Spellcraft:
"Any thoughts on the scrollcase, Drovya?"
Drovya shrugs and takes a look at the scroll case.
He shakes his head slowly. My apologies, Rohini, I can't make heads or tails of this. Those grubs, well, I don't have to tell you. I just need to clear my head. Kanthya?
He takes a few deep breaths, but the foul air of Abbadon does little to calm his nerves.
When Hanethes presents his loot, Drovya hands the bag over to him. Help yourself. I still have Rogar's old sack.
Kanthuun startles as he was busy trying to read the petrified book. "Hm? Oh. Scroll case. Let's see..." He pores over the case, occasionally nodding and twisting a lock of hair.
"A changeless...timeless...interesting." Kanthuun looks up. "This case preserves a scroll, or anything else, against everything. Water, dust, time itself." He made a slight face. "It is very interesting and useful, although it goes against the inevitable forces of mutability. Ah well, eventually the magic will break and with luck, eons from now, it will explode or something."
"Very interesting. Does it only hold only one scroll? If so, I suggest we put the breath of life scroll in there, which I believe is the most powerful spell we have on a scroll. If everyone agrees, I will carry it, of course." As Rohini is fetching the scroll, she takes the opportunity to read it, so that is is ready for casting. In fact, time permitting she'll go ahead and read all her scrolls, while the party finishes searching the room. It looks like she just remembered that she'd forgotten to do so, and feels a little embarrassed about it.
"I suppose you could roll two scrolls in there, but you'd have a time separating them quickly in a time of need. ...now I wish I had brought some marinated gorgon sweetmeats. They go bad so quickly, and they'd fit so nicely in this little case..."
"Good point. If we need the breath of life scroll we don't want to take any extra time unrolling it. I can't say I've ever tried gorgon sweetmeats. I usually keep it pretty simple."
"Yea, as the likely recipient of said scroll, I agree that it should be in it with Rohini holding it."
Drovya chuckles darkly, Hopefully later rather than sooner, Talon. So, back to the staircase then? Didn't one of you mention seeing Suspiradaemon tracks heading up it? Drovya pulls out his flask of elemental breath and holds it at the ready, should one of the creatures appear. He then recasts detect magic and maintains the spell.
"If only I was that lucky. Staircase it is." Talon will lead them back.
"Aye, that was me, Drovya. It slithered up the staircase."
I'll keep an eye out for it then Kanthuun. We can give it the old glitterdust treatment when it rears its ugly head.
Hanethes actually prefers not to carry the bag of holding, but he deposits the gems in it anyway for someone who does.
"Shall I scout ahead and see if I can spot anything?"
Hanethes draws out his pistol and loads it with a silver cartridge.
"Sure, but keep within our sight."
"Yea, go for it."
Retracing their earlier footsteps, the party doubled back to the intersection near the stairs, taking one of the passages not yet traveled. It appeared more intact, from the floor to the ceiling, barely discernable from stone. The ichor didn't follow past a few feet in, either.
On either side of the hallway during the trek, there were openings caved in with time; nonfunctional entrances to what must have once been a much more intricate complex. At the end of the proverbial tunnel, however, were a few stairs leading into a room abuzz with hissing sounds and activity.
"I can turn Han invisible," whispers Kanthuun. He does not volunteer himself.
"Gorgon sweetmeats are most toothsome, by the way. Well worth preserving."
"Good plan. Just stay safe, Han."
"Alright." Hanethes agrees.
"I can turn Han invisible," whispers Kanthuun. He does not volunteer himself.
"Gorgon sweetmeats are most toothsome, by the way. Well worth preserving."
Good luck, Han. Be careful. Kanthya, I've never tried Gorgon. How do you spice it?
Assuming he is made invisible, Hanethes proceeds to sneak into the room with the horrible sounds, and see what he can see.
Kanthuun turns Hanethes invisible.
Below 25 is bad... Wait... YAY for people staying alive. :)
Aaand even the uber here can't make a perception check high enough to see the rogue, even with constant detect magic on board. I need to ask if people have been using the wand of undetectable alignment, though...
Hanethes ascended the stairs to discover a makeshift rookery, with cacodaemons instead of birds. The smell was still foul, however, and it washed over him like a small wave. His expert feet managed not to upset the myriad of skeletons on the ground (most of them cacodaemons, also, though the occasional small skull, piece of daemon excrement, and broken soul gem punctuated the mixture.
The 'nests', as it were, were nestled on top of pieces of rubble, and cracks in what was, at least in here, a stone wall. Many of them were occupied by mewling cacodaemons, who were egging on two of their comrades in a scorpion duel in the middle of the relatively small room.
No other entrances or exits grabbed Hanethes' immediate attention, and he could almost relax until he chanced to look up and see a COUS (a cacodaemon of unusual size). Its beady eyes flew all over the room as it levitated right beneath the ceiling, ever watchful as it casually chewed on something. A drop of its slaver narrowly missed the rogue in his position beneath.
Hanethes carefully makes his way back to the others...
"Looks like a room full of cacodaemons, nine of them, plus a larger one near the ceiling."
"I'm not sure how best to get into position, but this certainly seems like a good opportunity to bring down my Lady's power to do harm to the beasts of this plane . I think if I can get to the entrance I can affect them all, even the one near the ceiling. Any ideas?
"So there's ten of them. I was worried there wouldn't be enough of them to fight. I don't think you can muster enough power to waste them. You'd probably just end up drawing fire. I think we should cast what spells we got and move in."
"I guess as long as we keep them confined to that room, I can hit them all at once even with you all in the room too. But it would be ideal to get a hit in on them before they can attack us. But maybe that's difficult to arrange. Can you make me invisible too, Kanthuun? But maybe that's a waste because I'll probably re-appear after I channel? I don't know how many time you can do it before you have to rest. But I agree it risk me being targeted by a lot of the creatures unless some of you are ready to charge in the room at the same moment." Rohini's disorganized thoughts tumble out. "Strategy is not my strongest point."
"Just wait for me to go in and draw them to me, like I always seem to do. Then follow in and do your magic. I'll try to keep you from being overwhelmed."
First, let Kanthuun blind them and coat them in dust, so when they turn invisible we can still attack them. Then, Talon, Han and I can wade in. Haka can attack any that are out of reach. Rohini, perhaps a clean-up channel? How does that sound?
"That sounds like a wise strategy, Drovya. As soon as they become aware of us, I'll begin playing, to give you a little inspiration"
As you like it, Haka. Just make sure to save some of that battle rhythm for the big fights, he adds with a wink.
"Fine with me."
"Me too. Let's roll out."
"You will indeed reappear when you channel," nods Kanthuun. "We sorcerers like to understand these arcane matters of...um, arcanity. Arcanosity." Kanthuun appears satisfied with this word and preps Glitterdust.
"Nobody bump into Han, now."
"It's quite all right, Kanthuun. I intend to let Talon get their attention completely before I sneak up on something that has its back to me. I'll just stay back until the opportunity presents itself."
"I expect no less, Han."
Drovya gets close to Talon and prepares to charge in with him once Kanthuun works his magic.
Kanthuun swallows and turns himself Invisible.
He ascends the stairs as quietly as he can.
When he gets to a distance where he can see all of the cacos--ideally still some distance away--he prepares Glitterdust, aims for a 10' sphere that encompasses the most cacos (with luck, including the COUS)...and releases the spell.
Talon will follow in after Kanthuun and stands in front of him. He gets into a defensive stance for the oncoming onslaught.
Haka will move up to the door as quietly as his mighty feet will allow, keeping out of sight of anything inside.
Once Kanthuun has cast his spell, Haka will begin to dance and drum, setting a deadly battle rhythm and spelling certain doom for their daemonic foes. He will then step into the room and to the left of the door, then fire his sling twice at the COUS.
Rohini will follow the others and stop just outside the room. She'll hold her starknife above her head and call down her lady's power to do harm to these creatures.
Alignment channel:
Hanethes also slips into the room, though he attempts to avoid the glitterdust. He moves to an edge of the room where he can watch the combat and wait for an opportune moment to sneak attack the COUS with his pistol from a flanking position.
and 4 bleed.
Drovya sends a charge of energy into Black Ivan , and lays into the closest cacodaemon.
--NICE, Kanth.
OKEY----
Tal
Tal
Drov
Tal
Hak
Moocow (Hak)
Tal INCAPABLE OF CONFIRMATION Miss due to being blind as... a slug? No,...pfft.
Drov
The party made their move. Kanthuun's spell was used to devastating effect, blinding all but two of his intended targets. Even the COUS drooled vacantly as a huge chunk of the glowing powder fell into his eyes.
Talon and Drovya, as well as Haka and a sneaky Hanethes, forced their way in with varying levels of stealth. Obviously less in the case of Drovya, who promptly obliterated one of the cacos, sending small bits of bone and soul gem in every which direction, splattering Talon's armor in gore. The stealth also seemed inconsequential after the Thunderfoot scion began a stomping performance, drawing the attention of the blinded cacos. However, thankfully for him, the acoustics made it a bit difficult to find the halfling in question.
Rohini's channeling also proved to have a potent effect. Most of the daemons hissed in fury as the white energy stripped away outter bits of flesh, and a few beloved teeth. The COUS, however, while harmed, mostly just bellowed angrily, revealing a still-partially intact gnomish head stuck onto one of his back fangs.
Talon pulled into a defensive stance at the fore of his comrades, and then...
They moved, like a flurry of grotesque insects. Blinded as they were, however, a majority of them literally rammed into the fighter while trying to bite him, akwardly taking in air with their maws. One attempted to harry the halfling, only to get a mouthful of, well, hair.
One of the two polymorphed variations tried to scorpion-sting Drovya's left foot and was stopped by a mere boot. The other tried to hit the fighter, not even able to connect with armor in a blind daze.
Out of nowhere, the COUS vomitted, a terrible spew of acid falling forth on Haka, Talon, Hanethes, and Drovya from above.
Once it had made its move, the crafty Hanethes shoots at the blinded, spewing beast (though his view of the gnome head inside liquifying likely caused some distress). The thunderrous call of the weapon was a habringer of the great hole left on one edge of the creature's vague face, which bled profusely.
Talon ends his defensive stance and unleashes Stark on the nearest cacodaemon.