JZ's Carrion Crown - (Wake of the Watcher) (Inactive)

Game Master JamZilla

"Yes, join me. You have a keener mind than I and being able to see what I uncover firsthand will be invaluable."

Zed can drop a couple invisibility spells, so as long as somebody's trained (like Kaz is) it should be virtually impossible to be noticed without special senses or magic.

"Where do you want the rest of us?" Hazel asks, eager to do what she can to help. "Is there any way we can keep some sort of tabs on you from outside? Maybe a messaging spell?"

Ok, Zed and Kaz go in stealthily, the rest outside and likely available to react if necessary

With their forms at first shimmering and then disappearing completely, Zed and Kaz slip in through the doors of the Church which, even at this late hour, is not locked up for the night.

The inner portico is extremely quiet, with only the sputtering of a candle to break the silence.

Will get a map up.

For the first time Kaz lays eyes on the strange depiction of Gozreh and realises his suspicions about the statue are correct, it is a subversive version of the Demon Lord of the Sea.

In the next room, two leaded stained-glass windows to the north and south display images of the same mermaid depicted by the statue outside. Two doors and an open archway lead to the east.

Map updated

"Be close enough that a loud fight would draw you, but otherwise I think subtlety is more important than safety here. My instincts tell me we should not face anything too deadly within the temple."

Slightly Earlier

"Okay, got it," Hazel replies quietly. "Good luck and be careful in there, okay?"

"Always."

Zed will cast invisibility as well as see invisibility on both himself and Kaz, that way we don't have to worry about losing each other or trying to communicate.

Zed sweeps ahead of Kaz, focused on making sure the area is safe and free of traps or alarms while Kaz investigates.

Stealth (ACP, Invisible): 1d20 + 15 - 4 + 20 ⇒ (5) + 15 - 4 + 20 = 36
Perception: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (7) + 17 = 24

Zed will also be constantly sweeping the area with detect undead. Assuming nothing dangerous is revealed:

Zed points to the archway, holding up nine fingers to communicate how long the invisibility spell will last and that he wants to make sure important areas are visited first.

"I don't have any way to keep a mental 'tether' to you, I'm afraid," says Constantin as the two prepare for entry in the cult. "So I will simply wish you good fortune and may the eyes of the wicked never turn your way."

Warped wooden pews stand within this central meeting hall, decorated with a decidedly nautical theme. A wooden statue of the same mermaid depicted elsewhere in the temple stands at the front of the hall, though she holds a strange octopoid creature in one hand rather than a conch shell.

Four men stand in the hall, apparently meditating before the statue. They are dressed in deep green robes or gaudy appearance. More doors lead north and south from here.

Zed searches the room, giving Kaz time to sweep as well.

Stealth: 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (1) + 31 = 32 Boy it's a good thing skill checks don't auto-fail on nat 1's
Perception: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (6) + 17 = 23

Stealth: 1d20 + 12 + 20 + 1d6 ⇒ (19) + 12 + 20 + (6) = 57
Perception: 1d20 + 16 + 1d6 ⇒ (9) + 16 + (5) = 30

Burning an inspiration for stealth. Free one for Perception.

Before going in, Kaz will cast heightened awareness

I am amused by the material component..I think I've got that one covered...

So that perception would be a 32.

(If you will permit a light retcon)

Kaz keeps his hand on Zed's shoulder as the pair makes their way into the temple.

Seeing the meditating priests, Kaz pauses, listening intently, seeing if they are muttering anyhtign that he can understand.

perception: 1d20 + 16 + 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 16 + (5) + 2 = 27

After a few, he gently tugs on Zed's shoulder, steering back into the entryway (e2), then north to the unopened door - assuming that Zed comes with him.

If so, he will check for traps or alarms, and press his ear to it to listen for any motion behind it.

perception for traps: 1d20 + 16 + 1d6 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 16 + (2) + 2 + 4 = 42
perception to listen: 1d20 + 16 + 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 16 + (4) + 2 = 41
stealth to do this all quietly: 1d20 + 12 + 20 ⇒ (1) + 12 + 20 = 33

The door is not trapped and you hear the sound of snoring beyond

Meanwhile, as you search the room around the priests, you detect a series of secret doors - effectively a false wall, at the back of the room

Kaz grimaces - unseen - in frustration, pondering his course of action. Finally, he opens the door as quietly as he can, just enough to peek through into the room.

stealth-figuring invis does not apply: 1d20 + 12 + 1d6 ⇒ (20) + 12 + (6) = 38
perception: 1d20 + 14 + 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 14 + (5) + 2 = 25

A small ship’s bell mounted on a ship’s wheel sits atop a small altar of green stone at the far end of this chapel. A mosaic on the wall above the altar portrays a sea captain on the deck of a ship in the midst of a raging storm.

Four priests lie in simple cots, seemingly asleep in this chapel. If any of them noticed the door open, they did not show it.

Zed holds up a hand, sweeping the room for a moment for undead as well as magic.

Stealth: 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (19) + 31 = 50
Perception: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (14) + 17 = 31

Are there other doors out of this room?

No undead present and there is one exit from this room, it is just a small side chapel. The exit is likely to enter into another room east that you have seen a door to in the previous room

Check the map and you'll see what I mean

You do detect the presence of magic however, likely weapons and armour belonging to the priests

Lets try the other door...
stealth to get there: 1d20 + 10 + 9 ⇒ (18) + 10 + 9 = 37
perception for traps: 1d20 + 16 + 1d6 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 16 + (1) + 2 + 4 = 38
Disable device if locked/trapped: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (4) + 18 = 22
stealth to unlock/disarm/open quietly: 1d20 + 9 + 1d6 ⇒ (5) + 9 + (2) = 16

Zed follows Kaz, focusing mostly on keeping him safe and away from any potential traps.

Stealth: 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (10) + 31 = 41
Perception: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (4) + 17 = 21

Kaz eases open the door.

This small chapel contains a simple altar of green stone at its far end. A mosaic on the wall above the altar depicts a creature that appears to be a mixture of fish, frog, and human. The air is thick with the smell of rotting fish.

Nature: 1d20 + 11 + 1d6 ⇒ (10) + 11 + (2) = 23
Religion: 1d20 + 17 + 1d6 ⇒ (18) + 17 + (1) = 36

What else might Kaz know about the depicted creature?

Knowledge (nature): 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 4 + 2 = 14
Knowledge (religion): 1d20 + 6 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 6 + 2 = 28

Zed frowns as he looks at the creature. This is barely a thin veneer of a Gozren faith.

Skum are the most prolific and successful of the countless races created by the aboleths to serve as slaves. At the height of the aboleth empire, skum were legion and their armies waged many wars upon the land, yet now that the aboleths are in decline, skum have been set loose to manage on their own.

For the most part, the skum have been less than successful at this endeavor, and today they exist in a shadow of their previous multitude, most of them dwelling deep underground in slowly crumbling ruins left standing only because their enemies have lost interest in pursuing the now-won war against these fish-like humanoids. Skum have even lost their own name—only the most erudite and wise of their kind remember that they were once known as the ulat-kini. Today, most identify themselves with the racial epithet applied to them by surface-dwellers—“skum.”

Skum do not age, and barring death by violence or disease, they can live forever. Unfortunately, this near immortality is crippled by the fact that skum are incapable of reproducing among themselves, for all skum are male. The aboleths did not want their slave race to prosper without their permission. Yet terribly, this does not mean that skum cannot breed. Originally created from human stock, skum can impregnate humans, and the children issued from such unholy unions are invariably deformed. Those who are not born skum undergo gradual transformations throughout their lives, and when they would normally die of old age, such hybrids instead go through “the change,” shedding their wrinkled flesh and transforming into one of the ulat-kini. While most skum tribes lack the drive to perpetuate their race and would prefer to languish in their hideous sunken ruins, tribes settling offshore of remotely populated coastlines seem to be on the rise. Some such communities raid villages for breeding stock, but a few more insidious tribes form alliances with these desperate folk, providing protection and bounty from the sea in return for wives.

PAUSED

We hope to be back... one day