizard is just unfamiliar with Tengu generally.
At time, Ting Tang heard the wizard shouting in his sleep, having nightmares of some sort. The Tengu doesn't recognize the alien-sounding language. Sometimes he catches the wizard staring off into space, muttering "Ten thousand years entombed in a Golden Throne..." or similar inscrutable phrases. And whatever Aroden is sculpting is something better left unexplored.
For all that, most of the time the wizard is a good traveling companion. He is knowledgeable about locations and customs, and is neither as feeble nor as socially inept as many Society wizards. He carries burdens, negotiates passage, and is patient explaining things to the Tengu.
At Fort Inevitable, he is not particularly bothered by the Hellknights and escorts Ting Tang to Gorak.
The tall goateed man wears robes that seem very old fashioned. He wears what looks to be a finely made longsword at his waist. He introduces himself to Orovan and Lucifer.
"Greetings. I am Aroden. Scholar and wizard. A man trying to follow the example set by the Last Azlanti."
Technically true, but of more than that I cannot be sure.
Another exotic team... humanity must not leave all the work to others... but, the world has changed. It falls to me to represent humanity with dignity.
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The Wayang is wearing lamellar leather armor with a short sword strapped to his waist and a heavy crossbow, which almost looks to big for him, strapped to his back.
Smiling at the two newcomers, "Greetings, Greetings. Name is Belthrue. Lucifer Belthrue. I'm the trapfinder of the group. I actually specialize in dungeon delving and such. Always loved exploring long forgotten places."
He then looks at Aroden and speaks in Azlanti.
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Orovan nods to the others as they introduce themselves, though he does not stand from his seat. Companions come and go, each from his own mother and to his own grave, meeting briefly somewhere in the middle. So they would meet at this point, and for a time, to delve the spire.
"May we find our fortunes before we find our graves." He offers cryptically.
Upon the half-orc is a fine breastplate, magical for those with skill to notice, and an array of weapons both common and warlike. His strength is obvious in his physique, and so too is a strange birthmark like an image of the moon. His demeanor is neither hostile nor friendly, but rather some mixture of passive and indifferent.
"I'm Orovan. I know how to fight. I even use weapons when I have to." He says with a flex of his fist. "But my hands bear the curse of the gods." Sparks of darkness crackle around his closed hand before he opens it again to place it upon his leg. "Joining us for a bit of adventure?"
The half-orc smiles and hands the two new recruits a green cylindrical stone, "These stones will transport you to the different levels of the spire. Orovan and Lucifer will show you how they work. We can only transport to the 1st and 6th floors, but that's better than walking all the way down. Now it seems like you are ready. Good luck and safe travels." The gray sky threatens rain, but the hike into the wood is dry and uneventful. After about a 3 mile hike from the lodge, the wood opens up to a clearing familiar to half of you. The other half are in awe at the site.
You find yourselves staring up at a ruined keep guarding a broken central tower, all made of smooth, green glass. It’s obvious that a grand battle took place here many years ago, and the clearing around the ruin lies barren, with sickly weeds struggling to rise from the magic-blasted earth. Melted chunks of twisted glass pepper the ground, lending a green hue to the clearing’s light. Despite the damage, however, the glass of the keep itself seems to have avoided the ravages of time, with those pieces that survived the initial cataclysm unmarred by pitting or cracking, clean of moss and other clinging debris. At the top of a steep dirt path winding up through the rubble, a doorway opens onto darkness, its entrance seeming to steal light into its inky depths.
You enter the spire and find the great green column in the stairwell of the first floor. Holding the Transport Token and touching the green glowing crystal say the word given to you by your venture captain. In turn, each of you does this and each of you are instantaneously teleported. You navigate through the clockwork maze and find the staircase leading down.
The stairs descend in several long flights for almost 200 feet before reaching the next level. You decend through the darkness until you see a faint orange flicker of light ahead. The stairs open up into a well lit 25 by 30 foot room.
Signs of battle—most commonly dried blood, scorch marks, and smashed bones—appear along the stairway down. The stairs end in the northeast corner of a small, brightly lit room with a door on the west wall. In the center of the room are two large iron racks holding numerous burning candles. The iron candleholders are crafted so that each candle appears to be held in the jaws of a serpent. A phrase is written on each rack in Undercommon.
“Offer prayer to Kro’akoth the Awakener, scaled brethren, and be welcome here.”
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Realizing the others have been here before Ting happily follows until they enter the room with the candleholders, Nodding as Orovan begins to read the inscription, "'At's a bloody fine ideas, I's'l quicklies check tha room, wroight" He then begins to move around the room looking for anything unusual.
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Aroden will use charge of Mage Armor (wand at 34) and cast See Invisibility (60 minutes).
Spells:
0-level (4): Detect Magic, Open/Close, Light, Mending
1st-level (5): Burning Hands, Liberating Command, Magic Missile, Vanish, Shield
2nd-level (4): Mirror Image, Resist Energy (CL7), See Invisibility, Open Slot
3rd-level (3): Dispel Magic (CL9), Communal Resist Energy (CL7), Haste
He casts Detect Magic and examines the room for any magical auras, expecting the candles to be magic of some sort.
Orovan is able to read the inscription as he reaches the bottom of the stairs so I am going to assume he's following Lucifer.
As Ting moves closer to the candles, he notices the candles get brighter and a scent of sulfur.
Lucifer notices the same as Ting, but also that the candle holders are magically trapped. Staying in the same spot next to the candles for too long or advancing next to the same candles will set off a burst of flame that will fill the entire room.
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"I'm all for backing up until the explosions are over. No offense." Orovan admits as he tries to herd the others back away from the danger.
"Oh, and the inscription says if we pray to 'Kro’akoth the Awakener' we'll be welcome here. So that might be a way to bypass the trap. But it also mentions scales, so maybe it's expecting... uh, lizards?"
Ting moves forward and starts to go to work. As the tengu is working, the flames start to get bigger and the smell of sulfur comes back. As Ting is working Lucifer says a prayer to Kro'akoth the Awakener. As Lucifer finishes speaking, Ting feels a click and the flames go back to normal size.
You also here the sliding of wood on metal from just behind the door.
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Turning from the dying flames looking at the Wayang, he lulls his tongue in a Tengu smile. "Huh, jus' sayin' a floggin' prayer, who'd a thunk it." Gesturing towards the door, 'An did ya hear's 'at slidin' sound? let's checks it out's wroight."
Moving towards the stairs, he motions to Orovan nd Aroden, "Come on's" He then toddles towards the door, leaving room for his new found, albeit smaller, friend. Inspecting the door as he asks, "You's wants ta goes foist er does ya wants me's ta?"
Lucifer opens the door and a 10 foot corridor leads to another door.