Thistletopr attacks from the shadows.
debilitating injury bewildered (-2 to AC)
Sword in one hand, shield in another, Loren batters aside the skeletal warrior's attacks before striking back with a pair of his own. "Come at me, fallen ones. The Bison willing, I'll release you of this torment." The knight struck twice and the skeleton fell.
His fire spell seemingly not as effective as he would have wished leaves Jakun with the option of increasing his allies abilities once again. Still hovering he cast another and they swelled in size! Then he hurled a knot of magical force into the skeleton that fared worse under Mariel's onslaught and it too fell.
One of the wicked axes had cut her, but so fierce was Caitlyn's battle focus that she didn't even notice. Lithely stepping back to give Wyrmslayer room to do it's job, Caitlyn brought it round in an whistling arc. It smashed through the remains of first Skeleton as if it wasn't even there before pile driving through the next one. It would have smashed into the third but some spark of cunning was left and it ducked just in time.
Thistletorp emerged from the shadows, blades first, and slew the final skeleton with a pair of lightning slashes.
Thistletorp giggles as the skeleton falls . "Poke! Poke poke!" He sheathes his blades with another giggle and then bouds off to the shadows exploring.
+2 more for traps
"Hmm," the knight half-grumbles. "Good thing they weren't death knights."
He briefly considers kicking at the remains of one of the warriors to turn it over, but dismisses the idea as too disrespectful. Whatever they had become, the skeletons had once belonged to the living. He prays to Kiri-Jolith for the ability to detect magical auras, then kneels next to one of the fallen warriors to see if he can learn any more of its story.
A part of Caitlyn's mind had noticed the onrushing spell that was trying to entice her to grow. Logically this would have been a good thing, but this part of Caitlyn's mind only knew that magic is bad, very very baaad. It resisted fiercely and the Minotaur's spell slid past her like water off a duck.
As the battle focus wore off Caitlyn found herself as tired as if she'd run a marathon. She glanced down to notice her blood and winced, "Ow! When did that happen? I didn't notice..."
Noticing Thistle exploring she passed her world weary eyes across the battle scene and the wider environs searching for anything of note.
"Well fought my friends, well fought. An unfortunate circumstance that, better to have spoken with them and perhaps released them through magic than slaying them once again, these likely deserved better".
Their souls needed to be released on the River of Souls she says.
She channels to heal
Thistletorp, Caitlyn, and Jakun see much the same: little of note save rubble and a passageway to the north.
Thistletorp puts his finger to his lips and and tiptoes down the passageway
Finding nothing else of interest on the skeletal warriors, Loren stands up and waits for the kender and others to scout ahead.
Thistletorp set off to the east, rounding a corner and coming to an intersection. To one side, a crossing corridor ended in a wall of rubble just before it might have broken through to the chamber where the skeletons fought. To the other, it opened on a balcony that looked out into a dark vastness, with other balconies just visible opposite and on the room's two sides. Beyond that intersection, that corridor soon ended in yet another fall of rubble.
"It appears that the rubble invites us to explore the area below this balcony. Shall I or the Revered Daughter shine alight in that darkness?"
Paladine, grant us your light she says as she casts light on her medallion of faith.
"Indeed let us see what is beneath." replied Caitlyn.
She looked to see if there was a way down and decided she'd have to take this seriously and rope off. She looked for something sturdy to tie a rope to, or failing that drive a piton into the wall. That done she rappelled down to the rubble field and examined her surroundings.
Being a little tired from her exertion The Revered Daughter will wait patiently for the group to decide what to do and where to go while saying a prayer over the bones of the defeated foes.
It is best to see what one might be leaping into, Caitlyn. Allow the Light of the Platinum Dragon to illumine this horrid place
Jakun shrugs and bends down to pick up a piece of rubble, he casts a cantrip to allow light to emanate from it and tosses it off of the balcony.
"OOOh!! i canfollow that!" Thistletorp bounces towards the balcony, ready to go down and explore its depths.
Jakun's light descends from the side of the balcony and strikes ground some sixty feet below. Another set of four balconies jut out from the walls thirty feet below the companions' level. At the bottom, archways stood in each wall in the place of balconies. So too did something large and metallic, which was just at the edge of the spell light. It roared and a jet of bright orange flame flashed up toward where the light had come from, splashing against the wall and balcony just short of the wizard. The brief flash showed an iron creature with a dozen snake-like heads before it faded to nothing.
"Well, that was interesting wasn't it Thistle?"
Thistletorp grins. "Wow! I've never seen one of those before! What it is!? Let's go poke it with a stick!" He clambers on to Jakun's head in his excitement. "Let's go!"
"Well, that was interesting wasn't it Thistle?"
Jakun recognizes the creature as an iron pyrohydra, a golemlike construct that largely mimics the dangerous swamp creature. It would take adamantine arms to truly hurt it. Lightnings would only slow the creature, while flame would actually heal it. Attacking with magical ice would avail him much, though. Either way, the heads must be severed to truly slay the creature.
Jakun frowns, "This creature may be beyond us as currently armed with our weapons and my spell selection as adamantine and ice are what we need to effectively combat it. I see no otehr way down here. Perhaps back up to deal with whatever that chittering sound was?"
Cailtly stared at the metallic thing. She glanced at Mittens and murmured, "I know where you're coming from, believe me I do, but that might not be a good idea..."
"Perhaps back up to deal with whatever that chittering sound was?"
Gail took a deep breath and held it for a moment, as she closed her eyes. Opening them she turned to face the mage and sighed, "Yeah... It's going to be giant creepy crawlies isn't, with their feelers and too many legs. That's going to be so disgusting."
She turned around and started climbing back up.
"Disgusting but a high protein meal! Once we defeat whatever is in there perhaps we can rest and develop a plan to defeat that draconic golem, I would be willing to bet that something of value is down there if it is down there".
"Disgusting but a high protein meal! Once we defeat whatever is in there perhaps we can rest and develop a plan to defeat that draconic golem, I would be willing to bet that something of value is down there if it is down there".
Thistletorp giggled "Yay!! We get to climb!!!" he laughs and starts clambering up the wall
Thistletorp turned around and went to the west from the bottom of the shaft. There he found a new corridor with a few inviting doors and a chamber with balconies matching that opposite, complete with the dark vastness below them.
Maybe the balconies have clues? she inquires.
Loren's mustache twitches as he considers the group's options. To Mittens, he replies, "If it's a golem, then it's not undead. I'd imagine neither good or evil, only doing what it is commanded to do." He casts a glance towards the Red Robe or, more accurately, towards whatever spirit is sharing his body and seems to have sway over the things in this place. "Still..."
He takes out a piece of chalk and writes in Abanasian and Solamnic, "Danger Ahead. Golem." Finished, he shrugs at the slight effort and says for anyone who is observing, "Gods help anyone else who happens to be down here."
"The Gods have long forsaken this place Knight, at least any Gods we would look to for succor".
The Valiant Warrior and his son, the Bison of Heaven are with us in this place of darkness. she retorts.