In his best Spongebob Squarepants imitation: I'm ready! I'm ready! I'm readyyyy!
Levinson casts Mage armor on Kepler, and Wormwood, and she casts Barkskin and Extended Shield on all three of them.
"Let's get to work, everyone. This is going to be a long afternoon." the professor said ready to follow Derrik with Staff of Fire in one hand and Rod of Faust in the other.
The feline-imp glowed bright purple for a moment as his form shifted back to that of a tiny purple imp wearing high-society Victorian era garb, a sword-belt containing his knotted twig wand, and a vicious looking tail swishing back and forth in a cat-like manner.
"Always ready for a good fight, Arcanist. Well, unless it gets too heated..."
Derrik breathes heavily in Wormwood's direction twitching ever-so-slightly " It will always be 'heated' when it comes to us.. Imp, But are you not a Devil?.. Fire should be something you are used to. I hope you are of use to your Master there.. a coward will not be helpful at all where we are going. " An strong stare coming from his eye-slit
"Well, my good Knight, I am from Cania, the layer of glorious ice. Heat has never sat well with me. But I shall serve the Lady Arcanist in her endeavors none the less." Wormwood replied drawing his wand and saluting with it as if it were a rapier.
" Well then Noble Devil, you have a long road ahead of you and there will be much to endure.. but maybe when we have defeated the Great Old One and Dashed whatever.. atrocities are in this land you will be rewarded later. I am sure a simple rise in power for an imp will be nothing compared to the power you shall have as one who directly assisted in the defeat of such an threat.. And as long as you stay to your word, I am not a threat to you. " Derrik rings Dawnbringer against his chestplate.
Gather and join hands, my brave Fierce Ones! To the Tower!
Merlin teleports the FOs to the street below the facade of the looming Silver Tower in Sarasota, Florida.
I shall await you here, Fierce Ones. May the gods smile on thine efforts!
It is about 4:30 AM on April 26th. The sky is a dark purple and glitters with stars, and a waning moon hangs low in the west.
The Silver Tower's south facade looms above, and several upper-story windows glow with a baleful, red, flickering light, as of torches or braziers.
The buzzard-picked carcass of the chimera still lies in a stinking, maggot-ridden heap near the front door.... Apparently, tidiness is not a priority to the cultists and their daemonic masters....
Radsworth watches Arthur with the imp and is pleased. Perhaps more of the fabled legend was coming around than he had noticed before. Certainly, his fear of his erstwhile companion had only eased a little, but for now he considered a possible Fall of the Paladin more a terrible improbability rather than a delayed certainty.
He was glad for Korans return as well. Though he wasn't often socializing with the Barbarian, he had known him the longest of all the remaining Fierce Ones.
He takes stock of his remaining spells and items. He had warned the Fierce Ones already of the various elemental resistances, and he still had counter charms ready in case of an ill timed compulsion.
Woooh! Mikey fans the air under his nose and grimaces in disgust....
The door-monster is starting to get RIPE!
Daisy covers her nose with her hand and nods in nauseous agreement with Mikey....
Let's get inside.... Not that it smells much better in there....
Marching order as the FOs explore the Tower?
Derrik looks upon the looming Silver Tower once more, breathing inward and drawing both Dawnbringer and Excalibur two his hands.. Chains attached to both. " I smell it too Mikey, it Reeks of Filth that has been here too long, let us go and rid it of the trash inside.. FORWARD! " Rushing in weapons at his side leaping upon the still decaying dragon-head of the Chimera with a crunch under his mailed boot as Derrik rushes the Doors and seeks to move up the tower.
Koran's up front, probably with MJ and Derrik.
As he walks past Radsworth Koran gives the wizard a slap on the back.
Glad you're not dead.
Daisy stays at the rear of the party, probably between Radsworth and Marcus, which leaves the center rank for Levinson and Kepler....
Into the Silver Tower the FOs venture, weapons and spells readied to bring justice down on Cthulhu's wicked minions....
In the spacious ground floor lobby, they encounter the new "watch-dog"....
A muscular, hairless, red hell hound, as big as a draft horse, rises from its haunches, snarling in a deep, unholy voice.... Frrreshhhh meeeeeat!!
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Yingzen nodded to himself at the task he just completed, hopefully the two people will be the force of Reckoning he envisioned. Now he needs to ready himself for a battle he is better suited for.
time to finish what was started. Let's finish the extermination of evil.
Yingzen is scouting as normal
"Nessian Warhounds? Ugh. Well, at least I'm fireproof now."
Levinson and the gentleman fiend hang back behind the heavy hitters and Kepler joins Derrik and Koran.
"Right you are, Dr. Greer. But... what are the hounds of Asmodeus doing here? The only ones I know of are bound solely to the Lord of the Nine Hells himself..."
Rad nods, pleased that he didn't need to explain the situations oddity himself.
"Either way, this meat is tougher than he is anticipating. Especially if he starts chewing on Koran."
Ooh-ah-ah!
Yingzen!
Mikey Jay!
Marcus!
Kepler!
Daisy!
Levinson!
Radsworth!
War hound!
Wormwood!
TBD: Derrik! Koran!
Eeeeek! Eeeeeek!
After Yingzen:
Mikey Jay grins savagely at the Sword of Sif held out before him and pointing at the great, snarling hound....
Okay, baby, let's spread some carnage....
He charges the war hound of Nessus, brandishing the SoS overhead in a stylish flourish....
Charging powerful overhand chopping Sword of Sif deals slashing plus acid plus cold (+1 due to its vulnerability) plus electricity plus holy damage! A total of 54 damage to the Nessian war hound....
Derrik is not sure what type of beast this hound was, it seemed to be a larger version of the hell hounds he had fought before. Acting in Tandem with MJ, Derrik seems to accelerate slightly faster than normal in his armor; Excalibur surges in his left hand hewing at the hound's legs as MJ came from above
" Stay down.. Vile Cur! "
The wound cutting deep into its ligaments...the back of all four knees
For 57 points of DAMAGE!
YELLLLP!!
Derrik's mighty blow with Excalibur nearly severs the war hound's legs!
YELLLLP!!
A split-second later, MJ's stroke with the SoS slices deeply into its back, laying bare the thoracic vertebrae in an ugly gash!
The monstrous hound staggers, but does not fall....
Koran charges the hound making a wide overhand arc with mjolnir.
Yingzen moves and attacks the beast.
Yingzen moves and attacks the beast.
[Dice=attack]1d20 + 17 [Dice=damage]1d10 + 8 +5d6
Yingzen's rainbow-hued blade sinks into the war hound's shoulder!
YELLLP!!
Then Derrik nearly hacks off its legs!
YEEELLLLLP!!!
Then MJ's spine-baring cut finishes the beast, sending it back to Nessus with a strangled scream of agony!
YEEEELLLLP!!!!
The monstrous hound collapses, dead....
[dice=Initiative]1d20+2
Koran charges the hound making a wide overhand arc with mjolnir.
[dice=Charge PA]1d20+28 [dice=Damage]4d6+1d6+1d6+2d6+29
Koran sees the beast fall under a flurry of blows delivered by Yingzen, Derrik, and MJ, and stays his blow.
I'm assuming that Yingzen scouts the ground floor to ascertain that no other reinforcements inhabit the level; apparently, the great hell hound was the only inhabitant.
The FOs then proceed up the west stairwell, Yingzen stealthily scouting each floor on the way up, but finding the next 9 floors much as the FOs left them last--the reeking carcasses of their fallen foes still lying where they fell, save for a few disturbing evidences of ghoulish feasting....
On the 11th floor, the stairwell opens onto a broad (15-ft-wide) hall running to the north side of the Tower, and a narrower (10-ft-wide) hall running to the east side. Office doors line both halls. Here, the unearthly, slightly nauseating vibration or humming becomes perceptible to the adventurers, growing notably stronger as they exit the stairwell at the junction of the two halls....
Mikey Jay thrusts the brightly-glowing Sword of Sif out before him to dispel the gloom of the lightless halls, eyes wide and searching for signs of the barbed devils' presence....
Excalibur lets fly a spray of blood that ignites upon contact with the air as the creature is sent back. flicking the Fiend-blood off with a simple wrist movement, he looks towards his allies and nods " This creature provided as much security as the one before... None at all.. Let's continue on.. We have much greater 'Dogs' to put down. " heading up the stairs without even being slowed by the previous beast.
Koran walks next to Mikey, hammer ready to strike. What did you find here before?
Derrik takes in his surroundings, senses razor-sharp from from the previous slaying, expecting a strike from everywhere. Derrik simply looks up to the Giant " Devil's.. Barbed.. ", as he walks down to the 15 ft wide hallway trying to find the source of the sound.
Radsworth stares at Arthur incredulously.
"Was.. that a joke, Arthur? Or a one liner?"
Though mostly to himself, he was certain Arthur would hear the rhetorical question. The mans hearing was absolute.
As they move through the tower he decides now is as good a time as any to prepare a protective ward. Thankfully, Chesterfield had helped him focus on the blocky, stuttering magic that was Anjuration.
He holds the magic of the spell in one hand and grips Traveler with the other.
"This will help a little, when the fighting begins again. It wont last long split between this many of us. I have another prepared in case we find the Devils again."
He then
First, the subject gains a +2 deflection bonus to AC and a +2 resistance bonus on saves. Both these bonuses apply against attacks made or effects created by evil creatures.
Second, the subject immediately receives another saving throw (if one was allowed to begin with) against any spells or effects that possess or exercise mental control over the creature (including enchantment [charm] effects and enchantment [compulsion] effects, such as charm person, command, and dominate person. This saving throw is made with a +2 morale bonus, using the same DC as the original effect. If successful, such effects are suppressed for the duration of this spell. The effects resume when the duration of this spell expires. While under the effects of this spell, the target is immune to any new attempts to possess or exercise mental control over the target. This spell does not expel a controlling life force (such as a ghost or spellcaster using magic jar), but it does prevent them from controlling the target. This second effect only functions against spells and effects created by evil creatures or objects, subject to GM discretion.
Third, the spell prevents bodily contact by evil summoned creatures. This causes the natural weapon attacks of such creatures to fail and the creatures to recoil if such attacks require touching the warded creature. Summoned creatures that are not evil are immune to this effect. The protection against contact by summoned creatures ends if the warded creature makes an attack against or tries to force the barrier against the blocked creature. Spell resistance can allow a creature to overcome this protection and touch the warded creature.
the spell to those recieving it.
Koran walks next to Mikey, hammer ready to strike. What did you find here before?
What Derrik said.... Barbed devils.... Nasty-looking, and Professor Marcus here told us that one would be challenging enough....but we bumped into six of 'em....
Derrik takes in his surroundings, senses razor-sharp from from the previous slaying, expecting a strike from everywhere. Derrik simply looks up to the Giant " Devil's.. Barbed.. ", as he walks down to the 15 ft wide hallway trying to find the source of the sound.
[dice=Perception]1d20+22
The source of the sickening vibration, which sometimes takes on the character of indistinct chanting in deep, subhuman tones, seems to be coming from the center of this floor....
Four doors on the east side of the northbound 15-ft-wide hall could lead to the source....
The imp jabs his wand through the air a few times imitating a fencer in pose and gesture.
"Good show, Sir Knight! Granted, I didn't have any chance of my own to show the fiend what's what. But you know what they say, 'save the best for last' and what not," ringed the bright vaguely-British baritone.
An audible chuckle comes from the man-in-steel in response to Rad's hushed inquiry and Wormwood's faux-galliantry " Well then, Noble Devil your time is at hand.. I believe there may be some of your brethren behind this barrier.. which I intend to breach.. " Derrik rushing and placing a boot to the left-most center door, opening it Devil May Cry Dante style.
Yingzen keeps to the shadows ever alert as they travel.
Koran run's up by Derrik readying his hammer.
"Hopefully those particular devils won't be here again. I love a challenge and all that but have no desire to be impaled, thank you."
"Something still isn't sitting right. Why are there agents of Asmodeus in the tower along with those of Cthulhu? Wormy, I think we should take a breather and commune with The Boss Man on this one."
Levinson and her familiar lag behind the others as the imp tries to reach out and get answers from Mephistopheles.
Rad stops and watches Naomi in a bit of a quandary. Arthur is kicking doors in and Levinson is in the middle of a communion!
Inside the office room Derrik has opened with armored boot stands a diabolical enigma--a barbed devil!
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