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As they travel, Azeban ponders what it means for the goblins' development as a tribe that they still executed the traitor. While it was certainly not out of character, nor displaying a level of bloodthirst absent from other civilizations (after all, humans would likely have done the same), Azeban can't help but wonder where their path will lead. Still, it would be good to remove the influence of the Fey and let them forge their own way.
Though he wouldn't be a part of it, Azeban has a sense of excitement for their future, as if standing on the cusp of an adventure. There'd be mistakes made and hardships and death, but also great opportunities for learning and growing. And after all, what else was life really for?
With a smile, he looks up from Alis's shoulder and rubs his face against hers.
Alis pets Azeban, glad that he is riding with her again. Much as she liked carrying Ollie and his conversation, she just felt like something was missing without Azeban.
Busara moves with the others.
"Keep those sharp eyes of yours peeled," she says quietly to Brennus. She listens carefully for any sound. She doubts the fey would reveal themselves, but if the human child is out there, he might potentially make some noise.
"Always," the raven replies.
After you have journeyed for a while, Ollie lifts a finger in a gesture for silence. He then creeps forward, acompanied by any of you who want. He looks around, and then gestures to you. In a small wicker cage, you see a small boy. He looks unharmed, but very scared.
Brennus follows Ollie, flitting between branches, a silent, watchful shadow. When he sees the cage abandoned he redoubles his watch, suspicious of traps when there are no foes in sight.
Alis casts Open on the door of the cage, thinking that it might not work, but can't hurt to try. She knows she can step up her game if the cantrip doesn't work. :)
Bethella looks at the boy and waves to catch his attention. She smiles at him, and then holds a finger over her lips, trying to convey that they are friendly and here to help, but that he should not do anything to reveal their presence.
(On the off chance that the fey aren't hidden and watching already....)
Once she is satisfied that the boy is not in immediate danger, Busara scans their surroundings for any sign of the fey.
Smaxx tries to survey the area by scent for any enemies within the immediate area.
The cage opens, and the boy in the cage nods to Bethella and sits still.
Alis wonders why the boy isn't coming out, but then sees him nodding to someone behind her, and realizes that someone must have cautioned him not to move. ... They might be right, which was too bad. It would have been so nice if they could just leave and take him home.
... But of course that was unlikely. There could be a spell or trap that would harm him even with the door open. She casts detect magic, and decides she may as well move forward to help. If something goes wrong, she'd rather have it affect her than the boy. She walks forward to the cage, but doesn't touch it or tell the boy to get out until she knows whether it is magical or not.
Alis, when you start to cast, the boy's eyes fill with terror. "Please, no more magic owies!" he asks.
Do you persist?
Don't worry honey, I'm not going to hurt you. This is a spell that only touches me.
She continues.
Alis sees no magic on the cage. However, there is an aura of illusion magic on the boy.
"Alis, he doesn't mean the spell. He's scared of something else." Busara whispers after Alis. To the boy, she calls out in a low voice.
"What are you worried about? We are here to take you back home. We won't let anyone hurt you."
Alis responds to Busara:
He's got illusion magic all over him. Honestly, I don't even know if that *is* the boy, and if it is, we probably can't see what he is scared of. I'm going to keep concentrating on figuring out what the magic is... be careful.
Alis doesn't take any action other than continuing to concentrate on the detect magic to see if more details will be revealed with longer study.
"Illusion magic?" Bethella says. She approaches the boy more closely and looks at him, trying to discern what's going on.
"It's OK," Bethella says soothingly to the boy. "This spell won't hurt anybody, I'm just making sure you're OK."
She casts Detect Thoughts, and focuses in on the thoughts of the boy. (Will save DC is 15.)
"Sumthin's goin on here, it don't smell right...
Smaxx decides to put this situation to the test. Smaxx is going to charge the cage to make it look like he is going to attack "the boy", but when he gets within 4' of the cage itself he is going to do a long jump over it.
"Bethella get out of there...It's a trap!!
Smaxx roars and charges "the boy." He keeps full eye contact with his intended prey with the best scowly "I know what you're up to!" face.
When he reaches 3' before the cage he actually long jumps over it.
Brennus gives the child a good, hard look, searching for signs of who he really is.
Bethella heeds Smaxx's warning and takes some steps back while maintaining concentration on her Detect Thoughts spell.
Brennus is unable to see anything other than a scared looking little boy, except for a little wicked gleam in the 'boy's eyes. Bethella and Alis continue to concentrate, and Alis finds evidence of almost overwhelming illusion magic. Bethella finds the presence of one intellingent being close in front of her, and several more further back. As Smaxx jumps over the cage, he knocks it over, leaving the 'boy' uncovered. Before your eyes, the boy transforms into a tall, fanged humanoid. He wears a long coat and a tall hat. As the illusion magic comes down, it is replaced by an aura of terror. The aura can be seen as a bunch of faint, shifting images of the thinks you fear the most.
You also see revealed all around the edges of the clearing many small fey, of types that are usually neutral-aligned tricksters. Their faces are filled with hatred, but they do not appear to be doing anything other than watching you right now.
I did tell everyone this would be a slow posting game, so I'm going to wait until 72 hours after my last post to give everyone a chance to participate.
block 1, may post their first round:
Alis, Smaxx, Brennus, Busara, Ollie
bad guy
block 2: Bethella, Azerban
Also still need Bethella's will save.
Busara, Brennus, and Azerban need to roll a DC 25 will save if they come within 30 feet of the enemy or they are shaken whenever within 30 ft.
Alis and Smaxx are shaken whenever they are within 30 ft of enemy.
Alis, this is a Bogeyman, and has DR bypassed by cold iron.
Unsure whether the onlookers will join the battle, and uncertain about where the stolen boy is, Alis keeps her more devastating area-effect spells for later.
Cold Iron will work best against this enemy she informs her comrades, and, shaken, steps back until her back is against a nearby tree (if there is one, and if that doesn't take her into the ring of fey onlookers) before unleashing magic missiles at the creature, hoping it isn't immune to magic:
The creature yells and growls as Alis's pellets of magic slam into him.
Smaxx, Brennus, and Busara may all post. You know where Ollie is well enough to flank with him if you want, Smaxx, by where the wound appeared.
Busara grips her spear as she advances into the clearing, aiming its cold iron tip towards the fanged creature. Taking advantage of its distraction from Ollie's opportune attack, she makes a quick jab at the bogeyman.
Brennus hops about on the branch he's perched on and croaks an odd little chant. As he finishes, a wall of stone erupts from the ground behind the bogeyman, cutting him off from the other fey behind him.
Smaxx moves up next to Ollie, and lashes at the bogeyman with an elemental fist.
"I shoulda found a way to get cold iron claws!"
Smaxx's swipe appears to not damage the bad guy other than the elemental damage.
The bad guy appears to have some kind of natural healing as he feeds off your fear of him, but is also bleeding from Ollie's attack.
He tries to step away from Ollie and Smaxx before casting, but you think you feel air currents from the invisible Ollie moving up with him (step up feat).
The bad guy tries to cast a quickened spell.
DC is 10+24+(2x4)=42
so he loses the spell.
He was casting quickened phantasmal killer
He then tries to cast a spell on Ollie, triggering another AoO.
Busara, you also get an attack of opportunity during the second spell.
Concentration check if Busara hits:
DC will be 10+damage+6.
Ollie's save, if the bogeyman gets the spell to go off:
so Ollie will not be effected by the spell either way, so we can keep the game moving. The enemy was trying to cast hold person on Ollie.
The entire party may post now, and Busara may take both an attack of opportunity and a normal attack. The bad guy is looking very beat up.
The fey creatures who are watching are all making many interested noises. Some seem rather disappointed the bad guy is getting hurt, but others seem to be glad.
Status: bad guy at -81 HP, no party members injured, some are shaken.
All of the 'spells' cast by the enemy have been and will be SLAs, no material components. The healing that he did was a Su ability.
Alis casts Magic Missile again
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Ollie was such a surprise! The little guy turned out to be a plucky little fighter, even if he was using some dirty tricks. But Busara was not of a mind to complain too much as the goblin creates yet another opening for her. Taking advantage of the bogeyman's focus on Ollie, she lunges for another quick jab at the creature, then spins her spear around in a full circle and goes for an impaling move.
Busara's thrust at the bogeyman while he casts misses, so he is able to cast a spell, targeting Ollie. However, Ollie shrugs off the spell. Alis sends several hard pellets of magic at the monster, causing him to almost fall over. Busara finishes him off with several thrusts of her spear.
After the creature dies, its aura of fear quickly dissipates.
Alis finds a shaking and sobbing creature hugging her that she cannot see. It takes very little work to guess that it's Ollie.
Most of the fey audience seems to shake off whatever effects the bogeyman used to maniputate them and goes back into the forest. A little flying creature comes up to Busara and Smaxx. "Quickly, quickly, come follow me, before the boy turns into another of them!"
Brennus, being his usual suspicious self, if he looks around carefully will find that there do not appear to be any more threats.
Alis comforts the invisible goblin boy the best she can without being able to see him. There, there. It will be okay. You did very well, and were very brave. It is never easy to have to fight.
"Ya did good Ollie! Earlier you showed that you know there are humane ideals to stand for. And now you've learned that there are reasons to fight for!"
He heeds the fey creature's warning, "Let us be quick so we can stop the child from being turned into another one of those horrible creatures!"