Hell's Rebels Adventure Path (Inactive)

Game Master TreasureFox

Tarnagius hopes that someone is going to help him replace his rapidly-depleting supply of blood, and lashes out at his former companion.

Attack: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (16) + 9 = 25
Damage: 1d8 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14

Wow right on the dot! Tarnagius, I'd like you to have the honors in describing Nox's death. Please feel free to make it as epic as you'd like.

Combat will be over after Nox's death.

As Nox whirls about to attack Bazzle Tarnagius brings the rim of his shield down on the haft of her weapon and rams his sword through her unguarded throat.

"In infernis ardere, pecator."

After withdrawing his weapon, Tarnagius' arms immediately slump to his side.

"I've been wanting to kill her for years."

Bazzles sighs a moment he then perks up in a distraught way, "what about the dog?"

Is the dog helpless?

At Nox's death, the hell hound pops back into hell itself. There is no movement to be heard from any room.

Bazzle looks over Nox's gear. "There's good money in rebellion. Who Knew?"

"We should grab what's most valuable and hide the rest. I'll send the Laborers to fetch the rest of this later. Grab the gems and anything magical, then we should see what they were so keen to get rid of here."

After sweeping up the spoils of war, Tarnagius starts flipping through the books the redactors were gathering to destroy.

Bazzle confers with the magic types to determine what is magical and separates it from the other stuff.

Bazzle holds up the seal of the Victocora house. "Hmmm anything the find people of the House Victocora can do for us before Nox turns up missing?" He has a mischievious grin.

Gods, does he not know?

"The last Victocora I know of is standing over there."

He points to Rexus.

Rexus hesitantly says "Those rings are my mother's and father's. If I could... have them please."

Sorry I had forgotten that was his last name. Oops. Bazzle is bad with names.

Bazzle looks at Rexus and then realizes, "wow. Sorry. I thought the seal had been . . . um . . . I'm bad with names." Bazzle brings him the seal and the rings. "Sorry."

Like father always said, gnomes will forget their own heads if left to their own devices.

Having his belief in the thoughtlessness of gnomes reinforced, Tarnagius begins thumbing through the books Nox and her associates were getting rid of to see what threatening information they contain.

Unfortunately for Tarnagius, almost all the damning information has already been dealt with, however there are a few minor things here and there. One of the books is a journal written by an Irorian monk who recounts terrible atrocities within a hospital in Westcrown. Instead of being healed by faith, even Asmodean faith, the victims were tortured and experimented on until they passed. Another book contains reports from Dottari guards just outside of Corentyn as they investigated a slip-owner. The owner in question was known to be extremely cruel (even by Chelaxian standards) and kept his slips in fully sealed crates except for when they were supposed to be shown at market or bred. The Dottari captain was paid 2,000 sails to keep quiet.
There are 6 books that are of interest to Tarnagius. They weigh a total of 60 pounds and could be sold through a black market if desired. Otherwise, they could be kept as reading material for recruits, further cementing loyalty to the Silver Ravens.

Rexus takes the signet rings, tentatively brushing off the rotten flesh bits still attached. Nearly toneless, he says "I understand, Bazzle. It's alright."

Vendalfek floats up near Tarnagius. "Hey, there's a staircase down thataway. Do you think there's monsters down there? Or maybe some treasure?"

As he's flipping through the book on the slaveowner Tarnagius rubs his beard. "There's that Chelaxian practicality. Who's going to purchase a slip that's malnourished and kept out of the sun? They're already small so you're going to make them even weaker?"

He tuts.

"If there were monsters down there they'd probably have come up here. Nox isn't the type to leave such things alone in her domain. Let's leave the books for the laborers to pick up as well. I'll send them with a big bag and maybe a cart. Take anything that seems useful and let's explore the rest of this place."

He grabs the cloak and bracers after helping himself to the magical chain mail and golden unholy symbol. (Nox's?)

"Diva, Rexus, know what these do?"

The chain mail was Nox's, but the golden unholy symbol belonged to Avernathi Raul. Nox didn't have any religious symbols on her.

Rexus and Kethaera start examining the magical gear. After a few minutes Kethaera says "The cloak is a common item called a cloak of resistance. It helps the wearer with all sorts of things, such as resisting poisons, dodging faster, resisting possession, and more. The bracers are called bracers of armor. They are magically treated to help block attacks. They're really useful for people who don't normally wear armor, like wizards and monks. We also figured out the scrolls."

Scroll of Dispel Magic
2 Scrolls of Air Bubble
2 Scrolls of Identify
Scroll of Silence

Kethaera starts talking about the Legend of Wonder Woman, while Rexus ponders the rumours that cloaks of resistance are actually imbued with halfling luck. Neither is really having a discussion, rather just making statements to each other. Vendalfek perches on Bazzle's shoulder and briefly mentions how they must have had one hell of a fight. Indeed, the archives are completely covered in blood-splattered bodies.

Downstairs is a hallway with several doors and two turns (both to your left). The doors open up to little rooms each with a bed and whatnot, but not with any treasure inside them. The first turn reveals a short hallway with a much larger living space and a few storage rooms. Though there's still no treasure to be found in here, Bazzle notices something interesting. Near the bed is a hidden crawl space (marked 'S' on the map), something that his time with the Street Performers had taught him to recognize. Designed for humans, Bazzle has no problem getting through, in which he finds another bed chamber. Still no treasure, but he does find a portrait resting by the bed. It is a picture of two nobles standing on either side of a beautiful raven-haired human teen-aged girl with firebrand eyes, dressed in male noble clothes. In a nearby storage room he finds another crawl space, this time leading to a tiny meeting area and another bed chamber. This chamber has definitely seen use recently, but has been thoroughly cleaned of any valuables.

The furthest turn in the original hallway leads to a wide, table-strewn room that reeks of death. A web of chains strangles its way throughout the room, supporting the decayed corpse of a man in drab robes. At the center of the web, suspended above the flagstones by its black iron tendrils, rests a fist-sized, twelve-sided box fashioned from wood and bronze. Wooden cases along the southwestern wall have been smashed and overturned. Small pieces of paper covered with notes are scattered throughout the room, as if someone's been studying the strange tableau for days. Notes in Draconic rest under each shelf, most of which lay bare. Near the back of the room, a single redactor has been beheaded.

Bazzle catches up after having wandered in to the crawlspace. "Not much. I did find a picture . . . Whoa a dead guy. Used to be taller."

"Unsettling. Where's the executioner?"

Tarnagius takes a look at the draconic notes, trying to see what kind of place this is or what these people could have been doing here.

Almost all of the markings in Draconic are sigils of warning. They warn of the presence of dangerous cursed magic items. On one of the shelves rests a display for an amulet or necklace, and written in Celestial says Markings seem intended to lure worshipers of Abadar into peril. Another shelf displays a stand used to hold bracers, or perhaps a pair of gloves. A third shelf holds an empty bookstand, the wood of which is stained black and smells foul. And a final shelf holds a red velvet cushion on which a fist-shaped stone or other object may have once rested.
Six books sit open on the tables referencing planar travel. Each book is open to a section about Krytons, the shadow plane, portals, and the like. A vial of odd dust can be found on one of the shelves, but nothing else.

Feel free to make skill checks. Taking 10 or 20 is possible. If all else fails, you do have a bard.

"These are warnings of cursed items." Bazzle references empty spaces with any items they have found.

Very perceptive, but Bazzle is happy to note that none of the items he's discovered fits with any of the warnings. The only thing he can reference is a twelve-sided box that is supposedly a faulty portal to the shadow plane.

"Good news. We don't have any of the cursed items listed here."

Kethaera takes a look at the recently deceased body of the beheaded man. "He died today, probably less than an hour ago. It was a clean cut by a slashing weapon. Such a strike needs either incredible sharpness, or a ton of strength."

Then she examines the other body. The one hanging on the chains. "He died quite a while ago, perhaps two weeks or maybe more. He was spiked through the middle by these chains. I think he was trying to touch the box."

"Nox didn't kill him, that much seems obvious. Could be the traps that killed the other one had something to summon a magical something or other. Bazzle, can you get to the box?"

Bazzle looks at the box and evaluates the situation. He looks at the box and the dead guy. "Do we have time. Ya know" He motions toward the dead guy.

Taking 20 perception= 27 if necessary my Disable Device is 28 after my evaluation.

After taking the time to fully examine the box without touching it, Bazzle determines that he could potentially disable it, or hand the task over to someone particularly skilled in handling magical objects, or someone very knowledgeable in spellcraft.
Electing for the disable route, Bazzle brings out his tools and starts working on the box. On his first attempt, he manages to open several sides of the box to reveal their magical components, but slips and the whole thing returns to its original state. The second time, Bazzle fumbles early on and triggers a reaction from the box. It launches a new chain in his direction, but flies just overhead and impales itself into the wall. He can still try again, but now he knows that this item is dangerous should he fail.

"Hey mister Tarnagius." Says Vendalfek as he flutters over to the warrior. "I think I found something on the southwest wall, but I'm not strong enough to move it. Can you help me?" He flutters over to one of the shelves, where just beside it is a large stone slab that doesn't have the same amount of dust on it as the others. At the bottom of the shelf, it looks like there's little skid marks.

So I think what I am sensing is the box might need a specialist. IE the DC might be over 28. LOL

Inspire Competence?

Tarnagius walks over to the shelf and pulls it away. While doing this something occurs to him.

"I doubt they have an infinite source of chains in there, could we just trigger it again and again until it runs out?"

I assume we can just bring the box with us right?

Kethaera isn't good at inspiring competence. She instead has a diva-stating aria.

Since taking 20 assumes multiple failures before you reach success, and you're handling a dangerous object, I rolled to see when you triggered the effect (or if you were to succeed right away). Every time you touch the box, it will trigger an attack. Since you have the trapfinding feature, you can disable magical objects rather than relying on someone with Use Magical Object or Spellcraft.

Kethaera answers "I'm not sure. It's a portal to another dimension. A little outside my realm of expertise."

After Tarnagius moves the shelf, he sees a hole in the stone slab that he can use as a handle. The stone slab is pulled open much like a cupboard, revealing all sorts of treasures inside. Vendalfek swirls around in the air whilst proclaiming how useful he is. Rexus, Rexandi, and Kethaera can identify the magical items.

Ugh, haven't gotten a notification of updates to this game since April 5! Just happened to look in.

Rexandi shivers nervously after the fight ends. It's clear that she went past her usual limits in this one, especially given the up-and-down of horrid wounds that she suffered along the way.

Finally she mumbles, "I can try to figure out what the magic items do."

Spellcraft: Headband: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13
Spellcraft: Wand: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (9) + 10 = 19

"Mmm. This wand has a command spell. Handy for a cleric. I don't know about the headband."

Oh jeez. Well, welcome back!

Here's a little recap. After killing Nox, you guys went exploring. Bazzle found a bunch of interconnected tunnels, but the only interesting thing in there was a small painting. The group has found a magical object in the room we're currently in, but Bazzle has had difficulty is disabling it. Those who are proficient in Spellcraft or Use Magic Device can attempt too, but failure can result in being attacked.

Rexus and Kethaera aid Rexandi in identifying the headband. It is called a headband of vast intelligence. When worn, it helps clear the mind and organize one's thoughts. Wearing it for more than 24 hours can reveal epiphanies, which allows the wearer to grasp the concepts of language, and improve some of their skills.

Kethaera aid: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18
Rexus aid: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13

"I ask because we could hide behind the corner and throw stones at it or something until it runs out of chains/"

"I think it gets the chains from another dimension made of chains. Like, it can't run out," says Rexandi.

"Though that could, I guess, be used to completely fill a dungeon with chains if you can figure out a way to keep it constantly making more."

"Well I guess it makes sense to keep something like that in this room for cursed items. Let's leave it be for now. Show me that picture you found, Bazzle."

Knowledge Nobility: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (5) + 12 = 17

Bazzle shows off the picture.

Tarnagius, you recognize the two adults as Rexus' mother and father, the Victocora family. Judging from your memories as a noble in Kintargo, you estimate the picture to be around ten years old. The daughter in the picture was named Rexa. By the time you returned from Egorian, Rexa doesn't appear in any of your memories.

Oh jeez. Well, welcome back!

Here's a little recap. After killing Nox, you guys went exploring. Bazzle found a bunch of interconnected tunnels, but the only interesting thing in there was a small painting. The group has found a magical object in the room we're currently in, but Bazzle has had difficulty is disabling it. Those who are proficient in Spellcraft or Use Magic Device can attempt too, but failure can result in being attacked.

Rexus and Kethaera aid Rexandi in identifying the headband. It is called a headband of vast intelligence. When worn, it helps clear the mind and organize one's thoughts. Wearing it for more than 24 hours can reveal epiphanies, which allows the wearer to grasp the concepts of language, and improve some of their skills.

[dice=Kethaera aid]1d20+7
[dice=Rexus aid]1d20+8

So moving it will continue to trigger it?

Yes. It will trigger upon touch and continue to do so. Ways to disable it include a successful DC 25 disable device (with the trapfinding feature), spellcraft, or use magic device check. A successful dispel magic check can work as well, but that would require the dispel magic scroll that you guys just picked up. Once disabled, the curiosity can be sold for 3,000gp. Because it's hostile, taking 20 is risky because it assumes that you fail many times before succeeding, and each failure can result in a chain attack.

I'll start the room by room montage in just a moment.

Feel free to interact/investigate anything that catches your interest.

"I can try again with the box it will take awhile again. Everytime it spits chain I think it resets. Moving it will trigger it though I think. Worth a good bit of coin though."

Has Bazzle seen anything large enough to put over the box that can with stand its attacks. A larger box, a big bell, a barrel.

Any chance the mithral key works in conjunction with the box.

Nice try with the mithral key, but no that doesn't work. A barrel or crate however is an interesting and clever idea. You'd probably want a metal one, or perhaps a wooden one if Rexandi uses mending every once in awhile.

Is there a metal chest or barrel of the right size down here or up in Hoccams that we saw. Or will we need to bring one back.

Lecture Hall: Partially burned benches and scorched chairs fill this room, facing a toppled podium at the southwestern end. A large dog bed sits in the center of the room, completely surrounded by human skulls.

Bazzle enters the room. Looking around. He searches about the podium.

He moves over to the creepy dog bed. "People and their pets right. I suppose a skull dog bed for a Hell Hound makes about as much sense as the tiny dogs rich ladies carry in their satchels."

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15

Redaction Room: books, and parchments. Almost all the redactions were complete, but the books are still valuable. A few recount events of the Chelish civil war, and could be worth 900gp if sold.

"Oh man. Lots of books. Even redacted I imagine worth some coin. Are we going to really be able to get people down here to get all of this?"

Meditation Gardensu: The eastern half of this colossal chamber appears almost theaterlike, with an arched ceiling painted roughly like the night sky and hanging lanterns radiant with cool, white flame. The room presents an incongruous sight this far underground. A resplendent garden, complete with a babbling brook, a gravel footpath, and all manner of flowering and fruiting plants. The pathway winds through the lush grass, over a small footbridge, and to a book-covered knoll at the far end. The brook cascades into the room from the north and then flows through a grate to the south. Each book pulses gray coloured light through the binding, which reads a different name for each tome.

"Wow. Nice. Um there is glowing books here. He holds out a hand. "Might be trapped."

Taking 20=27 Perception to confirm no traps.

Bazzle comes in and puts a barrel over the box and with help slides the lid under.

Taking 20 on Disable Device to keep us from getting hit while putting in the barrel. 28.

"Someone able to really drill down on these with arcane knowledge should loook at the books but they don't seem trapped."

Bazzle carefully and painstakingly starts to disable the planar box by shielding himself from the chain attacks. Though the barrel needs repairs from Rexandi every now and then, Bazzle finally manages to deactivate the planar box.

"I wonder if we can actually repurpose this place," says Rexandi. "Seems too well-known to the Asmodeans for us to use, though. I take your meaning about the books. It's going to take a lot of work to empty out everything!"

Rexandi idly flips through a few of the more interesting titles.

Knowledge (history): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22

"Some of these books about the Civil War are interesting, even if they're redacted. We should definitely take them."

None of the books contain anything of particular use to the rebellion, but selling them to a collector who will keep them out of Thrune or Asmodean hands could be quite valuable.
The magic books are discovered to be called Soul Tomes. They are books recounting the memories of a specific individual. Contrary to the name, Soul Tomes do not affect the souls they recount. Most of these tomes are about the lives of several monks of Irori who have run this hidden archive for more than two decades, including Rexus' mother and father. Porcia Victocora's soul tome holds something particularly interesting. Among all the books that were contained here included a few chapters of what is called 'The Book of the Damned', known to be a book of absolute evil. Only one person has requested to read these chapters, a wandering scholar by the name of Trailblazer Huni. Rexandi also fully confirms through the Victocora tomes that Rexus was indeed a woman named Rexa. She transitioned to a man by use of potent alchemical substances. The information in all these tomes provides plenty of practical advice towards running a secret organization.