"Hmmm."
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Yndra isn't too concerned about the flowers. "That's some nasty-looking wounds on these skeletons. Acid, if I don't miss my mark. Now, these statues seem interesting. Dwarven, obviously. Could this have been an old dwarven settlement or fortress? So deep in the jungle? Even the flora seems to recognize that this is an important site. We haven't seen this many colourfull plants and flowers yet, have we?"
Majal recognizes the flowers just before Esmirelda goes to try and taste one.
DC 15 Knowledge (nature) check identifies the flowers as heart-eater blossoms, a breed of inanimate carnivorous plants that feed on the blood and marrow of cadavers. These flowers are typically found in northern Avistan and were most prominent in the lost nation of Sarkoris.
While she is looking at the flowers, Jakata spies a different set of plants further away.
"Um M'lady, those plants are called Xtabays. They eat the flesh off your bones."
In addition to the skill checks above, PCs may attempt a DC 12 Knowledge (nature) check to recognize two growths of unusual flowers as aggressive carnivorous plants known as xtabays.
Both seem to be creeping ever closer to the human in the center of the clearing, which Yndra noticed is not yet a skeleton and is barely breathing.
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"Well they like the taste of sweet flesh." She grabs Esmeralda by her tail and pulls her violently back. "I have seen them in Varisia a few times, one day a horse of ours died during the night and when we woke up these flowers were all over it." Majal says and regards Graxzos with confusion.
"Well, they are only eating, aren't they? Who cares about those corpses anyway. As long as they stay away from us, all is well."
The goat hops away, startled by the sudden pull. She doesn't protest though and just goes about gobbling up some of the more mundane flowers that grow apart of the dangerous ones.
Jakata
Jakob
As Sapper ponders the distance to the hungry flowers, Majal notices movement from overhead of the party in the canopy of the trees.
==Round 1==
20-Majal <====
18-Flying thing
17-Sapper
16-Yndra
15-Thaia
14-Graxzos
11-Esmerelda
9-Xtabays
The flying thing looks like a large green leaf with eyes and a thin tail.
The green leafy flying creature seems to ignore the Majal hex as it swoops down and tries to sting Yndra.
as fast as it flies down, it flies off in another direction after missing the dwarf.
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Yndra springs into action, surprisingly lively despite her age. "I see him, Sapper. Let's go, and see if we can save him." She hustles to the figure, headless of the danger until she's attack by the leaf-like creature. "Aargh! What the ... Grax, Thaia, cover me." The dwarven woman pushes on, as quick as her legs and quarterstaff will take her.
Thaia fires her musket at the flowering plant closest the body. The plant is shredded in the blast.
Yndra advances towards the destroyed plant and the body, with wand in hand. However, heavy pollen appears to be forming a cloud around the plant.
Sapper moves up as well, but not close enough for the pollen to reach him.
Graxzos moves under the green flying creature and shoots with his pistol, scoring a hit, but not enough to knock it down.
Majal studies the flying creature and recalls a bit about them
This creature, known as a Leafray, looks like a broad leaf with whiskers like a catfish and a dangerous stinger trailing behind it. Special Attacks poison tail, seeds, flyby attack
The other moving flowering plant, advances 10' closer to the body and party.
The green leaf-ray circles around and swoops down on Graxzos, trying to sting the dwarf with the spiked tail before returning back to its altitude.
for and DC14 FORT vs poison
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Yndra hurries over, glad to hear gunshots behind her to take care of the attacking plant-like creatures.
Yndra stifles a yawn, but rushes onwards. She kneels next to the wounded figure and jabs the healing wand on his leg.
While watching the healing magics work, she looks more closely at the figure.
Yndra pushes forward and yawns fiercely. With eyes rolling in her head, she looks at Sapper. "I don't feel so well. I think... "
She then falls headfirst on the floor, the healing wand dropping from her hand.
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Yndra manages to fight off a yawn and presses forward to heal the barely breathing miner laying before her. She stirs. "What? Who...who are you? Where am I?"
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"Ow!" Graxzos bellows as the leafray just barely manages to sting him above the collar of his armor. "Oh, you get back 'ere, yeh bastard...I'm gonna introduce yeh to a world o' hurt!"
He rapidly tips another bullet and black powder into the muzzle of his pistol, drops his goggles down over his eyes, and steps under the spot he saw the leafray vanish up toward the trees, hunting for a sight of it.
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"Don't worry, we'll get to that in a moment. We just have to deal with some local wildlife," she soothes the man.
"How is it coming?" she yells over her shoulder. "Is it dead yet, whatever it is?"
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Graxzos feels the toxin running into his veins, numbing his reflexes.
Thaia moves and reloads her musket.
Sapper runs under the leafray and throws a bomb up at the flying creature.
However, he misses and the bomb flies past, and starts coming back down, landing near the party...him actually (see map).
Majal draws her crossbow and actually sinks a bolt into the flying leaf.
The slow moving flower crawls 5' closer to the revived miner and Yndra, releasing more of the soporific pollen.
The flying leaf circles around again and takes another wipe at Thaia this time.
for and fort save
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Yndra feels her eyes grow heavy again. "Hold on, folks. I think there might be... "
"... something here that makes us sleepy, " Yndra says as she pinches herself to stay awake. "Stay back."
She then grabs the axe from her belt and launches an overhead strike at the plant.
"Zzz..."
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Yndra falls asleep as the plant approaches. Only to be awaken as the plant is blown to bits by Thaia's shotgun blast.
Graxzos just misses the creature flying overhead, causing a small scratch but not the full impact he hoped.
Majal moves up to the sleeping dwarf.
The leafray, although injured, seems strangely attracked to the movement of the old woman. It swoops down for a tail attack then back up to the 20' branches.
for and FORT vs poison if hits
Graxzos moves into position with his axe while Thaia reloads.
The leafray flies down once more, but this time the axe is ready and cuts it down.
Yndra awakens at Majal and Esmarelda's nudging.
The miner weakly thanks you.
"Thank you so much. I...I do not know what happened. I was captive with a dozen others from my group. I am not sure where those kobolds took them or why I fell asleep here.
She continues...
I don’t know what the kobolds want with them, only that the captors were endeavoring to keep as many alive as possible. Can you help them?"
Even if healed completely, the miner refuses to brave the journey back to the Bandu Hills alone, yet she’s unwilling to venture on to fight the kobolds.
"I will be right there hiding until you get back. Good luck.
She slowly walks to the top of the valley ridge, where she says she’ll await your return.
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Majal whacks the sleeping dwarf harmlessly on the shoulder with her walking stick.
"Wake up, sleepyhead! Monsters don't kill themselves, you know?" she says with a grin and stumbles suddenly backwards when her old-woman instincts tingle - just in time to evate the flying plant.
"Blasted thing!" she shouts and tries to hit it with her walking stick, but the axe was faster.
Once the battle is over, she also slowly walks towards the injured woman and pats her gently on her face with a snicker, mending many of her wounds in the process.
"Don't worry. We'll get them if they are still alive. And as you said yourself - the kobolds seemed not bent on killen!"
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"Huh, whu-, what?" says Yndra disoriented when she's awakened. "I did not doze off," she continues defensively, disregarding the obvious facts. "Now, let's see about this miner."
--
"Hmm, that's interesting. I've never heard of kobolds taking captives before. What would they want them for? Offerings? Slave labor? Still, it would help if they're not immediately hostile. Maybe we can talk with them. First." Yndra's look makes it obvious what should come after the talking.
"Well, it seems silly to stay out here alone, but she seems adamant. Shall we continue? " The dwarven woman puts her ace back on her belt and picks up her quarterstaff. "Well done on the shooting by the way," she says, to Grax and Sapper in particular.
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After leaving the woman, you continue onward in pursuit of the kobolds and the other captive miners.
A deep ravine divides the valley here, bridged only by an ancient and crumbling span of stone reinforced by haphazard wooden reinforcements. A pair of ancient dwarven statues flanks either side of the bridge, each in considerable disrepair. An ancient stone building partly consumed by the jungle is visible across the ravine.