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Rellen's swing meets only the empty space. Desperate, he flings another scabbard, but to no avail. The goblin reappears as it intends to headbutt Choamski this time. However his offensive move is a chaotic and reckless one, and he misses completely.
Chasik is able to use this opportunity to strike the goblin right before he goes invisible again.
Initiative - round 3
Choamski <
Kort (D) <
Floggentop
Rellen (7 dmg) <
Chasik <
S (?? dmg)
Knorrin <
Everyone can act!
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Chasik administrates a well-aimed blow on the goblin before it disappears, and the dance with the invisible foe resumes... The valiant Pathfinders just have time to catch glimpse of all three liquids contained in the goblin's "head vials" bubbling intensely. It even seems that the purple liquid is slowly draining, as there appears to be less and less of it every time he disappears. Even stranger, the goblin's wounds seem to close progressively.
As expected, the goblin reappears next to Choamski, attempting to strike the gnome with his small fists this time. He lands a lucky blow on Choamski's brow, making the linguist bleed abundantly.
Before the alchemical goblin can turn invisible again, Rellen strikes with his two-handed blade, delving deep in the creature's flesh. As strange as it may seem, it doesn't die, and his wounds continue to close.
Initiative - round 3
Choamski (10 damage)
Kort (D)
Floggentop
Rellen
Chasik (R)
S (?? dmg)
Knorrin (R)
Chasik can act! (Readied attack)
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With one last blow shattering the vials on his head, the goblin seem befuddled for a moment, then collapses on the ground, lifeless.
Searching the room will yield little more than what the greenskin had: a magical axe, some rags and three alchemist's fires. Behind the table on the dais is a bucket filled with rotten viscera from previous experiments, among which the Pathfinders will find a magical feather covered in goblin bile and ooze.
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Man, that was one tough little bugger, as he finishes it off with one decisive blow .
He looks around to the others, Everyone okay, that fight was an annoying if not difficult one. Wizzy, do you want to use the battleaxe, if not then we should at least take to to prevent anyone else using it
After everyone is healed, and ready, Chasik, will look back towards Kort and head back down the hallway, Should we check out the passageway back where those statues were?
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Knorrin begins his standard routine of finding a good position in the room and casting Detect Magic, scanning until he has determined all of the magical items or sources in the room, if any.
Then he will pray for Guidance before each - and thanking Sarenrae for their continued victory - and then examines the 'feather' and the axe.
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The southern part opens into a large gallery. Opposite a bench in the center of this room are a pair of stone statues set into alcoves, each one looking like a vaguely humanoid collection of gears and blocks. These statues appear to be mostly intact. Each of these statues has a hole in its chest, roughly the size of an apple. It is obvious that the power crystal you obtained earlier would fit into those cavities. Moreover, Kort recognizes writings in Draconic indicating that the construct should be given orders in Draconic.
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Activating one of the statues is not a problem for the Pathfinders. The opening is exactly the same as the cavity which you extracted the power source from. The power crystal fits perfectly, and moments later the statue animates. A strange sound emanates from the stone lips.
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Following Choamski's orders, the statue moves slowly but steadily to the room at the end of the western corridor. It looks as if some years ago something broke loose and tore apart this ancient workshop before ripping a hole in the eastern wall. Broken tools and implements appear to have pulled from the ruined remnants of this chamber and sorted into various piles.
There, another similar statue awaits, and immediately attacks the recently reanimated construct. They seem of equal strength, and would have destroyed one another if you hadn't intervened to tip the odds in favor of "your" statue. The losing state lies broken on the stony ground, its own power crystal destroyed. No doubt that with the help of the statue, the remaining denizens of this level will soon perish as well.
A thorough search in this room will uncover many cogs, gears and tools tht may be worth selling, but you estimate their weight to be about 500 pounds.
The south wall of this chamber contains a large iron door with a particularly complicated lock. Unsurprisingly, the iron key you found in Kernar Half-Face's pouches fits the lock perfectly. It opens into a flight of winding stairs leading to the lower level of this dungeon.
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In all the searching and poking, Kort is particularly keen to find the homonculus/imp familiar thing. Kort also gains a keen appreciation of the benefits of having an iron golem break path in a heavily trapped environment.
'Might have to get me one of those, full time. Maybe something a bit more portable... pocket sized even.'
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Rellen scowls as the group emerge from Thornkeep, and growls, "I am slipping, letting my pain and rage get in my way make me clumsy." Glowering at nothing in particular he adds,
"Got to learn to use it, not let it blunt me." He nods, straightens his back and begins striding towards the forest, "I'll be back in a few days, going to go introduce myself to this Darioth Wolfsmane see if he's worth spit. Maybe I'll learn something, maybe he will. When I return we'll update the Goldenfire lot and head back in... Assuming nobody disagrees."
Rellen then walks into Wolfsmane camp and squares up to the first warrior he sees, "You, I heard you lot can fight. I've heard you can fight with your rage, and if you can prove it I'm hear to learn. I've got enough fury, and if your lacking I can help you out there to. So who do I have to fight to see Darioth Wolfsmane and earn the right to train with you barbarian goat f$*$ers?"
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Knorrin, too, looks for the homunculus, but figures that it slipped by sometime and escaped. "I believe it would have been better off dead than severed from its master and insane. But, that mercy may be denied it."
Knorrin finally emerges for the last time after having carefully measured and described all of the finds, corralling all (well, most) into the task, much to the mutual pleasure of some and annoyance of others. Worse, he whistles merrily as he works.
Reentering the sunlit world, he thinks about how places, like people and creatures, can be turned to evil but then, with work and words or swords, be turned back to good and redeemed. As he helps pile the corpses of the twisted human alchemist and his goblin accomplices and victims all into the same burn pile, he wishes, Would that it was more with words than swords.
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As for the homunculus, he seems to have disappeared from the complex entirely. Whether he plays a game of hide-and-seek with you or he is gone for good, you can't say for sure.
Miss Starcloak of the Goldenfire Order is amazed by your progress and your findings. She rewards you handsomely for your valuable information, and requests that you lead a small expedition down there to recover the alchemical equipment you don't need for the Order. She seems overjoyed at what looks like a promising collaboration.