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"Hey, nice job blocking it in!" Lucina calls out to Damien. "But, um...the rest of us back here can't really do too much, so there's kind of a trade-off."
Well, there's my spear...wait no, you need to stay back so Annilda and Sunny can get in there!
"Just going to, um...ready a little magic, once I get a better shot!"
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Annilda crouches for a moment, and then runs into the room, like a hunting dog circling her prey. She squeezes and tumbles in, trying to get out of the party's way and approach the creature's backside.
Blessed by Uriel's magic, she unleashes a fist on its backside.
She grimaces as she gets a closer look at the creature. "These sinspawn have no sense of management. It's as filthy as a corner street harlot."
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Lady Mae, seeing the doorway is too crowded to risk wasting her flame magic, elects to wait for a better opportunity, as does Lucina. Uriel does not hesitate here however, sending a minor blessing washing over his fellow Pathfinders.
Annilda showing a lack of patience here, elects a risky maneuver in order to gain a tactical advantage upon the sinspawn. As she squeezes past the disgusting vile creature, it takes a swipe at the warpriest...
...where its sharp claws rake across the woman's armor emitting a loud screech, yet they are unable to penetrate past the layers of protection! Unfortunately Annilda's return blow is also unable to get past the tough hide covering the lustspawn's skin.
___________________
Round 1:
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
===========
LustSpawn
===========
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp, readied action)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell; Damien Light spell; Annilda *Virtue spell; Lady Mae Produce Flame (2 minutes/uses); Bless spell .
______________________
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Damien urges his wolf mount to squeeze into the chamber, thrusting hard at it with his lance yet the unnatural toughness of its skin deflects the blow.
The lustspawn turns to face the two combatants, sniffing the air softly before abruptly turning away from them, moving outside of the chamber and focusing its attention upon the aasimar warrior, heedless of its rear flank. It licks its long tongue across its jaws as it lunges at Uriel...
...yet the warrior anticipates the blow and dodges aside, its teeth failing to draw blood.
Lucina is ready for the sinspawn and as it focuses on Uriel she looses her magic at it...
...scoring its side with an acidic mark!
___________________
Round 2:
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
===========
LustSpawn (-1 hp)
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Uriel (19/19 hp)
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor, AoO pending)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell; Damien Light spell; Annilda *Virtue spell; Lady Mae Produce Flame (2 minutes/uses); Bless spell .
______________________
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Mae's eyes widen a bit as the lusty lady thing rushes into the room "Perfect, I guess. Sunny, attack!" As she says that Mae reaches out with her flaming hand and tries to touch the creature.
Sunny lashes her tongue out, regardless of how much of a harlot the thing is. BLUUURRRPPP! 'Roar's' Sunny.
Melee
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Annilda perhaps caught off guard by the sinspawn ignoring her, jabs weakly at the creature as it breaks away, her blow having little effect. she instead focuses on blessing Damien's actions against the lustspawn.
Lady Mae is surprised at the sudden appearance of the lustspawn, but that does not slow her reactions as she reaches out to touch it, sending a scorching mark spread on its side! The thing squeals in pain and rage as its magical resistance are overcome, with Sunny's acidic tongue adding insult to injury! Lucina was a bit more startled here, perhaps the initial jitters of combat overcoming her briefly, and her spear thrust is completely ignored. However, the foul abomination is looking much the worse for wear now.
___________________
Round 2:
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
===========
Lustspawn (-12 hp)
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Uriel (19/19 hp)
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell; Damien Light spell; Annilda *Virtue spell; Lady Mae Produce Flame (2 minutes/uses); Bless spell .
______________________
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With a mighty blow Uriel puts an end to the sinspawn's tortured and unnatural existence!
A quick search of the lustspawn corpse does turn up some valuable, if archaic style, jewelry worth a total of 400 gp. Moving back inside the embalming chamber you continue your search of the area, which obviously is dedicated to the Sin of Lust.
One of the cabinets reveals a pair of bottles that do radiate magic, one a dark pink color and one a blue-tinged color.
______________________
Status:
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell, Damien Light spell, Annilda *Virtue spell.
_____________________
Chime of Opening: 4 charges left.
_____________________
.
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Once you have distributed the potions and the jewelry taken from the lustspawn corpse you elect to leave this room and continue up the north passageway, where yet another set of doors stand to the left and right. Electing to take the left one first the door reveals another embalming chamber. This room’s furnishings have all been destroyed beyond recognition, and ancient dried bloodstains still mar the floor and wall carvings.
A careful search of the wall carvings on the north wall does reveal a hidden latch opening a secret door in the otherwise empty chamber.
______________________
Status:
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell, Damien Light spell, Annilda *Virtue spell.
_____________________
Chime of Opening: 4 charges left.
_____________________
.
_________
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"Lucina, if you've no need for the potion of eagle's splendor, I can use it."
Uriel nods at Annildar, "Let's check behind the secret door." He makes way for someone else to open the door, raising his shield and bastard sword, ready if anything springs out, or if he needs to move through the secret door.
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"Hum...I'm not sure what this chamber's supposed to be tied to," Lucina sighs, clearly a bit frustrated with herself. Then she forces a small smile at Uriel. "That's fine, you hold on to it - if I were stronger with my magic it might be a different story but for now it'd probably work better for you."
____________
"At least the decor in here is pretty simplistic," Lucina remarks, staring at the bloodstains. "Here's another vote for checking out the door; maybe we'll find more useful items on the other side!"
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Mae looks into the room, licking her eyes clean, then squinting a bit "I do not recognize any of these markings. I hope we find that underground forest, maybe then can I be helpful." Now that Sunny is calmed and snacked, she'll try hoping up on her for a smooth ride.
Sunny will have none of it though and promptly defecates on the floor in response. "Well then, that settles that." Mae leaves the long lines of poo on the hallway floor, giving the secret door a quick look.
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You move through the secret door into a small passage which immediately ends at a rough-hewn wall which opens into another room. This area appears to be a crypt, judging by the seven alcoves (one of which you all emerge from) arranged along a 5-foot-wide corridor, with niches in the walls to hold the bodies of the deceased.
As you take in your surroundings you note most of these niches do indeed contain well-dessicated corpses...along with something else...
.
A tall skeleton stands motionless in one of the alcoves wearing ancient half-plate armor engraved with elaborate runes and wielding an elaborate ceremonial ranseur. A cold blue light glows in his empty eye sockets as he slowly turns to face you.
______________________
Round 1:
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
========
Skeleton
========
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Damien (18/18 hp)
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell, Damien Light spell, Annilda *Virtue spell.
_____________________
.
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"'Scuse me, pardon me, coming through!"
Lucina moves forward, squeezing between her companions and the corridor walls and crawling between Annilda and Uriel's legs in order to squish herself into the small alcove just behind Damien and Ruby.
"Good thing I can move fast when I need to," she grins as she hefts her longspear and readies to try and distract the skeleton from Damien and Ruby when it approaches.
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Uriel sends his blessings over the group of Pathfinders even as Lucina moves closer to the action to assist Damien against the skeleton.
The Skeletal warrior steps out into the corridor and you see his eyes flare up with an eerie cold blue light. "Now...after many long years...I get to serve my Mistress again!" No sooner than the words leave his skull then he swings his ranseur at Damien, not aiming for the halfling's body but his held earth-breaker!
The ranseur, designed to disarm its opponents, does its job effectively well. Damien's earthbreaker is sent tumbling to the ground, despite Lucina's valiant efforts, sending a loud clang throughout the confines of the crypt!
_____________________
Round 1:
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
===========
Skeleton Champion
===========
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Damien (14/18 hp, disarmed)
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell; Damien Light spell; Annilda *Virtue spell; Bless spell .
______________________
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"Well gud thing I didn't take out this bad boy yet!" Damien reaches back to grab his earthbreaker as the lance is pulled out of his hands. "Hey bone boy, they call this an earth breaker! 'N yer just made out of brittle bones! Gunna rename the thing when I'm dun with you!"
Then the halfling urges Ruby through the skeleton's space and into an alcove above him. "Yer gonna need a new ribcage after this!"
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As Damien moves into position to allow his friends to surround the skeletal champion, already scored from Lucina's magic the warrior reacts quickly with his ranseur...
As if in slow motion the long blade heads into where the halfling grips his new weapon, but the halfling instinctively reacts pulling in the end of his earthbreaker before using the natural motion of his wolf's movement to put an extra drive into his swing. The blow land with devastating effect striking the skeletal warrior at where the hips join with its torso. Its eyes turn to gaze at the halfling who landed the killing blow with a look of almost disbelief, before it slowly collapses to the ground in a mass of shattered bones.
As you look at each other wondering if indeed the threat is over the fact the skeleton no longer moves is proof enough. Looking around the crypt does turn up some valuable trinkets worth a total of 90 gp, along with the skeleton's gear: a suit of ancient half-plate armor engraved with runes of wrath, along with his ceremonial masterwork ranseur, which is quite effective as a weapon as you have seen.
The only exit out of the crypt is the secret door leading eastward, with a rune carved on the inner side of the door.
______________________
Status:
Annilda (14 (+1 temp)/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell, Damien Light spell, Annilda *Virtue spell.
_____________________
Chime of Opening: 4 charges left.
_____________________
.
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Damien retrieves his lance while laughing to himself. "Told ya you were gunna need a new ribcage. Prolly a new everything, actually."
The halfling stows his earthbreaker and arms himself with his lance again. "Good girl." He runs his hand along Ruby's head, the wolf purring at his affection. "This half-plate. Does it fit me?" Damien tries it on for size.
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After claiming the loot from the skeleton and the crypt remains, you turn your attention to the 'secret' door marked by the mysterious rune. Fortunately the door is easily opened...though you do run into a snag as you note a large statue blocking the way forth! A quick scan of the statue shows it does radiate a magical aura, Annilda, ever the fearless one here, sees the statue can be slid out of the way allowing you egress.
However the second she lays a hand to move the statue out of the way, a powerful jolt of electricity arcs from the statue into the warpriests body!
_____________________
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"What a cumbersome statue." She looks at the statue. "Well, I'll just move this out of the way, and..."
Annilda's body contorts wildly as a burst of lightning overwhelms her. She takes a moment to collect herself.
"It's time to use that potion the stuffy priestess gave us." Pulling out the potion and drinking it,
Annilda heals herself with a single application. "Thank you all for waiting."
She looks at the statue again and scowls before pushing the thing aside.
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After the statue discharges its electrical trap, it then becomes safe to touch, though only for a manner of minutes. Not wishing to press your luck here you all hurry past the door and into what you see is a grand chamber.
The ceiling of this cavernous chamber vaults to a height of sixty feet, forming an architectural wonder unsupported by any visible columns or buttresses. Forty feet overhead, a wide stone bridge with an elaborately carved railing arches over the chamber from north to south, joining two sets of massive bronze doors at either end. The central portion of the chamber contains an inlaid spiral symbol and is recessed into the floor, with eight staircases leading up to a wide ledge that encircles the room ten feet above. On this ledge stand bronze doors to the east and west. Eight larger-than-life statues stand upon the ledge as well, evenly spaced around the room’s circumference—seven carved from white stone, and the eighth carved from black stone.
Clockwise around the cathedral, starting with the southwestern statue, the statues depict: a tall man with gems set in his forehead wielding a flaming glaive; a beautiful woman with wild hair, holding a ranseur (the statue you entered the Cathedral from); a voluptuous nude woman wielding a two-headed guisarme; a short smiling man holding a longspear; an obese man with rotting flesh wielding a scythe; a handsome, bearded man in extravagant clothes wielding a lucerne hammer; and an imperious heavyset woman holding a mirror and a halberd. All of the statues do radiate magic as well.
The eighth statue (in the south-southeast part of the room) is carved from dark diorite and is threefold in form, portraying a tall woman with three faces looking in three different directions. One side has a kind face and cradles a baby in its arms, while a second side displays a more stern expression and holds an hourglass. The third face has a crazed look; its hands are empty, but thornless roses twine up both arms. It also radiates magic.
______________________
Status:
Annilda (14/14 hp, Mage Armor)
Damien (14/18 hp)
Lady Mae (15/15 hp)
Lucina (8/8 hp)
Uriel (19/19 hp)
Ruby (13/13 hp)
Sunny (16/16 hp)
_____________________
Current Effects: Uriel Light spell, Damien Light spell, Annilda *Virtue spell.
_____________________
.
_________
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Uriel looks around the massive chamber. "I don't see a way up to that bridge or to the doors at either end of it."
He considers the concealed door they passed through to enter this room. "Perhaps, the other statues in this room have doors hidden behind them. We should be careful, though. They may be trapped in a similar fashion, as well."
"Lady Mae, you want to check the double doors next to you?" The paladin-oracle continues the party's so-far-successful clockwise pattern, examining the statue of a voluptuous nude woman wielding a two-headed guisarme, careful not to touch it.
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Uriel silently moves his way past the large bronze doors and focuses upon the statue of the nude woman and does indeed notice the outline of a secret door behind it. While the paladin-oracle sees how to open the door, it would require sliding the statue off to the side as you did earlier in order to access it.
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"Oooohhhhhh....!"
So captivated by the sight of this grand room, Lucina wanders down the short set of stairs and into the middle of the floor as she looks up and all around, actually spinning around in place to take it all in.
"It's the Grand Cathedral, dedicated to Pharasma," she calls up excitedly. "The architecture here's a lot different, a lot older than what we see now but I'd know this spiral anywhere! Pharasma's been worshiped for ages and ages, you know!"