Ree and Razdin fail to damage the creature who is slowly being surrounded by the group.
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Jogun takes stock of the situation as he finishes climbing down the rope. He knows exactly what to do before his boots touch the floor. As Jogun moves round his companions to get a clear shot he carefully swings his musket around from his back and takes aim. With a slow squeeze of the trigger Jogun's musket launches a bullet towards the target.
Eventually the group surrounds the last foe and Jogun finishes it off with a well placed blast.
Feeling they have no time to congratulate themselves on winning a tough fight the group decides to press on and look around.
The floating Vault is nearly a half-mile wide with defenses established in every direction. An adamantine shell encloses the structure; however this has been ruptured, and strands of the sky metal practically bleed from the holes in a vain attempt to repair the damage and reseal the area completely. The ground bulges all about, and chunks of earth and metal explode periodically as blasts of air billow out from within, driven by an unseen force.
The floating rock you are on is slowly approaching the adamantine shell, and will crash into it in a matter of seconds! You need to get to safety!
One roll: Knowledge (engineering), Perception, or Survival
One roll: Acrobatics or Climb check or a Reflex Save
One roll: Knowledge (dungeoneering) or Survival checks.
Each attempt (entire party) represents 5 minutes of navigation.
One roll: Knowledge (dungeoneering) or Survival checks.
Each attempt (entire party) represents 5 minutes of navigation.
One roll: Knowledge (dungeoneering) or Survival checks.
Each attempt (entire party) represents 5 minutes of navigation.
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Jogun takes a second to see where everything is flying. Taking a deep breather he sees an opening. Jogun then dashes into the tunnel with a lot more speed and grace that you were expecting from someone of his size and stature. Once Jogun gets into the tunnels he points out a track here and there but allows someone else to take the lead.
Looks like the old legs work when they need to.
The party preps and studies where best to exit their floating rock. The two musket-ers point towards the same point on the floating rock "If we stand just there we should have an easy time getting into that adamantine sphere!" they conclude.
Kaya is the first to jump, followed by Jogun and Razdin. Huck is next and also easily makes the jump. Ree is hesitating and Fentar urges her to move quick as the floating rock is about to connect with the adamantine sphere. Finally she makes the jump, but the best moment has passed. The others have already moved a bit inside and Fentar jumps safely but is pelted with debris coming from their floating rock.
Again the team take a bit of time to prepare. Razdin and Huck take the lead, moving the team expertly through the winding tunnels. After what seems like an eternity the team makes it out of the tunnels.
A heavily worn set of stairs leads from claustrophobic tunnels into an eroded cavern studded with sand-scoured crystals that emit cool, faint light. The jagged foundations are all that’s left of metal walls—the fragments of which now jut from the wall like throwing knives. An immense, intricate, thousand-sided polyhedron made of sky metals floats within a tight series of binding circles. As blasts of air erupt from the polyhedron, the surface’s shattered facets regenerate before being blasted apart on another side.
The polyhydron hovers within a series of concentric arcane circles, each a rune-carved solid ring of gemstone; red ruby, white diamond, green emerald, blue sapphire and purple amethyst.
The polyhdron must be the inner prison that holds the captive entity! Now you 'just' need to find a way to open it...
Identify the outer ring: Knowledge (Arcana) or Knowledge (Planes)
Damage the outer ring: Weapon / Spell damage or Disable Device
Solve one of the many facets of the polyhydron: Average Appraise, Disable Device, Intelligence, Knowledge (any), Linguistics, or Perception, Wisdom or Use Magic Device
Something else: cast a spell, do whatever you want, as long as it takes no more than 1 round
Round 1
Fentar
Huck
Jogun
Kaya
Razdin
Ree
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Jogun isn't much help at identifying the materials involved. When it comes time to damaging the outer ring his musket doesn't care what it is pointed at. With the puzzles Jogun isn't particularly good at solving anything but he is excellent at spotting hidden clues and extra details.
"Have you seen the symbol just to the top right?"
The group comes together and believe they figured the rings out and some started trying to affect the rings. The five gem circles around the orb provide numerous external defenses that should ward off intruders. These respective effects cease when they would be destroyed, some in the group also believe the warding circles make the other circles more sturdy and will also regenerate any damaged gems in the other circles.
The main effects of each circle are:
Red Ruby (Distortion): This circle increases the difficulty of all your checks to solve the massive polyhydron.
White Diamond (Earth): This circle empowers any guardian creatures
Green Emerald (Fear): This circle instills the fear of being buried alive
in those who attempt to solve the puzzle orb
Blue Sapphire and Purple Amethyst (Warding): Each of these two circles protects the other three circles, but not the other warding circle.
Round 1
Fentar- ID'd
Huck- Perception
Jogun- ID'd
Kaya ID'd
Razdin Disable Device
Ree- damaged outer ring
Round 2
Fentar
Huck
Jogun Damaged outer ring
Kaya Disable
Razdin
Ree
Sorrina Westyr’s image appears, her hair windblown and a look of wonder on her face. “The Society's discoveries have weakened the prison of the powerful being sealed within Aucturn's Tear,” she pauses, studying a flotilla of crystal balls that hover around her. “Our divinations indicate that it’s now offering a fraction of its power to our forces!”
Behind Sorrina, a small army of Pathfinder mages are studying the floating globes. Then one of them whispers in Drandle Dreng’s ear. Abruptly, Drandle hurries to the forefront, his shaggy head appearing in the center of the Divination window. "ACG Warriors, make a run for it!" Hands gesticulating wildly, he shouts, “NOW!”
Round 2
Fentar Damaged outer ring
Huck Damaged outer ring
Jogun Damaged outer ring
Kaya Disable
Razdin Disable
Ree Damaged outer ring
Your work on the puzzle and rings also seems to have alerted Ayrzul's forces. From the walls emerge two rough-hewn creatures made of very hard-looking rock, with humanoid bodies but heads like a vicious dinosaur. They roar, a sound like millstones, and move to attack the intruders. You turn to meet the threat, the work on the polyhydron or the circles can wait after you have dealt with the threat.
Round 3
Ree, Razdin, Huck
Foes
Jogun, Fentar, Kaya
Fentar shouts to the others "I believe these are Celedons! Constructs shaped to favor their diety! These look like dinosaurs which I remember as Ayrzul’s sacred animal! They also have a stunning attack and bardic-like performance abilities!"
Razdin charges in and deals a nasty blow to his target as both blades hit...
During combat, a PC adjacent to the puzzle orb can attempt
an Average Diplomacy check, Average Spellcraft check, or
Easy Use Magic Device check to direct the Duke of Thunder’s
wrath. If successful, a PC can cast one of the following spells
as a spell-like ability, using her character level as her caster
level and either her own Charisma or 20 to determine the
spell’s save DC. She can use any of the spells listed in her
own subtier or in a lower subtier. This ability can only be
used once per combat, and any summoned elemental
disappears at the end of the combat.
Subtier 1–2: cure light wounds, shocking grasp, summon
nature’s ally II (air elemental only)
Ree strikes the red foe as Huck moves and fiddles around with his boomstick.
The dino-foes attack the team members to their front...
... MISS
... MISS
Round 3
Jogun, Fentar, Kaya
Round 4
Ree, Razdin, Huck
Foes
Jogun, Fentar, Kaya
Even as the many-faceted prison spins and reconfigures itself, it cannot keep pace with the combined efforts of the Pathfinder Society. A refreshing breeze pours from the immense orb, restoring the agents' will to fight.
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Kaya moves the long way around, easing behind Jogun and nearly brushing against the rings as she moves to help flank the enemy Razdin has chosen to take on. Once she's in position, she attacks with her rapier.
It, uh... It doesn't go so well. "Stay on the rings!" she calls out before grumbling to herself, "Hopefully I can hit this stupid thing." It's not exactly the best way to handle the situation, but she was darned if this weird dinosaur thing was going to win a fight against her - she was a beast too, goshdarnit! A cool, pretty one even!
Razdin manages to strike down the blue tinted foe as it crumples to dust after losing control of its structure...
Jogun manages to shoot and hit the red foe as Ree misses with her attack...
... but parries the red foes attack and strikes back with an accurate thrust chipping away parts of the reds structure...
Round 4
Ree, Razdin, Huck
Foe (-17)
Jogun, Fentar, Kaya
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the Untouchable Opal, and Ranginori unleashes a refreshing
breeze that restores the Pathfinders’ fighting spirits. Each PC
heals 1d8+APL hit points, heals 1d2 points of ability damage
to each ability score, and regains one daily use of a class
feature. In addition, each PC recovers one or more spells that
has total levels equal to his character level (minimum 3).
With the help of dozens of other Pathfinders, all working together, the last of the circles and their strange guardians fall!
Sorrina Westyr's image manifests to the Pathfinders, standing before a floating metallic polyhedron scribed with countless shifting glyphs. “We have done it! Now how to open this—”
A great crack interrupts the Master of Spell's musings, as an immense three-eyed giant with skin like hewn stone steps through a tear in space, with an army pouring out past her. The giant bellows so that all can hear. “I acknowledge your strength, little ones, for you have angered my benefactor enough to send me. I and my warriors, the Daemon Prayers, honor it with unyielding death. Seize the Vault! Slay them all!”
Sorrina Westyr urgently pipes in. “We just need a few more minutes to secure our prize and escape. Hold them off as long as you can!”
Drandle Dreng’s shaggy head appears once again in the divination window. “You heard her, Pathfinders!” He says, fist raised. “Go get ‘em!”
When Sorrina Westyr makes the announcement that the Untouchable Opal is secure, numerous gates open around the Vault and enemy forces pour through. In desperation, Ayrzul has called upon the earth yai warlord Ename, who leads a band of planar mercenaries known as the Daemon Prayers to stop the Pathfinders.
You find that you have a brief respite before you move forward with the others for what you hope is the final fight...
Two wispy, ghostly humanoid shapes step out of the stone just after you celebrated your victory over the dinosaur statues!
1st RND
Razdin, Ree, Fentar,
Foes
Jogun, Huck, Kaya