Robert takes a beating from the troll. Marwan darts off after Darlene, but then turns, flings out his hand and suddenly the air around the troll sparkles with gold flakes
Will Save, Troll:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3
The troll’s hands immediately fly up to its own face, rubbing at its eyes and bellowing in rage.
Across the cavern, behind the sarcophagus, the tafganor stops rummaging through the stone coffin and brings a small flask to his lips, and drinks down a potion.
Skreed AC 16, t 13, ff 13 (+3 dex, +3 armor) | hp 29 (4d8+4) f +5, r +7, W =1 | Melee +5 (2d4+1/ 18-20 + poison, ranged (bombs/9) 20’ +6, 2d6+3 fire | extracts, Cat’s Grace (4 minutes), Protection from arrows (4 rounds), Bomber’s eye (4 rounds), tanglefoot bag | CMD +4, CMD 17
Other DM Notes:
River Troll (modified Troll) AC 15, t 11, ff 13 (dex +2, +4 nat, -1 size) | hp 44 (4d8+24) f +9, r +3, w +2 | melee bite or two claws +6, d6+4 (BAB +3, Str +4, Size -1) | s 19, d 14, con 22, I 7, w 10, chr 9 | CMB +8, CMD 20
Quick question that I have neglected to ask...how to Zelote's actions get handled? is it either Stolos moves and acts or Zelotes moves and acts, or does she get a turn herself?
Zelotes growls in response to Stolos' command and hurries into the fray. The large otter opens her mouth to reveal sharp, white teeth that quickly make their way to the troll's flesh.
AS the thin tafganor drinks a potion, a pool of slippery grease appears on the hard ground beneath the blinded trolls feet.
Reflex Save:1d20 - 1 ⇒ (19) - 1 = 18
The troll’s feet shift and slide, but by lowering its hands it manages to stay upright, for now.
Aniktah runs toward Cicily, and throws herself on the ground, covering the Maetaur woman’s exposed upper body, shielding her from some harm.
Ravena summons an acid dart, which strikes the blinded troll directly in the chest
This is followed by a ball of flame summoned by Stolos which hits the troll in the face, then like a flash of lightning, Zelotes dashes across the chamber and takes a bite out of the troll’s leg
Lifting his weapon from a position on one knee Robert attacks the troll again, while calling out for help, but his scythe clangs hard against the cold stone floor.
Round 3…
The troll goes into a rage, spins and tries to find Robert with its claws while standing as still as it can
Skreed AC 16, t 13, ff 13 (+3 dex, +3 armor) | hp 29 (4d8+4) f +5, r +7, W =1 | Melee +5 (2d4+1/ 18-20 + poison, ranged (bombs/9) 20’ +6, 2d6+3 fire | extracts, Cat’s Grace (4 minutes), Protection from arrows (4 rounds), Bomber’s eye (4 rounds), tanglefoot bag | CMD +4, CMD 17
Other DM Notes:
River Troll (modified Troll) AC 15, t 11, ff 13 (dex +2, +4 nat, -1 size) | hp 44 (4d8+24) f +9, r +3, w +2 | melee bite or two claws +6, d6+4 (BAB +3, Str +4, Size -1) | s 19, d 14, con 22, I 7, w 10, chr 9 | CMB +8, CMD 20
The Tafganor looks nervously from one side of the room to the other, almost as if he is looking for a fast way out, and then he reaches into the sack hanging at his side, drawing out a small flask.
I’ll try to bot Marwan, if he doesn’t show up by the end of the night, then it will be everyone else’s turn. Ravena has already posted, Thanks Ravena!
His flames having been extinguished from his hand, Stolos rushes up to the troll, again muttering an incantation. Ducking and weaving, he places his hand up against the troll's skin as flames burst forth from his fingertips.
Casting Touch of Combustion. DC 14 reflex save to avoid damage and not catch on fire.
Calex glances at the cowering trafganor worryingly. The fact that the creature has yet to meaningfully respond to their attack worries him.
What could it have planned?
Still for now the troll is the greater threat. Once more he uses the new wand to attack the beast,launching another flame dart at its bulk.
Marwan loads a crossbow, taking in the current situation with some reservations
Entering the chamber the party stumbled into an unfortunate and dangerous scene – One the one hand they managed to find Cicily, the missing Maetaur headwoman of Mingary Bend, but the Maetaur woman was in the clutches of a sinister Tafganor and his river troll associate. A battle soon ensued.
Robert was struck hard by the ferocious troll, but with focused attacks and a well timed spell the rest of the party had managed to bring the troll threat down to almost nothing. Blinded and momentarily trapped in a pool of slippery grease, the troll had effectively been shut down. While Zelotes, Stolos’ river otter companion, rushed in to take a bite out of the troll, the others pummeled the monster with fire and weapons
The Tafganor drinks another concoction, this time from a small vial, then looks over his right shoulder, where there appears to be an opening in the cavern wall just at the top of a natural flight of steps in the far corner of the cave.
With some understanding of the wands nature, Calex now flips the wand over head and a small ball of flame leaps from the wand, flies across the cavern and strikes the troll in the head.
Meanwhile Aniktah struggles quickly to remove her light vest, while she shields the Maetaur woman from anyone’s gaze.
Robert moves back away from the troll, still on his knees he looks to get clear of the monsters so the others can bring it down with ranged attacks, but then suddenly Ravena rushes up behind the troll striking it square in the back with her hammer, while Stolos approaches the blinded troll from the opposite direction, laying his hand on the trolls leg the monster suddenly glows red where Stolos hands touch and flames spring out all around
Reflex Save:1d20 - 1 ⇒ (10) - 1 = 9
The troll's flesh catches fire as Zelotes rips another bloody bite from the trolls knee
Darlene pulls another arrow from her quiver and tries to add to the troll's misery
Ranged Attack:1d20 ⇒ 19
The arrow strikes behind the troll's left ear
Damage:1d4 ⇒ 3
And seems to strike some part of the brain. The monsters goes suddenly stiff, and falls straight forward onto the ground
[i]Round 4[/dice]
The troll appears down and out, while the tafganor looks like he is ready to make a run for it
Skreed AC 16, t 13, ff 13 (+3 dex, +3 armor) | hp 29 (4d8+4) f +5, r +7, W =1 | Melee +5 (2d4+1/ 18-20 + poison, ranged (bombs/9) 20’ +6, 2d6+3 fire | extracts, Cat’s Grace (4 minutes), Protection from arrows (4 rounds), Bomber’s eye (4 rounds), tanglefoot bag | CMD +4, CMD 17
Other DM Notes:
River Troll (modified Troll) AC 15, t 11, ff 13 (dex +2, +4 nat, -1 size) | hp 44 (4d8+24) f +9, r +3, w +2 | melee bite or two claws +6, d6+4 (BAB +3, Str +4, Size -1) | s 19, d 14, con 22, I 7, w 10, chr 9 | CMB +8, CMD 20
Male Human Fighter 1| AC 18 T 12 FF 16 CMD 16 (18 v Trip and disarm)|12/12 HP | F +4 R +2 W +1 | Init +2 | Perc +2
Seeing the troll fall, Robert breaths a sigh of relief. He then says, "I'll cut him off." Robert runs around the sarcophagus and gets between the tafganor and his exit setting up for a charge at him next round. (AQ73)
Noting the change in direction, Stolos whips out his sling. Running after Robert, he drops a pebble into the carrier, whips it around his head, and lets it fly at the tafganor.
Would like to end up in AW66, with Zelotes in AW63.
Calex realizes quickly that nothing he has memorized or available will cross the distance to the enemy from his current spot. Also he is falling behind the others, so he runs forward to catch up.
Marwan hesitates as the others rush to cut off the tafganor’s escape. It appears as if the villain is going to make a run for it.
Calex moves closer to the large stone sarcophagus, while Robert runs as quickly as he can to cut off the Tafganor’s escape. Ravena lowers her bow and instead conjures a glowing mass in her hand, flinging it at the tafganor. The spell sails over the obstacle between her and the tafganor and strikes his upper body letting out a cloud of steam and a muffled hiss.
Darlene runs to join Robert, dropping her bow and drawing a small sword
Stolos follows the others, loading a stone in a sling as he moves. He lets the stone fly, But the Tafganor raises a hand and the stone appears to bounce off of him harmlessly.
It is now the top of Round 5, I want to see Marwan post, I hope he does, so please hold off any other posting until we give him a chance – after Marwan, if he cannot stop the Tafganor where he is, the tafganor will take his action, which will need to be resolved before anyone else goes in round 5, okay?
Marwan fires a crossbow at the Tafganor, but misses, and as if that were the signal he was waiting for, the tafganor darts away from the sarcophagus. As he flees toward Robert, he takes something out of his sack, and then with his other hand, smears some kind of goo over the small round object. He tries to make a run around Robert, staying a good ten feet from him, and then he stops and hurls the object behind him toward the sarcophagus
Skreed moves to AS:75 | Standard Action, create and throw a bomb
Missile Attack:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (19) + 8 = 27
The Bomb strikes the sarcophagus and ignites the interior in flames
yes the sarcophagus is open topped (has no top), is large, and has the skeletal remains of a giant along with some tattered fragments of clothing. The clothing is now on fire, but you can get close enough to look in and get more information about what is inside with the remains.
The sudden flames erupting inside of the sarcophagus startles EVERYONE into inaction except, Stolos, who rushes suddenly forward to the edge of the stone box desperate to see what could be inside that the tafganor wants to destroy
Stolos:
The skeletal remains within the sarcophagus are huge, filling it from top to bottom. The remains are dressed in decayed fabrics, and thick furs, with many leather belts and strappings across the exposed ribs. A giant, stone-headed war hammer lies with the head at the giants feet and the wooden handle extending up to fall across the nearly rotted away fabric of what was once a kilt, and even though the remains of the cloth are in flames, as well as the leather and pieces of old dried and matted fur, the war hammer does not burn. The giant wears a helmet, made from iron that covers its entire head and face and only the lower jaw, with many missing teeth can be seen. You cannot figure out what, exactly he might have been trying to destroy, but you have a hunch he was looking for something and because he could not find it, he tried to ensure that no one else would find it either, whatever it might have been.
Cal lets Stolos handle the burning sarcophagus. In the nonce he sees the escape route their adversary has planned. "You won't escape that easily!" Using his amulet's power to call upon a spell he has not readied, Calex casts another Grease spell at the patch of ground in front of the trafganor's intended exit.
Calex follows after the fleeing tafganor, and then keys onto a way to stop him from escaping. Concentrating on the bond between his mind and the amulet he wears, Calex summons a spread of slippery grease on the ramp leading up to the exit.
Aniktah drags Cicily away from the sarcophagus as the temperature of the stone begins to rise.
Robert dashes to a place between the tafganor and his escape route at the same time that Ravena shouts a challenge.
Darlene moves toward Cicily, tears in her eyes, and falls to her front knees embracing the older Maetaur tightly.
As Stolos examines the fire inside the stone sarcophagus, Marwan runs right up next to the tafganor and speaks a few simple words in the arcane tongue. A mass of sticky fluid erupts from Marwan’s mouth and seems to grow in size as it flies across the space between him and the tafganor until it lands as a massive gooey mess all around him.
Reflex Save:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19
Two can play this game, The tafganor shouts as he turns to face Marwan. His movements hampered by the spell but he is still and throws a tanglefoot bag at Marwan’s feet, before stumbling ten feet away.
Ranged Touch Attack:1d20 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
But the bag goes wide, missing Marwan.
Throwing his hands in the air when he sees his attack failed the tafganor cries out as he falls to his knees.
Alright, alright. I give up. I surrender. There is no reason to kill me I have information you will want to know. If you let me live, I will tell you everything.
DM Notes:
Skreed AC 16, t 13, ff 13 (+3 dex, +3 armor) | hp 29 (4d8+4) f +5, r +7, W =1 | Melee +5 (2d4+1/ 18-20 + poison, ranged (bombs/9) 20’ +6, 2d6+3 fire | extracts, Cat’s Grace (4 minutes), Protection from arrows (4 rounds), Bomber’s eye (4 rounds), tanglefoot bag | CMD +4, CMD 17
Female Human Oracle of life (Divine herbalist) 1 +6 init +perc, to hit, F+, R + , W +, Max HP , AC
Ravena will work her way up to the kneeling enemy and put her hammer right on his nose saying you so much as twitch I will put yer nose through yer head.
Stolos will ignore the kerfuffle around the tafganor for the time being, preferring instead to examine and try and identify the skeleton in front of him.
knowledge (Nature):1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11
Perhaps it's the flames in front of him, distracting and obscuring his view, but Stolos probably should have tried to remove the helmet before examining the skeleton much closer.
Once the flames die down and the helmet seems reasonably temperate, Stolos will try and remove the helmet
Male Human Fighter 1| AC 18 T 12 FF 16 CMD 16 (18 v Trip and disarm)|12/12 HP | F +4 R +2 W +1 | Init +2 | Perc +2
Robert walks up to the tafganor and stands in front of him, slamming the end of his scythe into the floor loudly. He stares into the tafganor's eyes and says "Ok, if you're so important to us, out with it! Prove to us keeping you alive is worth it. What information do you have?"
Alright. I’ll tell you everything. Lorgrad has half of a map. I do not know what the map looks like. He would never show it to me, but the map shows part of the secret way through the mountains that leads to the sealed doors to a once great Tafganor Warlords citadel. The citadel was the palace of Dargran Vard, the terrible.
Once, many hundreds of years ago, your kind, along with the Maetaur and Gymnaga folk were aided by a tribe of hill giants in defeating Dargran and his allies, who were a similar kind of giant, only larger, stronger, and prone to violent outburst of uncontrolled temper, who lived deep in a slumbering volcano on the very northeastern tip of this country. When the citadel was sealed inside the mountain many of the fire giants helping Dargran were trapped in the mountain as well. The current fire giant king, Tytarian, has pledged to Lorgrad that if can recover certain treasures lost in the sealed tafganor citadel he will supply Lorgrad with an army of fire giants to help him concur Orimar. Now, Lorgrad searched high and low across Orimar for clues to the secrets of this sealed citadel, and when he found them he put his plan in action, only the last piece of the puzzle he was missing was the second half of the map.
Lorgrad captured a gymnaga priestess from Imallin Eliossu who, under torture revealed the secret of this tomb and that it contain the resting place of five heroes of the great conflict hundreds of years ago. They are
As this tafganor describes each of the heroes he points to the ledges around the cavern in the four corners
Erougahg MacNurrow, a human warrior, Pensheal Havgarrity, a Maetaur druid, Seilaigoen Urinsavus, a gymnaga witch, and Karngral, a half-tafganor from the Vayanguur archepeligo, together these for heroes were buried with the hill giant warlord Uskroth, who you see over there. The second half of the map is supposed to be buried with Uskroth, but I could not find it. I approached each of the other sarcophagi belonging to the four heroes, but they are protected by spells and enchantments I was afraid to test.
With the second half of the map, Lorgrad can find the exact location of the sealed doorway to the citadel of warlord Dargran, and with the spells and hostages he already has he can open the seal, and search for the fire giant relic that king Tytarian is asking for.
I was supposed to find the second half of the map, and deliver it to Lorgrad at the tafganor village of Rawalhg, to the northeast, but I did not find it before you arrived, and now I am finished.
Lorgrad has united eleven tribes of tafganor living above and below the mountains near Rawalhg, as well as the help of some tolls. He tried to gain the help of the hill giants, but their kind have become less interested in the dealings of smaller folk over the centuries, and in my opinion too stupid to be of any help at all anyway. His army numbers over five thousands warriors, not as large as the rumors among your kind have been saying. Yes, I had spies in Woodbridge, and in Otter’s lake. I will tell you their names but only in exchange for my freedom. I will swear on my life that I will flee this place and never return. I have distant relations in Vayanguur and there I will hide from Lorgrad’s wrath. Do we have a deal
I needed the Maetaur priestess to open this tomb, and to suppress the wards of the temple at the base of the hill. I never meant to kill her but was only threatening her with her life so that she would tell me where the map was hidden. She swore she did not know and I did not believe her, but I could not bring myself to kill her in cold blood.
My immediate family, a father and mother, four brothers and two sisters have all joined Lorgrad’s cause, and I believed his words as well. What tafganor doesn’t wish for a return to a time when our people are not made to scratch out an existence on the unforgiving mountains? We are many generations removed from our ancestors and we should not be held responsible for the acts of a warlord dead for five centuries, but still your kind oppress us, force us out of our homes and further to the east. It isn’t fair, and I’m sorry I was caught up in the war mongering of my people and my family. But I don’t have the stomach for all this violence. Let me live and I will never cross your paths, or set foot on this land ever again.
While the tafganor spills his guts, Marwan approaches Cicily, Darlene, and Aniktah.
The Maetaur woman, who appears to be in her mid-forties perhaps, but is still remarkably beautiful, seems to be in shock. Marwan has never encountered a Maetaur, in person, before, but he has seen them in the larger cities of the empire, and at Castletown, when he first arrived here on Urandoma.
Aniktah soothes the woman’s shaking body with a strong embrace, while Darlene is slowly checking over the older maetaur’s entire body for signs of injuries or wounds that need attention.
Male Human Fighter 1| AC 18 T 12 FF 16 CMD 16 (18 v Trip and disarm)|12/12 HP | F +4 R +2 W +1 | Init +2 | Perc +2
Robert nods to Ravena and says "Keep an eye on him." Robert walks over to Calex and says "This man's fate is ultimately in your hands. If you think we should return him to Castletown then we can or we can set him free as he asks. You'll need to think on this." He then walks over to Cicily "I am Robert Macintyre of Woodbridge. You are safe now. How are you?"
Female Human Oracle of life (Divine herbalist) 1 +6 init +perc, to hit, F+, R + , W +, Max HP , AC
Ravena takes the sharp armor piercing end of the hammer and puts it right in the "soft" spot between the fellows legs and says I would hate ta slip so ya better stay still
"I'll want to hear what Cicily has to say first, Rob. She is his victim, after all, and an elder of the maetaur of Woodbridge." Cal turns his attention to Ravena and her prisoner. "If you please, Ravena, search him to make sure he has nothing on him. I find it hard to believe his master would send him looking for a map with no idea what it looks like. That's like me ordering someone to fetch a certain stick from the woods, with only 'You'll know the right stick when you see it' for instructions."
Cicily seems weak. Her complexion is pallor and her breathing seems slow and labored. Marwan can see that she has no immediate, life threatening injuries, but it is what he cannot see that concerns him the most. Giving into his instincts, he summons a healing spell which he hopes has at least some effect on her, even if it is only to bring her comfort.
Robert takes a stand between the prisoner, keeping his eyes on him, and the sarcophagus, and then offers a suggestion to Calex as he walks around the sarcophagus with him toward Cicily.
When Robert introduces himself, Cicily is already improving. She looks up at the two men and says
I’m glad to see you Calex. Somehow I knew it would be you who came looking for us. She then turns and smiles at Robert as she tries to get her legs underneath her body preparing to stand.
Darlene supports her on one side, while Aniktah, keeping the spare vest wrapped tightly around Cicily’s arms, hiding her exposed upper body, tries to support her from the other side.
Robert Macintyre, Cicily says as her eyes close for a moment. I remember you. But I haven’t seen you around my daughters since you were a small boy. I suppose becoming a man of Woodbridge steals away the time for those kinds of games, but you face is familiar, and I am grateful that familiar faces are all around me.
As Cicily speaks, quietly, Calex turns and asks Ravena to search the prisoner, then comments on the folly of his quest
To which the tafganor replies, in a highly agitated way, That is what I tried to tell him. Over and over again I pleaded with him. But all he would say was that the nature of the second half of the map was undiscoverable by every means available to him, but that the Maetaur leaders, the druids of their kind, must know the secret. I threatened that woman to within an inch of her life but she kept to her claim that she did not know. I was beaten, and would have escaped, leaving her to make her way out in her own time. I swear I would not have killed her, but you timing precluded all that.
Cicily is strong enough to let out a little laugh.
He’s is only telling the truth as best as he can. His associates were not as patient or gentle, but I could see in his eyes that he was not a cold blooded killer. I told him I didn’t know where the second half of the map was, but I do.
When Cicily makes this announcement, the tafganor’s head, even as it is resting against Ravena’s weapon, drops in utter defeat.
Extinguish the fires in the giant’s grave, and remove his helmet. There, in place of his left eye you will find a stone. That stone is a unique treasure found in the volcanic mountains to the northeast. It is a geode, and inside, part of its delicate internal crystal patterns lies the second half of the map Lorgrad is searching for.
This half of the map shows the path through the mountains to a special valley. This valley, in the language of the Maetaur and Human folk, is called the Ghostlight Marshes, but this is a name poorly translated from the ancient Gymnaga language. The Gymnaga call this place paludem spiritus illuminate conturbatus, or the “marshes of the troubled spirits of illumination”, which itself is a poor translation of the actual meaning of those words. You see, it was a tragedy of the gymnaga people that occurred in that valley that gave it its name, and played a major role in the conflict that was to unfold.
Many centuries ago, the gymnaga were a people under the bonds of slavery, cruel and tyrannical were their oppressors, a people who were the ancestors of what we now call the sashi-anhain, but in those times they were not exactly as they are today. During the rise in power of the warlord Dargran, the old Sashi-Invasnea were losing their once powerful hold over the lands to the southwest. A few families of gymnaga managed to escape from the Sashi-Invasnea and fled to the north, finally finding a safe place to hide deep in the tangle of trees and marshy pools of that valley.
But they did not know they had come to the very threshold of Darglan’s stronghold, which lie just a few miles above the marshes. When the gymnaga, at last, discovered the location of Darglan’s fortress, and understood his alliance with the fire giants, they realized it was too late for them. Their settlement was destroyed in a surprise attack, and everyone save one small gymnaga girl was killed. This gymnaga girl managed to escape and bring the warning of Darglan’s machinations to the great druid council of Knockanarry Shore, a once great city of Maetaur on the north coast. She…
All the effort to explain the history she knows finally takes its toll on Cicilly, just at the same moment that she is trying to stand all the way up, and she falls again onto her front knees, letting out a heavy sigh.
"The Gymnaga girl was Seilaigoen Urinsavus." Stolos pipes up from his position at the tomb. At everyone's glances his way, Stolos adds "The elders at MacNorra House used to tell stories of her on dark and stormy nights or mention her in passing to calm rowdy younglings." Moving away from the tomb, Stolos continues. "No one really knows much about her. She disappeared into legends as time passed, that sort of thing, and for good reason."
"She was...different than the rest of my people. Maybe in a way similar to how I'm different, but even more so. Stories tell us that she was a great and powerful witch, but that she turned her back on our gods. Not that she would've been the first person to curse the gods or be angry with them, but this was different. Supposedly, she completely disavowed them, swearing she would never allow herself to praise or curse the Gymnaga gods for the remainder of her life."
Stolos draws a breath as he pulls memories and stories from his past. "Despite all this, she's one of our greatest heroes. She lead us in fighting the uprising of the tafganor hundreds of years ago, and was critical in ensuring the survival of our people."
A small grin appearing on his face, Stolos includes "For all the stories of her heroism, that never stopped my mother from invoking her name when she wanted us to come in at night." Chuckling to himself absentmindedly at a long-forgotten memory, Stolos runs his hands through his hair before realizing that attention is still on him.
"My apologies for interrupting, Madame Cicily. I hope you don't mind my comments. If it's all the same, and if we have the time, I'd like to take a look at Madame Seilaigoen's tomb, and see if it can help shed some light on those stories."
Stolos will wait to be excused, as well as making sure there is time and that Cicily has no more information to share.
Female Human Oracle of life (Divine herbalist) 1 +6 init +perc, to hit, F+, R + , W +, Max HP , AC
Ravena searches the prisoner roughly removing any dangerous item from his person and handing it off until she gets some rope and binds his hands very tightly behind his back.
Male Human Fighter 1| AC 18 T 12 FF 16 CMD 16 (18 v Trip and disarm)|12/12 HP | F +4 R +2 W +1 | Init +2 | Perc +2
Robert walks up to Marwan, "I'm quite wounded after that fight would it be possible to heal me some?"
After being healed Robert says to Apostolos, "While we are here and waiting for Miss Cicily to recover and be able to travel I will be happy to help you examine it."
Hearing Calex ask Rowena to search the prisoner, Darlene (also seeing that Cicily is in good hands) moves close to them both, and draws an arrow in her short bow, aiming it at the tafganor’s heart.
Rowena roughly searches the tafganor, finding two daggers, one in a sheath on his belt, the other hidden in his right boot, and in the sack at his side she finds several vials and bottles. When she is finished, the tafganor, nods his head to the right, to get Rowena’s attention and says, loud enough for everyone to hear
My back pack is up the ramp there, at the top, it has all my travelling gear as well as a few things I use to create potions and extracts. I’m telling you to show my intent not to be dishonest. You can take everything in my sack, but not all those extracts will be useful to you. There are two vials of black adder venom, be careful with those, they are marked with a blue circle. And there is a potion of healing, very potent, the rest, well, I can tell you what everything is, but I hope you show me enough kindness to let me leave with my belongings.
As Cicily closes her eyes for a moment taking long, slow, deep breaths, Stolos heads up the ramp to find these other four burial containers.
Once Stolos climbs the ramp, he can see four normal sized, open topped sarcophagi, spaced around the cavern at this elevation one each tucked into the four corners. He recalls where the tadfganor was pointing when he mentioned the name Seilaigoen, and heads to the
southwest corner, taking him out of sight of his companions.
Stolos:
You approach the sarcophagus slowly, and with some fear. The stonework is carved with intricate geometric patterns which have a faint green and blue glow. As you get closer you feel a tingle on your skin as if you have passed through a barrier of some kind, and you pause, but nothing else happens. Inside the sarcophagus is the skeletal remains of a gymnaga. The skull wears a wooden tiara set with a blood red stone, and the wood appears untouched by time. The arms lie gently along the sides of the body, and the nearly completely decayed remnants of a thick woolen long robe covers the body down to below the waist. In the left hand is a wooden rod, while the right had holds a masterwork sickle, the blade made from a polished milky white substance you cannot identify. Around the decaying dress, above the waist, is a wide, woven leather and fabric belt, studded with bits of platinum, silver and gold, and for the buckle there is a large turquoise stone. The belt, like the tiara, rod, and sickle, seems completely untouched by the passing of hundreds of years. Under the neck of the skeleton lies a rolled piece of vellum, tied fragments of red thread that may have once been a ribbon.
Marwan watches Stolos ascend the ramp toward the upper level in this chamber, and turns his attention to the giant’s sarcophagus. The fire has died down to only a few small flames here and there, and promises to go out completely in just another few moments. The skeleton of this “hill giant” appears normal in almost every way, the “kilt-like” garment that once covered the bones from the waist down is now burned away, and this reveals a long wooden handled, hammer, with a head made from a dark stone, which was not seen before, hidden by the garment until it was burned away. The hammer appears undamaged by the brief firs.
The Helmet the skeleton wears appears to be made of cold iron, and covers the head down to the bridge of the nose, with small slots for the eyes to see out of. On the front of the helmet is a small engraving of a single, starring eye. When the helmet is removed (it is still a bit warm to the tough, but otherwise unharmed by the fire, you immediately see the stone in the eye socket that Cicily mentioned.
Calex gives Cicily a worried look as she sinks down. Despite his concern, he sees that the others are taking as much care with her as possible, and after a quick touch on Aniktah's shoulder he moves off to confront their prisoner, tucking the wand into his belt. A quick flicker of magic re-ignites his staff with a bright light and he holds it menacingly at the trafganor's face.
"kindness? You kidnapped and beat one of our elders! Only her words saying you intended no death keeps you alive. That and the fact I find the thought of what your master will do to you when he gets his claws on you to be immensely satisfying. Your failure has probably issued you a death sentence.
How pleasant.
In any event, you are going to name those working as your agents. That won't earn you your freedom. Just a head start.
Give me those names!" intimidate:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Stolos pauses for a moment and bows his head, respectfully. Out loud, he recites a prayer his mother taught him when he was a child. "Το πνεύμα σου να πετάει στα χέρια του Κεραυού, ενώ το σώμα σου κατοικεί στην αγκαλιά του Γιόβιτ."
Translation:
May your spirit fly to the arms of Keravus while your body dwells in the restful embrace of Yovit
Pausing a moment to see if his words have any effect, Stolos continues adds another prayer. "Lady Seilaigoen, οι άνθρωποι σας χρειάζονται για άλλη μια φορά την εξουσία σας. Μια μεγάλη απειλή κατεβαίνει σε αυτά τα εδάφη και κανένας από αυτούς δεν το γνωρίζει. Αν θέλεις, δώσε σε εμένα και στους συμμάχους μου τη δύναμη να υπερασπιστούμε τα σπίτια μας και τις οικογένειές μας. Μοιραστείτε τα δώρα σας μαζί μας, ώστε η δύναμή σας να μπορεί να χρησιμοποιηθεί και πάλι για να προστατεύσει τον λαό σας."
Translation:
Lady Seilaigoen, thy people have need of thine power once more. A great threat descends on these lands, and none but we are aware of it. If thou wilt, bestow upon me and mine allies the power to defend our homes and our families. Share your gifts with us, that thy power may again be used to protect thy people.
Stolos will once again pause, waiting to see if his words have any effect on the environment around him, after which he will carefully gather and examine the rod, belt, sickle, and tiara. Finally, Stolos will carefully examine the rolled vellum before returning to his comrades.
