Seraphimpunk's [core] Crypt of the Everflame (Inactive)

Game Master Seraphimpunk

Cyrixs looks at the beetle to see if it has a hole in it now

If the beetle is still alive:

5-foot step. Shoot at it again.

attack roll: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 171d8 ⇒ 5

Venja swings at the beetle again, this time with a little more luck...

Mace, Beetle: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 201d8 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5

"That beetle is quite dead now, you can stop hitting it!"

But what if someone brings it back to life?

oops. lol yeah, well. 14 doesn't stop it. but the 5 from rowanne leave it just twitching on the ground. you can stop after that if you'd like. or make sure its dead.

looking around, and checking the body, there's not much on the corpse. There's a door in the back of the room, and stairs down.

"Shall we check what's behind that door?"

"Sure. Let me check if I hear something first..."
Vanovar moves closer to the door, casts Guidance, then puts his ear against the door.

Perception with Guidance: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 7 + 1 = 13

You hear a low crackle and hiss in the room, and cautiously open the door. Inside, down a short hall, the remains of a small fire smoulder in the center of this broad chamber, letting off a plume of oily smoke. Fed by a heap of burning gear, debris, and more than a few bones, the fire casts a flickering light across the walls of this room, partially obscured by the veil of smoke.

The smoke is quite thick, it imposes a -2 penalty on perception checks and attack rolls for living creatures. More than a minute in here, and you'll need fort checks to avoid coughing fits (nauseated condition) for 1d4 rounds. starting at DC 10 and increasing by +2 for each previous check.

Looking around a bit, you see a dagger sticking out of the fire blade first, the metal a bit shimmery with heat.

i've marked the dagger on the map with a triangle

"Huh, seems pretty empty, apart from a whole lot of smoke... Let me look around for a bit."

Perception from the door opening, then if it seems safe, I'll go grab the dagger. Don't know which square I need to be on, so I'll draw a route and you decide where's the best spot.

Perception: 1d20 + 7 - 2 ⇒ (20) + 7 - 2 = 25

Next to the fire, you notice a sccorched key. As you get closer to pick it up though, you notice the smoke darken above it. at first you think its some weird reflection in the smoke, then eyes of pale light leer at you from the shadow, and you realize that its not smoke.

[ r1 ]: [ 20: Rowane ], [ 20: Smoke ], [ 13: Vanovar ], [ 13: Venja ], [ 5: Cyrixs ], [ 1: Omorose ]

you can move yourselves in as you'd like to have been, while exploring. with the smokey conditions, searching around, if you've been in the room searching around, will request a fort save as a minute has passed ( Fort DC 10 ). if you're hanging out outside while Vanovar searches, you don't need a save, but will probably not get to react this round.

now the -2 perception / attack roll penalty from smoke comes into play .

Knowledge (Religion): 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21

Omorse, you know what it is! but you go last, before you can speak it lurches forward and touches Vanovar.

touch: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15
str damage: 1d6 ⇒ 3 Str

[ r1 ]: [ 20: Rowane ], [ 13: Vanovar ], [ 13: Venja ], [ 5: Cyrixs ], [ 1: Omorose ]

[ r2 ]: [ 20: Smoke ],

perception for rowane: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (19) - 1 = 18 if she's in the room, rowanne can react as well
was just cinematic and more rational to be able to react to something so i went first , it shouldn't effect rowanne's action

"Gah, what's this? This thing's sapping my strength! It doesn't hurt, but I feel weaker from merely touching me!"
Vanovar attacks it with his greatsword, not knowing it's useless.

Attack roll, minus 3 from STR damage and smoke: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 92d6 + 4 ⇒ (5, 4) + 4 = 13

"By the way, I see a key here as well. Could be important."

Venja moves into the room, to just behind Omorose, and creates an illusory double of himself.

Copycat (move action), 1 double as per mirror image.

Seeing double now, Venja? Do you think it's going to trick whatever is hiding out there?

The Copycat will only last for one round, is it smart to activate it right here? The thing can't even see you, and the copy will be gone when it's your turn again.

"That's a shadow! A very deadly undead! Only magic will hurt it! So we need to channel, cure or disrupt it!"

Fort Save: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10

"I don't have anything that'll help against it! Maybe if we retreat, I could prepare Magic Weapon tomorrow. I could channel, but I'm not the best at it, it'll probably only take minimal damage."

Pretty difficult to explain class abilities in-character. :P

You're right. I thought it lasted longer. Let's drop the copycat, then.

CLWs can hurt it, so if you can spontanious cure that's an option too!

Fair point, but if I'm tanking this thing, I propose we treat me until I'm back at full STR. With some CLW and channels, we might just make it. >_>

Though preferably not draw it out too long, I can take a few more rounds, but 1d6 adds up over time. >_> (15 STR left at the moment, so on average I can hold out for 4 more rounds, but then I'll need a week of recovery)

I've been thinking; we have a few options. This is with a bit of out-of-character knowledge, so maybe not completely fair, stop me if it's unreasonable.
Channeling it to death right now is going to suck. Ironically, a lot of undead things have a pretty high Will save. I'll almost certainly save against my Cures/Channels, which means 4 damage at most. There's a chance I'm out of ammo before this fight is over, and then Venja will have to fight it.
Retreating and fighting it tomorrow is going to suck. I could load up on Magic Weapons and buff us all up, but there's already a -2 penalty in the room itself, and STR damage means missing will become more and more likely as the fight goes on. Moreover, that means healing back up twice: I'm almost certainly going to be hit again before we flee, and after the next fight one or two of us will have considerable STR damage.
I could tank this thing (or maybe with the help of someone, to spread the damage) while one or two others go grab the key and dagger. This'll take a round or two or three, but after that we can run like the cowards we are. Hopefully it'll stop pursuing us if we run fast enough.

I'm really for the hit-and-run, just to minimise the damage to us. It's sucky to leave this thing here, but we're woefully underequipped to fight this thing.

We need to attack it full force or run now with the key & dagger and hope it doesn't pursue.

"Venja and Cyrixs, charge up your hands with positive energy! Let's cure this sucker from its afterlife!"

Omorose walks into the room and shoots a ray of positive energy at the shadow.

to Hit: 1d20 - 1 - 4 ⇒ (8) - 1 - 4 = 3

Can't we just nab that key and get out?

Yeah, and close the door so the Incorporeal undead can't follow us!

[ r2 ]: [ 20: Smoke ], [ 20: Rowane (delay)], [ 13: Vanovar ], [ 13: Venja ], [ 5: Cyrixs ], [ 1: Omorose ]

Vanovar steps up and swings, his sword just passing through the shadow. Venja moves in and thinks about what he wants to do, deciding to charge up his hand this round and attack [if you do, i mean. just give a roll, if not you can just move up]. Cyrixs, don't know if he's going to do as instructed or has another idea. Then Omorose coughs a little in the smoke, but suppresses it, as she fires a ray of holy light, almost a silver lance, at the shadow, but misses, just hitting smoke.

will just pause as they choose what they do or chime in.

Vanovar, you can choose to exclude yourself from your own channels. so you shouldn't take any damage for yourself from your channels. but yeah they're a bit resistant to positive energy.

Vanovar goes into total defense, hoping to distract the thing long enough to let the others grab the items.

"C'mon, I'm distracting it! Grab the damn key so we can go out of here!"

Total defense means +4 Dodge bonus, so that's a Touch AC of 17.

Vanovar goes into total defense, hoping to distract the thing long enough to let the others grab the items.

"C'mon, I'm distracting it! Grab the damn key so we can go out of here!"

Total defense means +4 Dodge bonus, so that's a Touch AC of 17.

If you 5 foot step and pick up one item and go in Total defense, I can pick up the other item... (Total defense is a standard action)

They're stubborn, aren't they, Venja? You might as well help them a bit

Venja decides to channel energy to harm the shadow

Channel Positive: 1d6 ⇒ 5 DC 10 for half :/

Whoops, keep thinking it's a full-round action. Yeah, let's do that. >_>
Also, if drawing the thing is a move, I'll provoke, but do it anyway. AC17 should help with that. >_>

Also, if drawing the thing is a move, I'll provoke, but do it anyway. AC17 should help with that.

According to the map, you could 5 foot away out of its reach and still pick up the item, so avoiding an AoO!

BTW. Cure light wounds will probably deal more damage than turning. D8+1 vs D6. And the chance the shadow will save for half is also smaller (no channel resistance bonus and the DC is will based instead of charisma based). It does require a to hit roll, but doesn't dicharge on a miss.

Gah, thought I needed to be in its square to pick it up. If I don't need to, I obviously won't.
Also, Channeling is probably better in melee, because you're not casting, so no provoke, but defensively casting should be doable on a first-level spell. Both have their advantages, I suppose.

That's why I suggested casting CLW out of range, to deliver it later! I once battled a shadow with nothing but a CLW wand.

resist venja's channel: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15 taking 2 damage instead of 5.

Rowanne is still in delay, Cyrixs we'll presume casts a cure light wounds and holds it this round unless he can't do that.

the smoke steps up and attacks vanovar again

incorporeal touch: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 51d6 ⇒ 4

it misses. then Vanovar goes full defensive, and provokes an aoo, picking up the key, connecting, and sapping some of Vanovar's strength a bit more 2 more str damage

incorporeal touch: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 201d6 ⇒ 2

[ r2 ]: [ 13: Venja ], [ 5: Cyrixs ], [ 1: Omorose ]

[ r3 ]: [ 20: Smoke ], [ 20: Rowane ], [ 13: Vanovar ],

instead of levaing rowanne in delay. will need to act for her. double moving in, and smiting the shadow.

Smite will not hurt the shadown though, but it will help AC.

Note to self: 5 STR damage (13/18). Since it ticks every 2, I'm effectively at 14 STR. Need 4 days of healing to be at full strength again, gah. Sort of kicking myself I didn't buy a healer's kit.

So the plan is to pick up the stuff and run right? Or are we fighting it now? And yeah, I can cast clw and hold the charge..and move closer since I was still outside the room (according to the map - moved myself closer)

Seeing Vanovar break for it, Venja covers his escape. He bravely shouts You've got it! Run away! Run away!

Full defense blocking the exit, allowing everyone to move out.

"People, this thing can easily fly through walls. Blocking a doorway doesn't help and it will easily outrun us! Offence really is the best defense!"

Omorose will pick up the dagger key and cast detect magic, focusing the cone just on the dagger, to see if it's magical.

[ r2 ]: [ 5: Cyrixs ], [ 1: Omorose ]

[ r3 ]: [ 20: Smoke ], [ 20: Rowane ], [ 13: Vanovar ], [ 13: Venja ],

Venja blocks the door and stands defensively,

since Cyrixs cast and held or moved up and cast last round, would he like to move up and attempt to hit the shadow this round ?

Omorose the blue symbol is the key, you've grabbed the key and stepped away, and then are casting detect magic on the dagger that Vanovar picked up this round ?

Ah, yeah, trying to determine if that dagger is magical indeed.

vanovar, see discussion thread, swapped out 2 str damage from the AoO which now never happened, to 2 fire damage from the hot dagger snatched from the coals of the smokey fire pit.

Woo! Note to self again: 3 STR damage, putting me at 15, but still a +3 to hit. 9/11 HP, with 1 nonlethal.
If Omorose's intent on fighting it, I guess our best course of action is giving the dagger to Rowanne (if it's magical), and then channeling it to death.
We need to coordinate this better, Venja acts out one plan, while Omorose wants to do another. We really could've used that channel this turn.

CLW >> Channel. 1d8+1 DC15 for half or D6 DC10 for half with an extra +2 on the save! We need to take down this thing quick! And yes, if the dagger is magical Omorose will say, so Rowanne can take it and attack.

There is not a lot my character can do. I have nothing magical I can use to hit the shadow with. Altough I am willing to step in to range if I can borrow a wand of cure light from someone. If not, I can take the dagger and run.