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The hallway illusion fades out of existence, restoring the normal hallway. Henrik continues to concentrate on the second illusion, though, and moves the ghostly lizardman forward, as if to attack. He even makes the image perform a somewhat-clumsy attack, as if it had taken a swing at green trog and missed.
Henrikuaxian: Keeping a steady focus, the illusion chases the trogs.
Dax: Dax uses the important pathfinder lesson: Focus fire.
Troggies: Green appears to go a shade lighter gray from fright and swings at the illusion while screaming something in a pretty illegible dialect of draconic.
Red looks doubfull, but dashes forward, making a beeline for Kaa
But it has no chance with Kaa's new protection working.
Seeing red make it, blue dashes forward too, trying to get a hit on Kaa.
But it also misses.
Round 4
Henrikuaxian
Troglodytes
Ranalus
Kaa
Aarion
Dax
Bold may post an action.
Ranalus: another miss.
Aarion: miss.
Dax: hit!
Kaa: hit!
Round 5
Henrikuaxian
Troglodytes
Ranalus
Kaa
Aarion
Dax
Henrik can post
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Henrik causes the image of the ghost lizardman to fade to transparency, appearing to turn down the hall towards the combat, before ceasing concentration and allowing the spell to lapse. He then moves forward about halfway down the hall.
"Oh, that smell is foul!" he exclaims, feeling rather queasy at the awful stench. He then casts another spell, gesturing behind the trogs in the hall. A sound issues forth from the square directly behind blue, and it sounds like a lizardman, with rattling chains, making a battlecry directly behind the trogs.
Henrikuaxian: the trog stench makes you want to throw up your breakfast
Troglodytes:
The trogglodytes look mightily concerned about the now "Invisible" ghost.
But what you cant see you cant attack.
Round 6
Henrikuaxian
Troglodytes blue 29 damage, red 22 damage
Ranalus
Kaa
Aarion
Dax
Ranalus, Kaa, Aarion and Dax, can post.
Aarion: Luck with the bow still eludes Aarion.
Kaa: Kaa strikes the red troglodyte hard, and it crumbles before him.
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"These simply choose to not die... we must make them reconsider." Dax grows a bit weary at the channeling of energy over all this time. There is a lot going on, and it's rather exhausting. Once more focusing the elemental energies of water and ice, the gnome blasts the blue troglodyte again, hoping it will drop the creature.
Ranalus: just manages to slip past the blue troglodytes defenses. The stab wound proves too much, and it falls down on the floor.
Dax hurtles another blast of ice trough the room. Its too much for green, and it collapses on the table.
We are out of initiative.
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Ranalus sheathes his rapier and retrieves his bow.
He uses a charge from his wand on himself (now has 23 charges left), with a whispered Darkness embrace.
He smiles a bit at one of the gnomes. Shadowy portals and wrathful apparitions? You have style, Henrik.
Then he takes a look around the room (taking 10 for a 25).
The small alcoves in the hallways hold human slaves. If you look inside, they shield their eyes from the light and shy away from the door.
The room itself holds two large barrels which hold food. Simple greens that dont need preparation.
Both tables have straps that can be used to tie someone down. The walls hold tools. Weather for torture of simple care is unclear. The tools are clean however.
The statues depict serpentfolk in threatening poses.
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Ranalus searches the barrels, the statues, the tool racks, and the troglodyte corpses.
To the slaves:
Can you understand me? Can you tell me about your captors? Have they a leader? He indicates the morningstars and javelins, Do you wish to take up arms against these monsters? Or can you make it home?
Sadly, he does not speak Azlanti. His overall tone is gentler than might be expected, as he has a great deal of sympathy for outcasts, exiles, and prisoners.
When opening a door, the slaves shy away from you. They are clearly frightened and dont seem to recognise what you are. They babble in what Henrikuaxian recognises as a thick accented version of Draconic.
Down the hall, there are more slave pens.
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"I agree, we should help them. They are speaking a very heavily accented version of Draconic. I can try talking to them."
Henrik begins trying to talk to one of the slaves in Draconic.
In draconic: "It's ok, we are here to help. You can go free now. Can you tell us anything about the lizardfolk keeping you here? Where are you from? How long have you been here?"
You think you could get some usefull information out of them if you can calm them down. Speaking the language helps, but you think you need a little bit more.
Ranalus, while not speaking the language, has other strong points. These people dont look too well cared for. Perhaps giving some aid would help them see you more positive.
Kaa's presence scares the slaves, and he takes a step back to let the others do the work.
With gentle movements and tending, the group of slaves slowly calms down, and once their trust is won, they slowly begin answering questions. They dont all have answers, but together the group paints a disturbing picture:
A specialized caste of serpentfolk focus on training and breaking mammalian servants with the aid of their favored thralls: a client tribe of troglodytes know as the Aggrieved Fallows.
These troglodytes handle the disgusting work of cleaning, tending, and disciplining the other captives.
Much the of the work of breaking human wills is left to serpentfolk enchanters, who warp their charges’ minds for month using enchantments,
illusions, and venom, until their humans have no single reality to cling to save for what their reptilian masters dictate to be true.
Sadly, being out of your own time, there is not much more for you to do then give these beings temporal reprieve. But the knowledge you gathered here about the way the serpentfolk bend minds, might provide aid in the future, when pathfinders might need to be cured of mental afflictions.
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The Pathfinders have worked their way through the Temple Interior, and have discovered that the serpentfolk are performing some kind of ritual in a basement level called the Ophidian Rectory. Perhaps if you rush there you can learn all about the serpentfolk's ancient sacrificial techniques.
…
Oh, also potential save some people. That could be important too.
Going upward, the corridors become more and more elaborately decorated and better maintained. At certain points you see signs that other pathfinders have passed. There are several ways up to the plaza, and you pick one at random.
Wide flagstones cover the plaza leading to a stepped pyramid. Larger-than-life statues of serpentfolk and snakes line the plaza, alongside pictograph-covered pillars and small cages filled with all manner of furry, chattering creatures.
Various libraries, restaurants, and warming parlors line the plaza, where merchants sold clothing, servants, and magic during daylight hours. With their sudden, clearly magical teleportation through time, however, most of the district’s serpentfolk civilians have taken refuge inside, and the Ydersian clergy activated the temple’s defenses.
Blinking against the suddenly harsh daylight, you dont notice the statues in the plaza animating untill they step of their pedestal.
Round 1
Initiative
Kaa
Henrikuaxian
Ranalus
Dax
Aarion
Statues
Everyone can post.
Knowledge arcana to identify
You identify these statues as Graven Guardians.
Graven guardians are human-sized constructs of clay, stone, wood, or similar materials, crafted and painted to resemble a deity or a deity's favored servants. When not in motion, a graven guardian appears identical to a temple or crypt's statue, but while active, graven guardians look extremely lifelike.
Graven guardians are inexorably tied to a specific deity's faith. While unintelligent and thus lacking any real personality, a graven guardian has the ability to recognize fellow worshipers or minions of its deity and does not treat them as enemies unless they first attack. This recognition does not extend so far as to allow these worshipers (or those cunningly disguised as worshipers) to give a graven guardian new orders. As with all constructs, a graven guardian follows only the orders of its creator.
They are constructs, and subject to the construct rules:
Constructs are immune to death effects, disease, mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects), necromancy effects, paralysis, poison, sleep, stun, and any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects, or is harmless). Constructs are not subject to nonlethal damage, ability damage, ability drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or energy drain. Constructs are not at risk of death from massive damage.
Your illusions wont have a lot of effect.
Also, being an object, they have hardness, in this case DR5/Adamantine
Being tuned to an evil god (ydersius), it attacks will do Evil typed damage to good aligned creatures.