Masters of the Fallen Fortress (Inactive)

Game Master Awenydd83

With a great burp of air, the frog falls unconscious from Nikolais' mighty kick. The jaws and tongue relax and the man is able to roll the giant frog off of him.

Out of Combat

From here, there lies a door to the southeast, or you can try the south east door from the previous room.

Nikolai winces as he withdraws his arm, savaged and slimy from the frog's bites. "I really hate this place," he says, fishing out his healing wand, and looking towards one of the healers for assistance.

I'm sure there'll probably be some people upset with Nikolai's actions, so let's have that RP - but rather than hold things up, I also assume that you'll be patching him up, so I'm rolling for his healing.

Heal: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
Heal: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9

Nicolai: Even though your attack was not nonlethal, the majority of the damage suffered WAS, so the thing is just unconscious as far as I am concerned. While you are rolling the thing off of you, this would be obvious to you. Perhaps you can earn a few brownie points?

Yep, something that Nikolai will be quick to bring up in any admonishment of his actions.

Perception: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17

As Nikolai is shaking some feeling back into his bloodied arm, he notes a spot of green in the rubble of the room. Brushing it aside, his foul mood softens some as he withdraws a jade statuette of some angelic being. "Well, not a total loss here," he says, looking it over.

Untrained Appraise: 1d20 ⇒ 13

"Not half bad," he remarks. "Definitely the right weight for jade. Probably looted from some long destroyed church by whatever would-be conqueror used this tower when it was new. This is worth a fair amount, friends - assuming the Society doesn't want it, we should all end up with a hundred gold or so."

Xasay obligingly uses Nikolai's healing wand for him.

"That is a big frog." Fauxish says eyeing the frog.

We should move on before it wakes up again and gets angry! Turan suggests.

"Agreed," Nikolai states, once the healing words were spoken. "Onto the next one." He quickly checks the door for anything unusual - either traps or noises - and opens it.

Perception: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19

Isobel runs up to the giant frog and makes sure it's okay.

"Thanks for not killing it," she tells the others.

She closes the door after they leave. "I will come back and heal it before we go."

She follows Nikolai and the others to the next door.

Just to speed things up..
Nikolai opens the door to find a small platform open to the air. He finds nothing during his exam of the short platform, so the party returns to the far southwest door. Nikolai once again throws it open to reveal another room the same size of the rest of the tower. A brazier of glowing coals sits in the center of this room, its acrid smoke mixing with the ever-present troglodyte stench. A few knives, pokers, and other metal implements lie atop a rusty iron box nearby. Sitting in a chair against the far wall near another door is a hulking troglodyte much larger than the other juveniles you have faced so far.

Bold May Post
Party
Tulok

Fauxish squints to read his adhesive name tag. "Hi my name is Tulok" She wonders if he was the troglodyte in home room or not. She made up her mind--she hated reunions. ;)

Fauxish looks to Xasay Xyu to introduce them all.

As the door opens, Isobel's eyes narrow as she observes the large troglodyte and the implements of torture.

"Behold my beauty, servant of all that is hideous!" the sorceress exclaims.

She waves her hand and wills the creature to sleep.

sleep, DC 20 Will save

I think I'm also the only one that has to deal with trog stench at the moment, so I'll make my save now.

Fort: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14

Move action move, swift action activate falcon thingy. Standard action shoot. I'm assuming that my attack resolves before sleep. Also Isobel how can your DC be 20 at level 1?

Turan Steps into the chamber and without a word lets fly an arrow.

Attack 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21 Damage 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10

Nikolai once again reminds me of the trog stench. Fort saves if you have not succeeded on a save yet and you advance within 30 ft.. which in this case is only Turan so far. Nikolai, you may discard that roll and reroll when you advance.

Fauxish delays, while Isobel begins to cast a spell. Nikolai holds at the door, and Turan steps forward to send in an arrow, hitting the troglodyte square in the chest and doing some real damage.

Bold May Post
Fauxish
Nikolai
Xasay

Need DC 13 Fort save if <30ft of the trog

Kitsune feyblood sorcerers are OP. Cha 20 (+5), SF (enchantment) (+1), fey bloodline for compulsion spells (+2), kitsune bonus to enchantment spells (+1), Honeyed Words trait (+1). This could all be over by the time it gets to her turn.

And do I have to discard that roll? It looks like I made it! :(

Fort: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22

Hah! Made it anyway!

Nikolai blanches again at the troglodyte's horrid scent, but that doesn't stop his advance. "C'mon, you ugly sonuvab$*&$, come at me!" The beast slashes at him with its claws, but he catches it at the wrist and aims an elbow smash directly at the trog's throat. His attack is deflected by the beast, and Nikolai sighs. "Typical. Just typical."

Attack, Power Attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
Damage: 1d6 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7

I must have been half asleep when I typed that, Nikolai.. I was trying to throw you a bone and let you reroll what I thought was a fail. But you got it anyway, so we are good!

Actually, my DC for sleep should be 21, so I'm glad you said something. Here's the breakdown:

10 (base)
5 (charisma)
1 (level 1 spell)
1 (spell focus enchantment)
1 (honeyed words trait)
2 (fey sorcerer bloodline)
1 (kitsune magic)

Heh, forgot the usual +1 for a 1st level spell. Not like you need it! :P

It's certainly a specialized character. Amazing at one thing, though remember there are a lot of creatures (undead, constructs, and others) that this stuff will never work on.

1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13

Fauxish cartwheels into the room a cloths pin pinching her her button nose. She rolls around the brazier and behind the brute--err the lizardy one.

Double move.

Wow pretty amazing...

Fort 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13

Seconds after Xasay enters through the door, a now-familiar otherworldly dark bird bursts straight out of the wall from behind the troglodyte king!

Fortitude save: 1d20 ⇒ 13

Same as before, I generate a celestial eagle, Smite Evil and full attack a-blazin', with a DC 16 Will save to shrivel it to 20% reality.

eagle Fortitude save: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

bite: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (17) + 3 = 20 -2 = 18
damage: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4 -2 = 2

talon: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 3 = 18 -2 = 16
damage: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5 -2 = 3

talon: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7 -2 = 5
damage: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5 -2 = 3

With some fancy footwork, Fauxish tumbles into the room.. Just as a shadow puppet becomes reality and bites out the troglodytes throat. With an arrow pinning him to the wall, and an eagle sitting on his chest eating, the troglodyte makes for a pretty macabre scene. As the party slowly realizes that combat is over, they begin to hear a pounding and a muffled voice coming from the door next to where Tulok sat.

Nikolai is about to search the troglodyte's fallen form when he hears the pounding on the door beyond. He looks back at his comrades and gestures for them to search the body as he approaches the door. "Who's in there? Answer or be set on fire!" When the party look at him at his threat, he merely answers with a shrug.

"We do that?"

The voice behind the door replies to Nikolai: "By the gods! Thank you! Help me! I am chained up in here! I am a Pathfinder.. The fire will NOT be necessary!"

Isobel responds through the door. "We're here to help you! Unless you are just pretending to be a good guy, in which case we're here to probably put you to sleep or otherwise knock you out!"

She moves to the door and tries to open it.

diplomacy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (15) + 7 = 22

"Wait. Remember that hairy guy in Strahd's castle dungeon? or that crazy gnoll in that hobgoblin lair near that keep on the borderlands? Or that harem in those lost caverns? or that other dude...."

Ninja'd. Ironic for a monk, no?

lol Fauxish!
The voice from beyond the door replies "No, I promise, I am a pathfinder! Please, just let me out!"

Isobel tries the door, but it is locked.

Fauxish stands back as Nikolai has the 'keys.'

If questioned about this move she responds with a shrug and says: "We could always burn it down."

If you a truly a Pathfinder tell us who sent you on a mission. Also present us with your Pathfinder ID, just slide it through the door.

The voice begins to sound frustrated as it calls back to Turan. "I am chained to the wall!! How do you expect me to do anything!? Just get the keys from the big troglodyte and open this door!! Then you can see that I am telling the truth!"

"Oh, he had the keys! Why certainly! We didn't know that, and aren't any good with locks." Xasay fishes the keys off the troglodyte chief's corpse and begins heading to the cell while looking reproachfully at his comrades. "Why such mistrust?"

Xasay opens the door to reveal a beaten and half starved man chained to the wall with manacles. "By the gods! Finally, Someone reasonable! Thank you!!!" he exclaims, holding out his wrists for release. "I am a bard, my name is Balenar Forsend. At your service, sir."

Xasay guesses his way through undoing Balenar's manacles. "If you would serve me, then life free, and let none and nothing subjugate your art. I think we'd enjoy a tale of this tower, too. Hidden treasures in these walls, perhaps, be they treasures of purse, scabbard, larder, mind, spirit, or history?"

Grateful, the man rubs his wrists as the manacles fall off with Xasays help. "Life is nothing but a treasure sir, and a treasure of all you list! My things should be around here somewhere.." Walking back into the main room, Balenar points out the unplundered chest. "Perhaps my gear is in there? What say you? Am I to be trusted with my arms and armour? If you wish, I will even help repay these bastards for their sins."

"Remember those five women that crazy cleric was holding captive in the Demon Web? We should probably burn him a little just to be safe."

"I don't think bards are bad guys," Isobel muses. "Let's let him free! Maybe he will even entertain us in this awful place!"

Isobel begins searching the troglodyte corpse for a key.

Take 20. If she finds it, will use it to open the manacles.

"I don't think bards are bad guys," Isobel muses.

Fauxish muses as well: Horatio Quiggly, the Ominous Fabler, Queen Ileosa Arabasti of Korvosa, Castruccio Irovetti the King of Pitax....

Fauxish shrugs. "Okay."

@Isobel: Xasay already did that, and found the keys. In addition to the keys, you only find very poor leather armour made for the misshapen lizard man, and his wooden club.

Just to speed things up...
Isobel takes the keys from Xasay, and moves over to the chest. Unlocking it, she discovers what must be the Bards equipment. tossed into the chest are: a suit of masterwork studded leather armor, a masterwork buckler, a masterwork rapier, a shortbow with 15 arrows, two scrolls, a wayfinder, and a climber’s kit.

As these items are rifled through, the prisoner stands back watching the party and trying to figure out what they are going to do with him. When the wayfinder appears, he speaks out.
"See? That is my wayfinder! Proof that I am who I say that I am. Now.. Can I join you, or am I to return to Absalom?"

Side note: I just finished playing Zurnzal an Aspis agent who had collected a couple of them to facilitate his disguise in a raid against the Society. Just sayin.' He collected tongues to--pesky speak with dead.

"Sure he's a bard. How dangerous could he be."

Was that the special? I played Marnarious. Had a lot of fun playing an evil character for once.

"I am not dangerous.. at least not to you. To the beasts that gave me daily beatings, however..." The bards voice trails off as he gestures to indicate the many layers of bruises and welts covering his body, and the tattered and torn underclothes he wears.

"Alright, alright, I think we can avoid setting you on fire. At least, for now. So, you've been captive here for awhile, Balenar. I think we've killed all the trogs that live here, so I think we could head back to Absalom with you. I'm sure the VCs will be happy to see you survived. Not sure why they didn't tell us one of our number was already exploring the place, though..." The large Varisian crosses his arms, one raised eyebrow clearly questioning the man's story.

"Right...bards are never dangerous!" Isobel agrees.

"What else is here? I really need to go take a bath...so let's hurry!"

"While I appreciate your skepticism, I was trying to be the first here to explore this tower. I snuck in shortly after the earthquake, but not early enough it seems. As for what else is left, have you gone all the way to the top of the tower? What about Tasskar? is he dead yet? He is a big brute of a troglodyte.. Ugly as sin!"

"Your description needs work - but presumably."

"Aren't we at the top? I haven't seen any other way to go higher. And that one there, is that Tasskar?" Nikolai gives the troglodyte body in the room a kick.

"We have seen plenty of 'ugly as sin' troglodytes today. I just hope we are nearly done here. Let's keep going up and make sure we are," Isobel says.