Round 2
Shimmer continues to watch the rear, sparing a glance for the scene ahead.
HP 12/12
AC 16 T11 FF16 CMD 16
F/R/W 4/0/6
Channel Energy 6/7
Nanite Surge 1/1
Seize the Initiative 7/7
Touch of Good 7/7
Spells
0th - Guidance, Detect Magic, Create Water
1st - Bless, Shield of Faith, Protection from Evil
Effects
None
Round 2
The dwarf steps back and pulls out a scroll and reads it. His hand is then sheathed in crackling blue energy.
Dennis unconscious (2)
Efin didn't recognize the spell the dwarf was using - but he was clearly a bit too wild. "Calm down!" she said, raising her hands and pointing at him. <"Target: Selected Creature. Effect: Flame Jet."> she added a moment later, sending a small dart of flame through the air.
"I'm really sorry about this, friend." Kaval sighs as he handsprings forward for a quick double kick.
,
,
"Looks like they have a handle on things. Some kind of crazy... dwarf? I think? Looks like Dennis is down but breathing. Hard to tell, but no one is making a fuss about it so I think he's alright." Kel said, mostly for Aravashniel's benefit. "I'm going to get him back here where it's safe. Be right back."
Round 3
The dwarf gives Kaval his full attention and steps forward to strike him.
His swing is errant though and he fails to touch the agile Grippli.
Dennis- unconscious (3)
Dwarf -7(5)
Efin stepped back as the warriors dueled, mulling over her options. The dwarf didn't actually look that capable, and rather than waste her largely-limited energies, she elected to simply hold off for now.
Kel pulled Dennis back out of the fight and checked his vitals. "He's alive."
Kaval continues his assault to subdue the misdirected dwarf.
,
,
"We don't want to hurt you, but we will defend ourselves."
Seeing Kel dragging Dennis away, the dwarf decides to go for the easier target.
"I have something else for you." The dwarf says to Kaval as he moves away.
Electricity arcs from the dwarf's hand as he touches Kel's breastplate. Despite his resistance, Kel arches in agony before slumping into unconsciousness.
Dennis- unconscious (4)
Kel -15, bleeding
dwarf -9(7) plus whatever Kaval gets with his AoO
"Aravashnial, the two warriors are down! What can you do?"
Round 5
Seeing how the battle is going, Shimmer heads towards the dwarf. "I'm going to help." As she moves she brings the longsword up, attempting to bring the blade down with care to avoiding causing serious injury to the dwarf.
Single move towards dwarf. Standard to attack for non-lethal.
;
Honestly I've been hanging back because I misread the initial post. I thought we were trapped in the tunnel and couldn't get up there. My misunderstanding.
HP 12/12
AC 16 T11 FF16 CMD 16
F/R/W 4/0/6
Channel Energy 6/7
Nanite Surge 1/1
Seize the Initiative 7/7
Touch of Good 7/7
Spells
0th - Guidance, Detect Magic, Create Water
1st - Bless, Shield of Faith, Protection from Evil
Effects
None
"Guide me to the wounded one, quickly!" He replies as he sticks out a wand.
Argus places Aravashnial's hand on Kel and Aravashnial uses his wand.
Shimmer, he is only 10' from the NPCs so you can get to him in a single move.
Efin winced as Kaval got hit, then reached out and thwapped his back with one hand. "That should help!" she said as luck itself was twisted to support the frog. That was all she could do for the moment - but hopefully, the ability to hit more accurately would help. Kel should've still had one too, if he was planning to fight... at least, she was pretty sure he hadn't used up the extra luck just yet.
or
Kel's eyes snap open and then narrow in pain and anger. "Alright then."
He stands up looking like a thundercloud, his black eyes starting to glow with dark red energy.
Kaval's attempt to hit the dwarf as he moves away swings wide. Both of Kel's actions provoke AoOs from the dwarf, but, having expended his touch spell, he is no longer armed and misses his chance. Shimmer, in her attempt to be merciful, misses the dwarf as well. Kaval moves up and is able to hit the dwarf again with a light punch.
The dwarf, being annoyed by Kaval's continued punches, again turns his attention to him.
Surrounded he fails to retrieve an item from his pouch, so instead casts a spell while dodging.
Bolts of magical force fly from his hand and strike Kaval unerringly.
The dwarf laughs maniacally.
Dennis- unconscious(5)
Kel -15 (9 temporary hp)
Kaval -10
Dwarf -10(8)
Round 5
"Ow ow ow. Guys, might be a good time to just hit him hard." Badly injured, Kaval steps into a flanking position and attempts to take the dwarf down before it's too late.
,
,
Round 5
Seeing Kaval's wounds, Shimmer stops holding back. "I pray you survive." The words uttered, light flares from beneath her armor as she calls upon her full strength and brings her longsword down upon the dwarf.
Standard to PA, using Nanite Surge
;
HP 12/12
AC 16 T11 FF16 CMD 16
F/R/W 4/0/6
Channel Energy 6/7
Nanite Surge 0/1
Seize the Initiative 7/7
Touch of Good 7/7
Spells
0th - Guidance, Detect Magic, Create Water
1st - Bless, Shield of Faith, Protection from Evil
Effects
None
Maaaaaaaybe it was time to mess around with fate a little. "Come on, lucky blow!" Efin cried out, calling upon the luck she'd bestowed upon herself earlier as she stepped forward and unleashed a pair of quick jabs at her opponent's side, trying to help take him down before things got any worse.
for
for
You finally knock the crazed dwarf out. He is unconscious, but not bleeding (25 pts he has is non-lethal). Dennis wakes up and is still stunned for a few seconds, but recovers. Kel is only being kept conscious by the temporary hit points he received from Aravashnial, but those will fade in a few hours.
"OK, what the hells just happened?"
"...A crazy dwarf attacked us?" Efin asked as she moved over to Kel and poked him with a quick burst of healing energy. "We should probably take his spellbook - if he's got one - and components, yeah? Just to make him a little less dangerous." Rule number one of dealing with magic users - always assume they were still capable of casting, and do what you could to mitigate that if they were a captive.
She snapped her fingers a moment later, calling up another Lucky Presence for herself.
"Well best to tie him up and gag him as well. He might not be one of those casters that use books. "
and Dennis will take the time to bind and gag the crazy dwarf.
Kaval gingerly touches the livid bruises appearing where he was struck by the magical bolts. Leaning against a wall, he pulls a potion out of his wrist sheathe and drinks it down, visibly recovering from the dwarf's attack.
After recovering his breath, Kaval hops over to the downed dwarf to see if he can determine what drove him to attack. It might have been simple madness, but perhaps something more sinister? Possibly some form of demonic infestation? Can't be too careful, and if we can save him, that's one more capable man to fight the horde above...
"Does anyone know why this man would suddenly attack us like this?"
"There was no shortage of demonic cultists even before Kenabres fell. I can't imagine they'll stay hidden any longer. Some people are just plain evil, just like demons. "
"Ow." Kel said, sagging a bit as the dwarf fell. "Thanks." he said to Efin as the bit of divine fire knitted his wounds up a bit.
"And thank you too, Aravashniel. I'm not sure how he hit me like that. I didn't think I ever got close enough to him to be in danger. Guess I misjudged his reach or something."
As you search through his stuff you find Millorn’s meager gear gathered near his camp, consisting of a ratty bedroll, a small pack filled with dried meat, preserved fruit, and some moldy cheese (8 days of rations), and a chipped 6-inch-tall marble statuette of a humanoid throwing a spear. The statuette is worth 125 gp. In addition you find Millorn’s spellbook which contains; blur, color spray, detect secret doors, fog cloud, grease, invisibility, mage armor, magic missile, resist energy, shocking grasp, and silent image.
On his person you find two potions, one scroll and his cloak which detect as magical. In addition he has a light crossbow with 10 bolts and 12pp and 10gp.
Kaval your heal check reveals that the dwarf is unconscious, but not dead.
Looking up from the dwarf, Kaval explains, "I can't find any indication of overt demonic influence. The best I can tell is that he's just a paranoid man, possibly been down here for quite some time." Kaval's tongue darts out to lick his eye before continuing, "He'll recover from his injuries in time, but only if nothing down here gets to him first. We could carry him with us, but he seemed very concerned that we would capture him, and playing to that fear might not be in his best interest. Any thoughts?"
"I sure don't want to leave him moving around in case he decides to track us down to revenge. He was enough trouble the once. "
"Taking him with seems the reasonable course of action. For his own safety and ours, binding and gagging him would probably still be a reasonable plan. He may react negatively, but I find it unlikely for him to readily accept us even if not bound. I can carry him on our way to the surface."
"OK, but I'm sure not going to carry him. "
"I'll help you cary him." Kel says to Shimmer with a shrug. "We can use a cloak as a litter-sling or something."
"Dennis, why don't you wear the dwarf's cloak. It might be smelly, but it will help prevent you from falling victim to those types of magical attacks again," Kaval says, offering the slightly damp and stained cloak.
"Umm, right. Wear stinky cloak. Well if you say it will work. " and he will don it.
After about an hours travel, you come to a steeply inclined tunnel that leads upwards to the north, its walls are lined with numerous nooks, handholds, and dozens of iron pitons that have been driven into the walls long ago. This shaft leads upward at a steep angle for about 60 feet. The cracks, handholds, and pitons allow for you to ascend the shaft almost as if a ladder were present.
After climbing for 60 feet, the shaft levels out and heads northwest for approximately 2,500 feet (a 30-minute walk at a speed of 15 feet). The tunnel opens into a large cavern, about 70 feet across. Cylindrical rock formations along the walls arch up to make a dome-like chamber, but the walls and floor are riddled with cracks. At the center of the cave, a stone tower that may once have reached the fifty-foot-high ceiling has collapsed onto its side.
Just before you would give yourselves away, the people up front notice two figures focusing on slowly and carefully digging through the tower’s rubble, wary of causing accidental collapse. Now and then they call out, and a muffled voice in the rubble answers back.
"Sounds like someone was caught in the collapse up ahead and his friends are trying to get him out. We should help!" Kaval whispers back to the rest of his companions.
"Yeppers." Efin said, scooting forward more warily than her voice would have suggested. "Ahoy there! Need a hand or three?" she asked as she moved towards the figures, trying to be as harmless-sounding as possible. She was a naturally friendly sort of person - not a trained diplomat, true, but you didn't have to be one of those to be nice to others, and anyone who was helping rescue someone was generally okay in her books.
Unless they were horrific demons in disguise or something... eheh. In which case she'd feel no shame in running.
As you approach, you see that one of them is a hunchbacked woman, her face so warped by tumors that she’s incapable of intelligible speech. The second is a man that is a tall, thin creature with a face that melds the features of an attractive elven man, a goat, and a lizardfolk. His oversized fingers end in dull, spade-like talons. Somewhere in the rubble you here a third, somewhat anxious voice as well.
When you first speak, the two figures drop into defensive stances but are not aggressive. The man greets you in a raspy voice, speaking in strangely accented but quite eloquent Common.
“If your intentions are ill, we ask you to move on and leave us in peace. If they are good, then perhaps you can help. As you can see, misfortune has befallen us.”