While the rest of you discuss who will dimension door past the trap, Sutekh pulls out his burglary tools. Sutekh, forgetting that the door itself is not locked, mistakenly leans against the sturdy wooden door and falls through. The jury-rigged trap triggers. A thin rope attached to the door pulls over a wire rack full of ink bottles right over on to Sutekh.
The multi-colored inks hit Sutekh all at once, some of them breaking as they hit his body.
Meanwhile, the rest of you step through.
This large chamber is crammed with desks and lecterns designed for copying scrolls and manuscripts. Along the north wall, a tall, broad shelf sags with sheaves of parchment, while near the exit to the south, a stack of ceramic ink jugs stands near wall-mounted racks of quills. Two bays of windows on the west wall offer an impressive view of the Lodge's greatest landmark, Skyreach Tower, while the eastern windows overlook the library's main stacks. Its 20-foot-high coffered ceiling bears an elaborate mural with stylized representations of ten long-dead gnome priests of Desna.
In the middle of this room, a very perturbed Kreighton Shaine, looks up from his papers and raises his eyebrow at the broken bottles of ink that have fallen everywhere. "As if the damage already done to my archives wasn't enough..." His tone is dry, acrid and sarcastic. "Since you're here now, and bothering me, I presume that you've found the source of the flooding?"
By his feet, a crocodile yawns.
Shaine's expressive eyebrows lift even further. "Yes, Varisian children's poetry." He hands over the fragment. "Does this have anything to do with the matter at hand?"
eard you word of the sword who's a chef for all fish?
Have you seen how his sea bream can brighten a dish?
Dare you steal of his eel, or rob roe from his pan?
Bid him send you the menu as fast as he can!
But don't duel with the sword for his finest filet,
Or he'll serve you up cold as tomorrow's entree!
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Wadi reaches the top of the stairs and is momentarily nonplussed at the scene before him. Still, ONE thing seemed vastly out of place here.
"Look, Shaine." Wadi says, deliberately leaving off the honorific title. "I know you must have a lot of important wotk to finish here, but may I ask what the crocodile is doing here?"
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Shaine glances at the crocodile.
"Yawning." Shaine stands up and starts pacing, impatiently. "You were supposed to plumb the depths of this problem. Did you, or are you all worse fools than that intern of mine?"
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He groans. Luckely it was not a dangerous trap.
He rolls his eyes at the piece of paper in the man's pocket
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Sutekh, you're right. You probably should have gotten a reflex save...
...but the inktrap still hit. You're a bit multi-colored.
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Oloch grunts and sniffs at the man, staring at him intently, then at the crocodile, and lastly at the rainbow ranger and his pet.
"Wait, wait, wait - what kind of answer is that? "The crocodile is yawning'?" - the half orc's mood is clearly taking a turn on to the sour side - "We are doing what needs to be done to plumb the depths of the problem" - he snorts - "And why the heck are you barricaded in here, with a trap in place that could clearly only have been set from within?" - then takes a step forward - "And such a light hearted trap, isn't it? Almost a joke. What's the use? Because protection it is not" - he presses on.
Shaine steps back from the half-orc sniffing him, and straightens his robes. "Oloch, don't be a drip." He pulls out the torn piece of paper from his belt and stares at it, contemplatively. "As for what I was doing in here, I was seeking answers. These riddles... I dismissed them at first, but Wormell said the flooding started there. I thought that if I could only dive into this riddle, the answer to this mess would float up to the surface."
At the question about Virml, Shaine sighs. Seeing no one near him*, he spider climbs 20 feet straight up the wall...
...and drops his disguise. "A true artist knows when the audience no longer willingly suspends their disbelief. And I thought I was doing so well."
Still holding on to the wall with one hand and a foot, he gives you all a mock bow and activates a silvery cloak.
"So.... What gave me away?
Not arrogant enough for Shaine?
No matter! None shall catch me
If they don't know my name!"
The fox waves his arms, muttering words in sylvan.
The fox smiles. "My dear Oloch, we can't solve riddles together if I'm under attack. Protect me?"
"Crocodile, defend!"
Sutekh, you're up!
Both Sutekh's arrows miss.
The crocodile goes after the only person currently attacking the fox. He double moves through difficult terrain, crushing the chairs in his path. The crobodile provokes an attack of opportunity from Dioneo, to stand right in front of Sutekh.
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Sutekh, I checked Serket's sheet. She's not trained with either the grapple trick or the improved grapple feat. So... you have a choice. You can either push her (Handle Animal DC 25) and take the attack of opportunity from Oloch, or you can retcon your post.
Oloch, you were sniffing Shaine. But you're still on the stairwell!
Everyone else, if you are not on the map, I don't know where you are. After this round is done, I'm going to assume you'll attract an attack of opportunity from the crocodile going into the room.
Please place yourselves on the map to avoid this!
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Everyone but Sutekh is up. Dioneo has an AoO and his regular actions.
In a few hours is fine! I just need a map so that I can be nefarious. It's impossible for me to be a wicked, evil GM without one! :)
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Wadi gives Oloch that magic touch, and Oloch gets a new will save!
Oloch, you're free! Wadi, nicely done! Sutekh, you may give Serket a different order for your retcon if you wish.
Everyone else within ten feet of Oloch gets a bonus on their will saves, a bonus to their AC, and protection from attacks from summoned creatures.
Everyone but Sutekh and Wadi are up. Dioneo has an AoO and his regular actions.
Jan hits the crocodile soundly on the snout. Are you attempting provoke an attack of opportunity?
Everyone but Sutekh, Jan and Wadi are up. Dioneo has an AoO and his regular actions.
The croc takes its attack of opportunity on Jan...
...and snaps at the air instead.
Oloch threatens the Fox with unpleasantness, then hits the crocodile. The crocodile looks scuffed and unhappy.
Archon blesses the party.
Dioneo (AoO and regular action) and Serket (retcon) are up!
Serket successfully grapples the crocodile, who is surely thinking at this moment, "Why me?"
Dioneo casts Murderous Command on the Crocodile.
The crocodile shakes off the spell.
Meanwhile, the Fox blinks as Wadi removes the compulsion on Oloch. "What the HECK did you just cast?" The Fox asks Wadi. "Huh. You're all much cleverer than you look." He gives Wadi a genial and charming smile. "It's too bad we had to meet under these circumstances, because I could have used your help with my troublesome riddle. I really hate to do this, but I don't fancy dodging arrows much, and I can't solve my riddle with a hole in my side."
He waves his hand, muttering words in Sylvan.
You all feel confused.
--> Attack the Party
--> Do 1d8 + Str Modifier Damage to Self
--> Babble Incoherently
--> Act Normally
Sutekh babbles incoherently.
Finding itself in a grapple, the crocodile attempts to maintain the grapple so that it can execute a death roll.
But with all the spells that have flown at it lately, the crocodile is off his game.
Everyone but Sutekh is up.
Jan and Serket, please read your spoiler before posting your action.
Wadi casts slow on the Fox...
...and the Fox is slowed.
Jan attacks Serket and misses!
Oloch, Dioneo, Archon and Serket are up!
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While in the grapple, and being confused, Serket smashes herself while wrestling with the croc
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Dioneo lays a flame curse on the Fox. Serket injures himself.
You both recall the words of Mistress Koi, who said she would not remove all the water from the archives unless you brought the fox back to her alive.
Thinking about what Mistress Koi hinted about the nature of the Fox's prison, you think that if you unite all six parts of the scroll and say the Fox's name out loud, you can put the fox back in his scroll.
Oloch and Archon are up!
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Dioneo sighs in boredom.
"Whyyyyyy? Come on, we can burn the guy, then heal him. No trouble!" seeing that it doesn't satisfy Wadi, he shrugs.
"Well, as you say fire-boy. But I'm not the best there is in this party to sneak into the fox's pants in order to retrieve the remaining scroll fragment."
Oloch slashes at the crocodile with a mighty blow, and cleaves off the crocodile's head.
"No!" The fox cries out. "He was a creature of verse, designed to imprison me, but he was also my friend! What have I done?"
He pulls out the final scroll piece from his belt. "The riddle...it's obsessed me for centuries, and I thought that finding its answer was worth any price. Am I the biggest fool of all?"
Archon is up!
The Fox dismisses the Confusion spell, still holding on to the scroll fragment. "Do I have your solemn word as a gentleman that you will help me solve this?"
The whole party is up!
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"I can only speak for myself, but yes. You do."
Knowing nothing save that which he knew not to know.
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Cross! Cross was the owl at the albatross
For catching the bulk of the fish
So the owl cast deeper, awaking a sleeper
Who made of both feathers one dish.
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As we have heard, the worm’s got by the bird
Who gets up so early a-dawnward,
But what of the bird who, deceased and interred,
Becomes food for the worm worming onward?
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"Unpalatable!” Spat the fat, flesh-fed wyrm
Upon lunching on sons of the judge ;
Then he made of the father a rather fine sauce
Thereby showing he bore him no grudge.
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Gormandelle, the lady gorger
Dined on beans and bones and ordure,
Lost her teeth so took her daughters’,
Then went wading to make water.
When Sir Crocodile attacked,
Used his teeth to bite him back.
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Heard you word of the sword who’s a chef for all fish?
Have you seen how his sea bream can brighten a dish?
Dare you steal of his eel, or rob roe from his pan?
Bid him send you the menu as fast as he can!
But don’t duel with the sword for his finest filet,
Or he’ll serve you up cold as tomorrow’s entree!
The Fox opens his hand, and down to the floor drifts the scroll fragment.
he croco-dee-dile
Cracks open his smile
So the birdies may fly in and nosh
On fish-guts and crumbs
And the bones of their chums
Who last week fluttered in and were lost.
...Who is the last to dine?
"Who is it?" he cries. "Who is the last to dine? I guessed the worm, since worms eat us all when we die. The Fey Riddler cackled, told me I was wrong, trapped me in the Riddle, and NEVER gave me the correct answer!"
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Wadi nods in reply. "Yes, I have noticed that but I am not well versed in riddles to say what that means." He shakes his head in confusion.
After pondering the scroll fragments for a moment he shrugs. "The only thing that even remotely makes sense to me is the Fox himself would be dining last. I mean, never once is the Fox mentioned in the riddles directly." He turns to face the Fox. "What do you think?"