Robert gratefully took the book from Lorenzo and tried to make sense of it through the blood that had spilled onto a few of the pages. Before he could truly investigate it, however, he saw Nareth with his weapon at the hobgoblin's throat.
He turned to him, "Don't you want to know what he knows? Perhaps he knows some modicum of information that will keep us alive as we progress. Maybe he could tell us just a little bit more about this place or what has happened to us. Yes, he attacked us and has earned death, but don't give it to him until we have taken everything from him."
He turned to Lorenzo, "You're our resident charmer, aren't you? Why don't you see what you can get out of him? Oh, but don't forget to take that symbol of his, I'd rather not end up dealing with that again."
With that, Robert was content to examine the book and perhaps divine just what that hobgoblin had been up to.
"Fair enough." Nareth strips the hobgoblin of all his equipment (save his armor, which is time consuming) and goes to work.
Nareth kneels, examining the neck wound closely. He rips some strips of cloth off of the hobgoblin, then carefully rips them into smaller strips. Once he has enough strips he takes out a thin needle and begins sewing the hobgoblins neck closed, showing a very intricate knowledge of how the humanoid body works. Then he applies pressure underneath the ribcage into the diaphragm, causing the hobgoblin to spit up a good deal of blood and start breathing clearly.
Nareth wipes off his hands, then gently taps the side of the hobgoblin's face. "Hey there pretty, rise and shine. You speak common, the common tongue? We want to ask you a thing or two."
After a few taps on the hobgoblin's face, he blinks his eyes and looks groggily at Nareth. His voice is raspy, but he answers, "I speak. You know want?"
"Keep your voice low, that's good. You don't want to be tearing you throat open." Nareth examines the wound again to make sure it's stable. "Simple information. Where we are and what else is around here."
"Thanks, Nareth. I feel much better now. I wasn't expecting to be hurt so soon."
Alec was about to help the hobgoblin stabilizing it, but the others already got that, so he worried for the surroundings for a moment. He completely ignores Lorenzo's jests and detects evil on the humanoid, before adding to the interrogation. "And who are you?"
Nareth actually smiles when Alec helps with the interrogation. A paladin helping me in my own game.
"Me Greknaw. Want you know where are? You here, stupid. Here," he says, slowly, as if speaking to an imbecile, and gestures to the room, "where you are. Around here, stone. See?" He raps on the stone floor.
Alec suddenly looks sad. He expected more respect and great answers, but they did not come and the Hobgoblin seems like a child. He speaks phrases that could be easily interpreted as sarcasm, but his tone denotes he is serious enough. "Thank you, now we know where we are. But who are you, and what are you doing here?"
Nareth gets closer, putting a hand on the hobgoblins shoulder. "I'd watch your tongue Greknaw. Mistakes with surgery happen so easily." Nareth lets his hand slide to Greknaw's neck, where he applies a little pressure. He pays close attention to the creatures pulse, making sure he's not killing him. "So my other question. What threats are in the area?" He lets up pressure so the creature can speak.
He turned to Lorenzo, "You're our resident charmer, aren't you? Why don't you see what you can get out of him? Oh, but don't forget to take that symbol of his, I'd rather not end up dealing with that again."
Lorenzo sniffed, a little contemptuously; but it was directed at the hobgoblin rather than Robert.
I prefer to use my charms on beautiful ladies and angry gambling hall owners; not murderous goblinoids.
Care for a quick round of dice, Necromancer? he invited the man.
Greknaw chokes as Nareth squeezes his throat, clutching ineffectually at the warpriest's hand. When the pressure is released, he answers, "Me no know. Man come, coins, book, food give me. Stay here, fight, says. Says many, but no sense. I wait, look book, eat. Man come, star, food give me. Stay here says. Fight. I stay. Star glows, feel strong. Come you, fight."
Nareth stares at him a long time. "See, that wasn't so hard." Nareth pats him on the shoulder, then stands to face the others. "Oh yes, almost forgot." He leans back down and rips out the stitches, throwing away the contaminated materials. He adresses the party while the creature dies behind him. "Next time we should try to get something more intelligent who actually questions their surroundings." Nareth motions on. "I shall continue to watch the back."
Robert shut the book and stored it in his pack. "Pfft, a holy book of Asmodeus, I don't suppose one of you would be interested?" Perhaps it would be worth something to that strange illusory man back in the plush room, Haven. Or perhaps it would come in handy later on in this very dungeon, who could say?
He looked up to Lorenzo's question, "No, Skirtchaser, I'd rather not. At least not while we are in this place. Perhaps once we are back in that room, safe and sound."
He strode over to the now dead hobgoblin. "Ah, I had momentarily forgotten whom you served. Thank you for the reminder. I wonder what that star he was going on about was. We should strip him of his things, perhaps something good will turn up." With that, Robert began to rummage through the hobgoblin's things.
Content with the extent of his brief search, he surveyed the room. "It would seem we have three options, door number 1 to the north, door number 2 to the east, or door number 3 to the south. Personally I vote for door number 2. Unless I'm wrong, that door should lead is to the room we passed in the hallway back there."
Greknaw's possessions:
1 masterwork light mace
1 scale mail
1 silver unholy symbol of Asmodeus (downward pointing star)
7 copper coins
2 small loafs of very stale bread
3 small pieces of unidentifiable dried meat
Alec approaches the Hobgoblin, worried about what will they do with him. "Do you want to die?"
If he judges the Hobgoblin is not a problem he will tie him up using 10ft of rope, tell him they will come back later to release him.
"East sounds good!"
Alec has a short conversation with Greknaw, but are unable to get anything else out of him. He does not want to die, but keeps repeating that, "I fight." The choice of what to do with him is made more difficult as after a few minutes of the conversation, Nareth rips the stitches out of Greknaw's throat, and the hobgoblin begins choking on his blood and quickly falls back unconscious.
Nareth takes out a rag and wipes his hands clean of the arterial blood. "Your guess is as good as mine for direction, I will follow your direction decisions quietly unless I can think of a reason not to."
The door opens into a room with 3 holes in the ground. Wafting up from the holes is the unmistakeable smell of a never cleaned privy.
Alec do not stabilize the man, letting him die and have peace. He eyes Nareth with a pitiful look, but let the subject drop for now and moves for the doors to the east, Axe ready, checks if the others are ready, then opens it. As he'd been Ninja'd by the gm, the smell immediately indicates that they don't want to get into this room. "Let's go for the other one." He walks north, listens at the door, then if nothing is heard he opens it.
Nareth exhales sharply as the smell reaches his nose. "Let's move through here quickly."
Hmm. Well at least we don't have to defecate in our nice room with the illusionary man.
Robert turns over the star of Asmodeus in his hand while musing, "Welll, I suppose that clears up the matter of what star he was going on about. I'd stay clear of the meat, no telling what it is. Hard to muck up bread though, it should be safe to eat."
When the door to the latrines is opened, his eyes water slightly at the smell. While everyone else seemed to be backing away from the door, Robert soldiered on, Come now, yes the smell is atrocious, but there might be something useful in here. Leave no stone unturned, and all that." Waving his staff with the light at the end towards each latrine hole, he held his breath and took a look for anything of worth.
Robert peered into each hole and in the far right one, he saw a slight glimmer as the light from his staff reflected off something buried in a mound of feces.
Combat Round 1
Goblin AC 15 T 13 FF 13 CMD 12 Fort +3 Ref +2 Will -1
Alec listens at the door but hears nothing. Opening it reveals a dusty room with three doors in the western wall, and a collection of goblins. One of them spins around as the door is opened, apparently having just closed the northwest door. The foul little monsters look surprised to see you, but ready for a fight nonetheless. They wear leather armor, and each have a sheathed short sword, and a quiver, shield, and bow on their backs.
Goblin #1: 6/6
Goblin #2: 8/8
Goblin #3: 2/2
Goblin #4: 8/8
XP total: 535
This combat worth: 540
Nareth sighs. "Of course. Any ideas without jumping in?"
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"I hope you have something like Sterilized Mage Hand... Otherwise I don't think it's worth the trouble."
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Although Alec wanted to try something else, he knows how Goblins react, and they seem to be ready for action. They got the surprise on them, so he doesn't waste it, moving to C4 and Attacking the Goblin at B3.
!
"My friend, I always have ideas. I didn't think of looking down there without some way of getting out a potential shiny." Robert stepped over the hole and peered down, the glimmer faint but certain. Eyes focused on it, he recited a few brief syllables and pointed down at it. He then lifted his finger to try and fetch the object out. Whatever it was, he was sure it would clean up fine after being rinsed off. "I don't suppose either of you would happen to have Create Water memorized today?"
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Robert moved up to the doorway and scrutinized the situation. Hoping to conserve his spells for when they might be desperately needed, Robert decided to cast a minor offensive cantrip instead. A glob of acid appeared in his hand, Eeny, meeny, miny, . . . moe."
for
Nareth shakes his head. "Read magic, detect magic, light." Nareth takes out a cloth and holds it out for the shiny thing, then cleans it while keeping himself free of touching the excrement. While the smell doesn't bother him, he doesn't want to risk being contaminated by anything.
Lorenzo gestured and sent four small glowing orbs of light down into the toilet in order to illuminate whatever was down there. If at all feasible, he would attempt to hook the object on his longspear.
Lorenzo surged past Alec into the room with his longspear held aloft. His luck was with him and his blood was up; with a cry of To Arms, Comrades! he planted his feet firmly and plunged his longspear right through the leather armour of the northern-most Goblin; piercing both the hardened leather and the creature's chest....
Robert's mage hand pulls a green gemstone, covered in feces, out of the mound.
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Combat Round 2
Goblin AC 15 T 13 FF 13 CMD 12 Fort +3 Ref +2 Will -1
Goblin #1: 0/6 - staggered
Goblin #2: 5/8
Goblin #3: -7/2 - unconscious, dying
Goblin #4: 1/8
Alec's attack deals a vicious blow to the goblin, but the surprisingly tough creature manages to remain on his feet. Robert's acid burns into his target's shoulder, while Lorenzo charges into the room and drops one of the goblins with a devastating thrust of his spear.
The in the northwest corner attempts to somersault past Alec, but the creature is not nearly as nimble as it appears to think it is. While the force of Alec's attack is blunted by the goblin's leather armor, the monster didn't even notice Lorenzo's longspear until it plunged into his chest, grievously wounding him. Swaying, he managed to stay on his feet, and keep his shortsword ready, but it looks as if a feather would knock him over.
The distraction caused by the tumbling goblin, however, gives his comrade time to align a careful attack, penetrating Alec's side and barely avoiding a vital organ.
Meanwhile, the goblin Robert hit with acid returns the favor by grabbing his shortbow and shooting the wizard in the leg.
Goblin #1: for damage
Goblin #4: for damage
XP total: 535
This combat worth: 540
Nareth cleans the gem with a rag, then tries to identify any magical properties about it.
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Nareth takes a few steps over, and with a swing brings his spiked chain heavily down upon the goblin farthest in the room.
Robert curses in pain as the arrow sinks into the soft flesh of his upper thigh. Stumbling backwards, he regains his resolve and holds the words of his spell in his mind, ready for anything that might come through the door.
for
Flanked by two dying folks, Alec calmly holds his ground and takes out the northwestern goblin (#4) with his third blow on the creature, but this time he hit close to the neck, putting the creature out. He was definitely impressed by their capability, but they would not be a further problem, since there was only one left, and he was falling apart already.
!
"Drop your weapon and you will leave."
!
Lorenzo moved to threaten (and flank if possible) the remaining lone goblin with his spear, ready to run it through if it did anything other than drop its weapon.
The gem is not magical. An Appraise check would help determine its value.
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The lone remaining goblin looks blankly at Alec and carefully attempts to move away, only to be skewered by Lorenzo's spear.
After given a thorough wiping off, Robert held the jewel in his hand and examined it's cut and clarity with great interest.
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When the last goblin fell, Robert let out a sigh of relief as the glob of acid in his hand dissipated into nothing. His stamina nearly depleted, he fell to the ground, gasping in pain. He sat up slightly, to get a look at the arrow in his leg. The head had passed straight through, so he snapped the head off, and gingerly pulled the shaft out of his thigh. The immediate danger passed, he slumped back, throwing the bloody stick at the wall.
"If any of you holy men would be able to render some assistance, it would be greatly appreciated. I'm afraid I'm almost at my limit, and we've barely been out of our safe room for half of an hour. Only another 11 and a half to go."
Nareth kneels and takes a look at the wound. "I'm out of healing magic. Alec, we might need you, it's pretty bad. Nearly nicked an artery."
Got it covered... But i'm all out after this. Lorenzo said, placing a healing hand upon Robert. A powerful surge of healing followed, forcing the muscles and flesh to knit together rapidly.