Out of the Abyss (Pathfinder Conversion)

Game Master EmEss

Finally a computer to type up in xD after a busy week for comic con i wish some of you a good time at Gencon xD I'm ready to jump in this now!

Not to far from where the group discussed, one more captive overheard their plans to escape. He had remained quiet for the longest time, choose to remain hidden on the offchance this had turned into some cruel drow trick. The longer he heard them speak though, they all seemed sinsere enough on their intentions to leave behind the cruel dungeon. "Perhaps....would your group have room for one more?" he'd ask, his voice finally carrying forth, if a raspy from not being used in he wasn't sure how long. His time here had made him suspicious, even of the other munavri he could see neaby.

His head popping up at the new voice, Akri was surprised to find another munavri here in the cage.

Zaiid would let out a sigh of relief, no drow go fake such though communication, least not without casting a powerful spell or being a psychic themselves.

After hours of sorting stones the other two groups of slaves are returned to the cell and you are given a simple lunch of tough black bread and flat tasting water. After 20 minutes or so you are divided into groups again.

Akri, Talindra, Shuushar (the old kuo-toa) and a fairly young looking female deep gnome make up one group and are taken along the walkways, past the waterfall to a hall (area 3 on the map). There are four large zurkhwood tables in the hall, and a group of 3 drow guards are seated around one of them playing cards. You are lead to the back of the hall where there is a food preparation area and ordered to clean the fairly large pile of greasy pots, pans, and dishes stacked in the corner.

Zaiid, Harro, Buppido and a heavily scarred Orc make up another group and are likewise are taken alongside the walkways past the waterfall to a platform with a large basket attached to a winch by a thick cord of spider silk (area 5 on the map) . You are chained to the handcrank (two to each side) and required to raise and lower the lift.

The rest of the prisoners are kept in the pen, where you have more pebbles to sort.

Giving a sigh at the sight of all the dirty dishes, Akri just shrugged at the others and started scrubbing. As he worked, he calmly looked around to see if any of the guards were paying attention.

Harro will crank away the hours wordlessly.

He will be imagining each turn of the crank as a drow head he'll be bashing open tomorrow!

Is anyone out of the anti-magic area at this point?

Tanic is happy to see they have left him with the mindless yet mildly entertaining job of sorting rocks. He makes little games out of it like creating patterns withing the sorted groups humming softly and contentedly, dreaming of escape or rescue.

Only the slave pen (area 11) is in the anti-magic area.

Vinexa sat sorting pebbles until lunch, her tail occasionally lashing or wings rustling in boredom. She knows she's better used in other ways but these good for nothing guards don't seem to get it. Oh well, their loss. Lunch came, much as it had before and was just as bleh as before but she ate it anyway. After lunch she hoped that they'd at least take her somewhere else for another job but no...more sorting rocks. Escape couldn't come soon enough.

Talindra is pleased to find herself outside the pen. That would allow her to use some of her magics. As the guard is pulled into a card game, Talindra begins to clatter the plates a little more loudly, until the guards get used to the noise. "Keep the noise up," she asks Akri and Shuushar. Then, she tries to slip into a corner hidden from immediate view to to call on Nocticula's blessing.

Stealth?: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (16) + 9 = 25; +2 additional bonus if in dim light
Cure Light Wounds: 1d8 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7

As Micar continues sorting pebbles, he moves next to Derendil. When the guards aren't looking he whispers to the quaggoth, "iire lye're il- beien watched anymore, tul a elea amin ar' amin'll loosen i' narda. be sure a' elea amin n'ala meal coiasira."

Zaiid had no choice but to work as told and obey the whims of his captors. With an escape sounding more plausible with what he had overheard, he couldn't afford to make any waves that could draw attention. The duergar he had been paired had been one of the ones he had overheard and he seemed to be doing just that. For now, he followed his lead.

The interior spaces of the outpost are all dimly lit by phosphorescent fungi. The exterior areas are dark. I believe everyone has darkvision?

Micar manages to unlock the manacles around Derendil's wrists, leaving them on but unlocked.

Guard's Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

GM randomisation stuff: 1d20 ⇒ 14

The guards in the hall seem pretty focused on their game and don't notice Talindra quietly slipping into a dark corner to cast cure light wounds. Talindra feels a sudden rush as her wounds close up. One of the guards looks up from his cards, as if he thought he had heard something but is distracted by an almighty crash as the female svirfneblin knocks over a large decanter half filled with a vivid green liquid.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! It was an accident. I was just putting a jug back on the shelf." she pleads as she is seized roughly by the guards.

The commotion attracts the attention of Mistress Illvara, who sweeps into the chamber carrying an ornate ebony rod that ends with three rubbery tentacles. She glances over the scene before turning to the guards and saying with a sibilant hiss.

"Return all the anquestrae to the pen apart from this one. It seems I have a lesson to teach"

You are all returned to the pen and are ordered to watch as the drow Mistress stands over the poor svirfneblin girl. The tentacles at the end of Ilvarra's rod seem to come to life, striking out at the girl one at a time and she whitens and contorts in agony as each one makes contact.

"It seems that we have a clumsy anquestra" Ilvara voice cuts clearly above the whimpers of pain from the little gnome. "Or worse a clumsy thief! You weren't returning a jug to a shelf, you were trying to steal a few choice delicacies, weren't you? Just like you stole the fire lichen liquor. I bet you thought you were so clever! Did you think we wouldn't notice?"

Ilvara's speech is punctuated by denials from her victim and more lashes from the tentacles, leading to screams of agony. Eventually the little gnome girl falls into unconsciousness but this merely causes Ilvara to call for a younger drow woman, who casts Cure Light Wounds on the girl, allowing the questioning to continue.

Soon the inevitable happens and the gnome breaks down and confesses.
"See how easy that was, telling the truth" Ilvara says comfortingly, stroking the girl's chin and looking deep into her eyes. "Now why couldn't you have told me the truth sooner? Why, it's almost feeding time!"

This last sentence prompts a shudder of fear through several of the slaves who had been prisoner here the longest.

"Feeding time?" Akri asked quietly to nobody in particular, the sheer delight in the drow woman's face sending an icy spear of fear into his gut.

"Just wait and see" whispered Shuushar to Akri, "Or look away if you can, it's not a pretty sight"

"20 silver on 2 minutes" whispers Jimjar, "Any takers?"

I'm glad Tanic is not around to see this! Not that he hasn't seen feeding times before, but I just don't think this will be the same.

Talindra was thankful that the svirfneblin distracted the guards by dropping the decanter, preventing the guards from noticing her own unsanctioned use of magic. She drags the pitiful creature off to the side. "Alright girl, what's your name? I owe you one for distracting the guards there, even if you didn't mean it. But don't start thinking I'd ever do anything as foolish as that. So tell me, what in the Abyss is feeding time?"

Vinexa watched as the monotony of the day was broken with the svirfneblin girl's punishment. It was as horrifying as it was arousing for her, but then so many things tended to fit that category. When feeding time was mentioned she became quite concerned, she wasn't sure what it was but it obviously wasn't what she would consider a good thing judging from the reactions of those around her. She followed Talindra as the drow pulled the svirf aside to ask more questions she followed in some concern, she wanted to know what this feeding time was exactly and, surprisingly, a part of her wanted to protect the girl from whatever this meant if she could, it was an admittedly small part but it was there. As Talindra began to question the girl Vienxa knelt behind the Svirf and put her arms around her from behind, gently holding her to try and calm her sp they could get some better information from her.

diplomacy? to help calm the svirf: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (9) + 10 = 19

Micar stays in the back of the pen next to Derendil. Feeding time? That doesn't sound good. He leans toward the quaggoth and whispers. "Iire i' coiasira tul a, Soora neva a' amin.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the incident with the girl did not occur in the pen, right? It occurred in one of the work groups? I posted that Tanic did not see it, but want to make sure.

The incident with the girl started in one of the work gangs but everyone was returned to the pen before she was questioned. Ilvara wanted everyone to see this, as an example. The svirfneblin girl is still outside of the pen with Ilvara at this moment in time.

The drop was at the dining area, the punishment at the holding pens. Least that's how it reads to me. Oh, whoops, I guess ignore my previous post then from following Talindra on.

Absolutely no hugging allowed! Ilvara has other plans. :) Looks like Tanic got to witness the punishment after all.

Oh shoot, I'd thought the girl was thrown back into the pen. Ignore my post too!

-Posted with Wayfinder

Talindra feels a little bad for the svirfneblin who had inadvertently helped her, but had no desire to receive punishment for intervening while Mistress Ilvara remained present. When the talk turned to "feeding time," she also backs up, having no intention of being near whatever was going to do the feeding. She finds the old kua-toa and whispers. "Psst . . . what does she mean by 'feeding time'?"

Ilvara turns back towards the slave pen, lifting the svirfneblin girl off the ground by the neck.

"What we have here is a liar and a thief! No, not only a liar and a thief, but a clumsy thief. Such a slave is of no use to me. Perhaps she can be of use to Lolth though" she says as she swings the girl so she hangs over the edge of the walkway, the thick webbing beneath her.

"Lolth, I dedicate this life to you!"", the priestess screams as she releases her grip, letting the gnome fall to the webbing below.

The girl sticks to the web upon making contact but after several seconds of struggling manages to disentangle herself and crawl, slowly and painstakingly, towards the edge of the web. An expectant hush falls. Could she make it?

The gnome's struggles however awoke the guardians of the web and 4 enormous spiders emerged from the shadows of the web and began to close in on her, their mandibles clicking as they advanced.

Whispering out loud to his conspirators, Harro shakes his head.

"He wants us ta' jump down there? He musts think we're stupid."

Zaiid could feel his teeth grinding against one another, his hands gripping tightly and threatening to injury to his palms as he watched the sacrifice. He wished he had his weapon. That he could do anything to stop this. His eyes glanced around his pen for anything he could throw to distract the arachnids, doubting he'd find any. In the end, he'd fix the priestess with a fierce glare, murderouys intent behind the gaze.

It didn't take long to find out what "feeding time" meant. She gasped as the svirf was thrown down to the web and realized that down there were likely Terra's parents. She caught Harro's quiet words and said just as quietly, "Unlike her we will have numbers and not all of us will be at a terrible disadvantage." She gave a quiet sigh, "Sadly she won't be so lucky."

I've never seen giant spiders feed before. Just the small ones. This should be informative.

'She really can't mean...' Akri thought as the drow priestess lifted the small woman up. When the svirf was dropped, he couldn't help the gasp that escaped his lips. 'This b***h is mad...' Now his previous thoughts of escape hardened into certainty. He wouldn't allow himself to be disposed of like that.

"Note to self - shove guards down into the web first," whispers the drow. She wondered whether the webbing was flammable. She also considered whether her own knowledge of Lolth might give some useful insight intodealing with the spiders. Knowledge (religion)?: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16.

Looking at the Oread Druid, Harro looks seriously at him.

"You know spiders a'tall? Your'n a Druid right?"

The Oread almost puffs with pride.

"Indeed! I belong to the illustrious order of druids. It is... was... AND WILL BE AGAIN my duty to protect nature in these deep places. Nature in all its beauty and all its, well.."

He terminates his explanation with a jab towards the spiders.

"I wonder if it will be painful. You're paralyzed you know. The venom, depending on the spider, can deaden any pain or experience - or not. It may be a peaceful end, or it may be most terrifying for her. We'll never know, hopefully. Right now your own mind is your worst enemy if you let it. I think Ilvara knows this. She seems like one that enjoys both real and self-inflicted pain."

Covering his face in his large hand, Harro tries to get past his frustration with the talkative druid.

"NO! No. Do you know any weaknesses we could'a exploit? Ways t'void the spiders?
Maybe you cann'a puppet-control them or distract them or somethin'?"

He's asking: Do yo have any special magic or maybe the Verminheart Feat or some some
special skill or advantage with vermin creatures (spiders) at all?

He responds with a smile. "I could summon something to distract them for a little bit. A giant rat thrashing about in the webbing might prove more tempting than us, or at lest lead them away for a few seconds. I'm afraid I'm not a powerful druid, just a dedicated one so there is not much more than that I could do. I'll think about it for a bit"

10d20 ⇒ (1, 11, 10, 18, 2, 11, 6, 3, 15, 3) = 80
5d20 ⇒ (7, 7, 17, 7, 7) = 45

The Spiders converge on the struggling gnome and in a little under a minute and a half it's all over. The bundle of webbing continues twitching for a while, but that too stops after around 45 seconds.

Ilvara watches the spiders intently as they attack before sweeping off back to her quarters without a word when the twitching stops.

A reverent hush falls over the pen only to be broken by Jimjar cursing.

"Nivi's Pips! Off by 5 seconds!"

Talindra pipes up as the duergar and cave druid discuss the spiders. "These spiders that serve Lolth are partially tamed and might be cowed by a sufficiently intimidating drow. Not that I have much experience in such things, but it's an option if things get messy. The webs can be set on fire, though it would be a very dangerous fire. I don't think we want to be standing in it. But it could be a useful distraction and solution to the spiders."

If Talindra were to set the webs on fire, does she think it would spread to the levels above the web outside their cell, or would it just consume the web and hopefully spiders?

The fire would be limited to the webs. The smoke might cause you problems however.

Vinexa watched in horror at the fate of the svirf girl, she also decided that, if she ever got a chance, the Lady Ilvara was as good as dead. She wasn't going to let that b%%&% survive for any longer than she had to. She looked around at her fellow plotters and said quietly, "The b%%$% dies as soon as any of us gets a chance." There was no room to disagree in her tone as the furry of the abyss could be heard behind her words.

Micar watches the spiders movements and tactics intently, We need weapons, and not just some silly pipe.

Micar checks the guards, and what weapons they may have. Also, so any of the guards look like they have a more eastern-looking short sword like the one I would have had before being captured.

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

Micar finds Buppido and whispers, "What do they do with the belongings the confiscate from the prisoners"

She seems to be taking that spider thing pretty personally. Wonder why.

Buppido draws a rough sketch in the dirt of the pen floor and whispers back, gesturing at the sketch as he does so "Weapons are stored above the guard post (Area 10) . Anything fancy could be there but would probably be in the shrine at the top of the Priestess' Tower, here. (Area 6) You'd best hope that Ilvara is not in there though, I reckon she's more than you could handle."

Zaiid felt the same as Vinexa, nodding at her words and promising pain to the murderous priestess. The damn spider queen and her love of murder and chaos had always made the young munavri sick to his stomach. He would return such gruesome horrors without mercy or hesitation. He looked towards the dark gnome with pity once more, quietly apologizing before setting his eyes on the group once more. "Whatever gets in or way in our escape will have to be something we can handle. We've seen just now it'll mean our deaths no matter what."

Talindra observes the map being drawn by Buppido. "The Mistress will probably be busy in the evening with the new Captain of the Guard. Do you know where her chambers are? I say we take her by surprise when she's in the throes of passion." Talindra really wanted to kill that woman, for her own very personal reasons. After all, she had conspired with Lythrana, Talindra's sister, to betray and capture Talindra.

Micar gathers the group that's going to attempt the escape and shares the information Buppido provided. "Well, it seems we have a new plan. First thing we need to do is get weapons here," he points to area 10 on the map. "It seems the more valuable things are here, Area 6 and if things go south, we can always take our chances at the waterfall, bypassing the webs." At the last statement, he points to the spot where the area 10 and area 6 bridges meet.

"I take it you never jumped down a waterfall before, half-breed," Akri said with a snort. "If you don't land juuuust right, you either splatter your guts all over the water or hit a bunch of sharp pointy rocks at the bottom."

Micar sighs, Didn't realize we had an expert waterfall jumper here. "It's true, I've never jumped down a waterfall, but it's my impression the water from the waterfall would erode the bottom of river at the base, making the bottom of the waterfall the deepest point." He then will ask the druid, "Where do you think the best place to jump would be?"

"There's not much call to swim where I come from and I don't think they will be giving lessons. I can doggie paddle but under a waterfall I don't give myself good odds. Any other exits besides drowning? I think we may need to know more about this place first. Who's been here the longest?"

I just read through the entire thread and found no evidence of Tanics original hitpoints. Sigh. Does anyone remember whether we rolled anything for HP?

Original Recruitment post says:

"Health Max for first level. 1/2 +1 for subsequent levels"

Health: Max for first level. 1/2 +1 for subsequent levels

I looked but missed that. Probably because I spent all that time looking though gameplay and got tired. silly me.

OK, So I only get 10 instead of 11 Hit Points.

Talindra is updated!

Warpriest 2 / Swashbuckler 1
+5 HP
+1 Fort
+1 Wis
+1 BAB
+1 Intimidate
+1 Knowledge (nobility)
+1 Perception
+2 Sense Motive
+1 Sleight of Hand
Fervor

Tanic is updated too.

Harro should be ready.

Mostly just more HPs, +1BAB, and a LOT more rounds of Rage.

My 3rd level feat I took was Xtra Rage (+6 rounds!) and my favored class bonus was +1 xtra round of rage as well! With my level bonus of +2 that takes my 11rounds of rage and makes it 20 for the day.

(Harro has a LOT of suppressed issues.)

This way I should never have to worry about having enough rage for quite a while!

Tanic will be memorizing Bull's Strength and is looking forward to casting it on Harro.

Micar will be updated by the end of the weekend (probably sooner).

Whoops, I forgot we get a feat! Talindra wants/needs to change her skill assignments a bit. Let's go for this instead.

Warpriest 2 / Swashbuckler 1
+5 HP
+1 Fort
+1 Wis
+1 BAB
+1 Intimidate
+1 Knowledge (nobility)
+3 Knowledge (planes)
+1 Sleight of Hand
Fervor
Demonic Obedience - Nocticula

All the updated characters look good to me.

Still here, got myself leveled up a while ago. Just been distracted by a variety of things lately.

Micar is leveled up.

He took Slashing Grace (Wakizashi) for his feat.

@EmEss - I'd like us to sell whatever random valuables we have, but I have no idea what they're worth. Do you happen to know? I can roleplay the selling if desired, but I don't really remember what we have. (If anyone else was tracking loot, that's cool too.)

The total value of the accumulated treasure gathered should sell for between 5,000 and 8,000 Gold Pieces. Feel free to roll play this if you want Appraise and Diplomacy or Bluff rolls will determine the exact value they are sold for.

We need to discuss purchases. Please put your preferences here and I'll start putting together a list with prices.

Harro's pretty good, right now. Food and a safe resting place are his only requirements currently.

Wand of Infernal Healing
Cloak of Resistance +1
Pearl of Power (1st)

None of these are essential, though I think the wand at least is well worth it.

Ok...with that kind of Cash?

Wishlist:

Sure a Cloak of Resistance +1 would be cool.
or
Amulet of Natural Armor +1?
or
Ring of Protection +1?

Also...Harro would love to recharge his Ring of the Ram the next chance he can afford to do so.
=)

I think the wand is an essential and a PoP would be great too. Anyone interested in a magic weapon (Harro, Micar, or Talindra)? We have the money for it.

Talindra, remember that Tanic has that corrosive dagger you said you were interested in too. I think, right now, Tanic has a +3 str, +2 BAB with it and you would have a +3 dex, +2 BAB with it so it is still a wash as to who uses it. That is probably going to change as Tanic starts to grow into his wild shape and build up his grappling abilities.

Sure. A +1 Great Axe would be awesome!

We have over 17K so a +1 Great Axe is on the menu! Well, provided we can find one of course.

Besides the wand I'm not sure what else to look for.

Wishlist: Pearl of Power (1st)
Mithril Chain Shirt
Cloak of Resistance +1

Besides the wand I'm not sure what else to look for.

A cloak of resistance is ALWAYS a good idea. A pearl of power or the the runestone thingie is great too. Don't mesmerists have items that add spells or reuse spells? A few scrolls of the right type are a great help, particularly 1st level spells that you hate to memoraize/learn but come in handy under odd situations. Like Comprehend languages, protection from evil/good, monkeyfish, etc.

@Tanic - Keep the dagger until you don't want it. Talindra can use it better now that she has a spring-loaded wrist sheath (solving the problem of how to draw the dagger after firing her crossbows), but she can get by just fine with whatever weapons. Now that she has Fervor, she will mostly be popping Divine Favor and relying on static bonuses for damage.

Suggested purchases...

Micar (Magus/rogue)

Scabbard of vigor, that is a clever choice. I'm good with that.

I figured that it could be used with the rapier now, your dagger after you beef up your rapier, and eventually Tanic can give you the corrosive dagger and use the scabbard for use with his scimitar when he uses it instead of his claws. In other words, its flexible and easily transferable.

Also our battles are typically less than 5 rounds, interspersed/not all concentrated in one day which makes it a good choice for us.

A party wand of cure light wounds would probably be a good idea.

We got the infernal healing wand. You want another heal stick?

I'm off on a cruise starting tomorrow for a week, back Memorial Day. Posting pace will probably slow a little, so please bot me as needed.

-Posted with Wayfinder

I'm off on a cruise starting tomorrow for a week, back Memorial Day. Posting pace will probably slow a little, so please bot me as needed.

Noted. Have fun on your cruise.

Did we buy the stuff yet?

I would like to know before we get involved with another fight!
=)

Yes. You were leaving the market with the stuff when the giant appeared.

Micar follows Harro into battle, drawing his Wakizashi as he moves. He focuses his arcane energy into his weapon and casts Shocking Grasp through his Wakizashi (I'm assuming the Giant is flat-footed to us).

Spellstrike w/ Wakizashi: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
Damage (Electricity + Weapon + Sneak): 2d6 + 1d6 + 5 + 1d6 ⇒ (1, 1) + (5) + 5 + (1) = 13

Confirm Crit: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11
Crit Damage (Electricity+Weapon): 2d6 + 1d6 + 5 ⇒ (5, 4) + (6) + 5 = 20

I'm basically back, at the airport now. Added the Scabbard of Vigor and Pearl of Power to my inventory.

FYI: For those who might be interested, Wayfinder #17 is out! My newest article is found on page 32.

Check it out (Free download): HERE.

Looks good!

Just a bit of advanced warning, I have exams on the 15th and 19th of June so might disappear for a few days around that point.

@Tanic - Way back here, I handed you the Wand of Cure Light Wounds (15 charges remaining). I didn't see it in your listed gear so wanted to make sure you still kept track of that.

Sheet updated.

I'm going to be away from internet access from the 9th to the 16th of August.

Got it! Thanks for the warning.

A bit crushed at work right now. You should feel free to carry on with the game. Sorry. But I'm glad we have a lead!

Talindra waits patiently as this darn derro takes his sweet time falling into their ambush!

Yeah...I hope the GM is OK.

Really sorry guys. Had a massive case at work unexpectedly move up the schedule. Things have been pretty frantic but should ease up a bit by Sunday.

I've had a lot of GMs bumped into slow mode for one reason or other lately. No problems here. I've got plenty of Pathfinder PbP games to keep me busy :)

Yup me too.
=)