The Forgotten God (Table 5)

Game Master Rednal

The threat eliminated, Astoroth begins to search the room for traps or hidden chambers before continuing on.

Taking 10 on Perception. Don't forget that I have see hazard and read magic up. :-)

As he explores, Astoroth asks, "Miss Kozuri, what did you do immediately before casting St. Al-passor's Stone Piston? It's not something I've experienced for quite some time."

Searching for hidden things was definitely a good idea - there were concealed passages on the left and right sides of the room, opposite each other, leading into other hallways that almost certainly led deeper into the tomb. Your companion, meanwhile, just tilted her head a bit and crossed her arms.

"It's kind of hard to explain..." she said. "When there's something I really want to do, I can just make some kind of magic happen. Only once a day, though. I guess it might be like how Uncle feels when granting wishes? I'm waaaaaaay weaker than he is, though - he can do almost anything across the whole universe, whereas..." she gestured to the pillar of rock. "I'm not exactly moving mountains, here." Even as she spoke, the pillar crumbled into little more than a pile of sand.

"I see. Have you always had that power? And did you feel anything when I encased the Mimic in crystal?"

Making a note of the other hidden passage, Astoroth beckons to the Left hallway. "Let's try this way. Secret entrances in a tomb are often a means to bypass guardians and traps."

"Yes and no." she answered succinctly. "Actually, that was a lot of how I managed to conjure up those shadows back in the Engine, though it only worked because it was set up to draw out my power. Didn't feel anything other than being impressed about the crystals, though - that was cool." She followed you into the room on the left, seeming interested in the entirety of the building.

Two woven reed boats sit end-to-end in this chamber, covered in a thick layer of dust. Carvings on the walls depict naval expeditions and boats bearing tribute for the pharaoh. There don't seem to be any traps within the room.

Astoroth nodded at her answers. He wasn't surprised that she wasn't aware of the nature of her powers yet. She had a long and arduous road ahead of her, but the time was not yet right for him to enlighten her.

In this new chamber, Astoroth carefully approached the boats. While the dust meant they hadn't been moved for quite some time, that didn't mean much. This site had been undisturbed for millennia, after all. If they were in good condition, though, they'd be of interest to the Blackross Museum.

The boats themselves seemed quite mundane - well-crafted, but not anything especially significant to the greater structure of the pyramid. You could, however, hear a faint scratching sound from within them.

This pyramid has been undisturbed for centuries. Whatever's inside the boats is either a trap or another guardian. Without touching the boats, Astoroth examines them to see if there's a way to seal them shut.

There doesn't seem to be any way of specifically closing them - not as they are normally, at least. More elaborate methods (such as bringing in materials and building a physical barrier) would work to accomplish the job, but they don't seem to be the kinds of objects that can be sealed shut.

On the other hand, given the lack of reaction for how long you've been in the room, they may not be an active problem anyway.

Astoroth nodded. "Whatever's in here can wait until we return. Right now, our objective is the Pharaoh's tomb."

Continuing forward to the next hallway.

Leaving the room is easy enough. Straight ahead of you is a door - while the hallway leading to said door also turns to the right and goes for 160 feet or so, over to the other side of the pyramid.

Figuring it's best to explore one side of the pyramid before crossing over, Astoroth examines the door.

If it's untrapped, unlocked, and unstuck, he'll open it.

This room's sandstone walls and floor are devoid of furnishings.

...Not so much of inhabitants. As the door was opened, you found yourself face-to-face with five skeletons - four of which promptly ignited (which didn't seem to be hurting them), while the last had four arms and actually started to bleed more profusely. Which was... probably intended to happen? At the very least, the last skeleton wasn't one of a human.

"...Oh dear." Kozuri said.

Initiative (Enemy): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21
Initiative (You): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15

Three of the skeletons darted forward - they were all that could reach you, given the design of the room, while the other two held back - and as they came close, they slashed out with their jagged, burning hands.

Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 2 = 16
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 2 = 14
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8

The claws themselves weren't much of a problem - the flames enveloping their bodies were, and you could feel your skin starting to blister just from being too close to them.

Fire Damage: 3d6 ⇒ (4, 6, 5) = 15

Astoroth winces in pain as his skin blisters from the heat. Backing away (5ft step), he kicks a nearby stone at the nearest skeleton. "Miss Kozuri, do you have any means of combat that isn't flame-based? It would be quite helpful right now."

Improvised: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20 Bludgeoning Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

What's the four-armed skeleton?
Knowledge(religion): 1d20 + 15 + 1d6 ⇒ (1) + 15 + (4) = 20
Know(nature) has the same bonus, and arcana/dungeoneering/etc are only a few points lower

The bloody skeleton seems like some kind of mudra skeleton - known mainly for their four arms, although the blood is definitely an uncommon variant of their kind. Meanwhile, after noting the way your weapon hit one of the skeletons and quite literally made it explode (doing nothing to the others, sadly), Kozuri shrugged and slipped past you before simply punching one of the beasts. Sacred energy glimmered around her fist as she attacked...

Unarmed Strike: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13

...but the skeletons managed to block her attack and respond with a few quick strikes as the other burning one moved forward to join its companions.

Claw (vs Kozuri): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 2 = 16 for Damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5
Claw (vs Kozuri): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6
Claw (vs Kozuri): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21 for Damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3
Claw (vs Kozuri): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Claw (vs Kozuri): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7
Claw (vs Kozuri): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22 for Damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5

Three of the attacks hit her, though you could see her wounds starting to heal as the flames licked at them. Fire... was definitely something she did well with.

The three skeletons are in a horizontal line just inside the room. The Bloody Mudra Skeleton is twenty feet behind the middle skeleton, on the other side of the room. Remember, each square is 10 feet!

Seeing Kozuri's injuries, Astoroth throws another stone as he moves back up to take the brunt of the attacks. "I can avoid their claws, but the flames will burn me. If you have a way to lessen that, then do so. If not, stay back and use the Holy Water in my pack. I also have a potion that will temporarily increase your defenses if you'd like. They can only hit one of us at a time, so if we keep trading off, there's less risk of our being overwhelmed." (referring to mage armor)

Improvised Weapon: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11 Bludgeoning Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7

The stone bounced off of the creature's bones - when creatures were in melee combat, accurately hitting them with a ranged attack was harder.

Flurry: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7
Flurry: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7

"...Huh." Kozuri said, stepping five five feet back and to the side to allow you to move forward again. She was actually looking quite healthy by the time she did so, and the fire seemed to be doing good things for her vitality. Maneuvering back also limited the space the skeletons had to reach you with, and only two of them stepped forward to swipe out at you.

Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22 for Damage: 1d4 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (4) + 2 + (5) = 11
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 2 = 14
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
Crit Confirm: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13

Fire Damage (Aura): 1d6 ⇒ 1
Fire Damage (Aura): 1d6 ⇒ 6

"Hey! Pay attention to me!" Kozuri said, noting your injuries and clearly trying to distract them from continuing to assault you.

As the skeletons closed in, Astoroth moved with supernatural quickness - ripping off his backpack and slamming it into the first skeleton.

Sudden Block Reroll: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5
Retaliatory Strike (improvised weapon): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (4) + 9 = 13 Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10

Dropping the damaged pack to the ground, he launches a pair of kicks at the fiery undead before stepping back so Kozuri could have a turn. His wounds needed patching before he would feel comfortable stepping back into the fray.

Flurry (unarmed): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13 Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7
Flurry (unarmed): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (15) + 5 = 20 Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5
Reflex Save: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (9) + 15 = 24

Plan for the next round is to use cure from the Life Sphere.
HP Restored: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

Your retaliatory strike missed, as did the first Flurry blow - but your second kick managed to literally cause the skeleton you struck to explode into tiny fragments...

Explosion Damage, Halved By Your Reflex Save: 1d6 ⇒ 5

...slightly scorching you before you could move away. Even before they could react, Kozuri darted forward, reaching out with open palm strikes.

Flurry: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7
Flurry: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (20) + 5 = 25
Crit: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (15) + 5 = 20

The first strike missed - the second, on the other hand, was plenty accurate... and another of the skeletons fell. Even as Kozuri got back into a readied stance, the skeleton lashed out at her...

Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 2 = 14

...narrowly missing her as she ducked down and bought the time you needed.

Unarmed Strike: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

Rather unfortunately, though, her countering blow was deflected by the last of the burning skeletons - and the Bloody Mudra, watching from behind, advanced until it was only five feet behind the last burning skeleton (which was continuing to attack your companion).

Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17 for Damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5
Claw: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7

After healing himself slightly, Astoroth pulls a flask of Holy Water from his bandoleer. "Kindly stay there for another moment, Miss Kozuri, as I attend to the Mudra." As he speaks, he draws on what he remembers about those creatures and hurls the flask at it.

Ranged Touch + Inspiration: 1d20 + 8 + 1d6 ⇒ (7) + 8 + (6) = 21 Positive Energy: 2d4 ⇒ (2, 2) = 4

The holy water splashed over the undead, burning through a lot of its bloody flesh with a snap and a sizzle - but it wasn't enough to bring the undead down entirely, and Kozuri took up a defensive position to block it even as it stepped forward and whipped four shortswords out at her. Even as it did, you could see its body slowly healing all on its own.

Melee: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 1 = 18
Melee: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10
Melee: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 1 = 11
Melee: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 1 = 20

If she hadn't been focused entirely on defense, two of those attacks might have been dangerous - as it was, she'd managed to knock all of the blows away, keeping the foe distracted for you. "I'm not sure how long I can hold off this many weapons!" she called back.

"Hold on just another moment." Astoroth lobs another flask of Holy Water before stepping up to take Kozuri's place.

Ranged Touch + Inspiration: 1d20 + 8 + 1d6 ⇒ (6) + 8 + (1) = 15 Positive Energy: 2d4 ⇒ (1, 4) = 5

The last undead's body broke apart as the holy water coated it, leaving the room clear of foes... and Kozuri let out a sigh of relief as the blades dropped to the ground. "Keep going this way?" she asked, gesturing to the well-made door ahead of you.

The Mudra dropped four short swords. There's nothing else of value in the room - it's very, ah, empty.

After making sure the skeletons won't rise again, Astoroth mends a few more of his wounds. "Miss Kozuri, do you require healing?" Once that's taken care of (if she accepts, of course), he retrieves his pack and makes a final sweep of the room before approaching the door.

Cure (self): 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10
Perception (room): 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (9) + 15 = 24

Take20 on the door. I still have the find traps and read magic senses up.

Kozuri declined the healing - she seemed in fairly good shape, actually. The door ahead was untrapped, and didn't have any signs of enchantment. Moving ahead...

Sumptuous hanging silks, plush cushions, and patterned rugs decorate this luxurious chamber. A cool breeze bearing the mingled scent of lotus flowers and perfume wafts through the room. The distant notes of a lively tune plucked out on a lyre are accompanied by the sounds of trickling water, birdsong, and feminine laughter.

Inside the room were two women, both of whom looked up and smiled as you entered. "Ah, a guest!" one of them said cheerfully. "Would you care for some fruit, or perhaps a little wine?"

This room seemed very pleasant - and that was suspicious. Plus, the odds of finding two friendly women in an abandoned tomb was incredibly unlikely. These were probably more guardians.

Knowledge(religion): 1d20 + 15 + 1d6 ⇒ (17) + 15 + (5) = 37 (know:planes/dungeoneering/arcana are within a point or two if they'd apply instead)

Whatever they were, these women could possess valuable information. The fact that they didn't immediately attack him and Kozuri was also promising. Perhaps they'd be amenable to friendly discourse.

"Thank you for the offer, but we don't wish to impose. I'm Astoroth, scholar of history, and this is my aide. Who do we have the pleasure of making the acquaintance of?"

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (7) + 15 = 22

At first glance, at least, the women did not appear to be guardians - and smiled broadly. "I am Bastetabi, wife of Sekh-pa-Mefer." one of them said candidly.

"And I am Senenetka, likewise." the other said. "Quite normal in our own time, I might add. Actually a little on the small side for a family, but he was very busy when we weren't able to... divert... him." she laughed softly.

"Tell me, what brings you here? We haven't had any company for a very long time, and we'd be quite grateful if you could sit down and talk for a time." Bastetabi said.

Astoroth gave a friendly smile, his suspicion partially abated. For one as obsessed with returning from death as the Pharaoh of the Sphinxes, it was only natural for him to preserve some base creature comforts for when he returned. "This pyramid has been lost in the annals of history for quite some time, so I can understand your desire for someone new to talk to. I believe we can spare some time. Tell me, how long have you been here?"

What races are the women, by the way?

Human, of obvious Osirian ethnicity.

The women looked at each other, then shrugged. Senenetka was the one who spoke. "We do not see the sun or the stars, nor the passing of the seasons. We have been here since our husband ruled - if you know when that was..." she shrugged slightly. "A long time has passed, I suspect. Longer than we expected when he died - I would dearly love to know why he has not yet come for us."

"I suspect his quest for godhood was unsuccessful, but it's also possible that he's become trapped elsewhere in this pyramid. If you could direct us to where he was laid, I'd be happy to ascertain his status."

The two women looked at each other for a moment, clearly hesitant to encourage you to go away so soon - but at the same time, your earlier words had been quite smooth and courteous.

"Our husband was - is - a great lover of knowledge." Bastetabi said slowly. "His tomb is hidden behind the knowledge of sphinxes, locked in such a way that only a wise man could get through it. He did not want to be disturbed by fools and robbers, you see, but was always more lenient to the sages of the land."

"Although your husband lived long before my time, I have always been fascinated by his research into the secrets of the sphinxes and look forward to having discourse with him. If, instead, something has happened that prevented his return, I will let you know posthaste. Do you have any knowledge of other guardians that might block our path? I'm a lover of knowledge, not violence."

The two women shook their heads. "We have remained here, waiting for his return, as instructed." Bastetabi explained. "I am sure there are some kinds of guardians, of course. There always are, in these tombs. Nothing that cannot be passed, though, of that I'm sure - he'd always intended to leave, after all."

"Thank you for the information. We will return shortly with your husband - or news regarding what has happened to him." Astoroth then exits the chamber and begins exploring the side passage he and Kozuri had bypassed on their way to the skeleton room. (the hall between Rooms 10 and 11 that points toward the center of the pyramid)

Maintaining read magic and see hazard.

This long, low corridor is decorated with hieroglyphs and carvings depicting kings, gods, and sphinxes in orderly geometric rows. Kozuri looked at them with interest as you passed - and with the ladies' advice in your mind, it actually wasn't that hard to locate a door halfway down it. That's the easy part - more relevantly, it's surrounded by a number of carvings that seem somehow connected to the door. The carvings depict five sphinxes, each with a different head: a falcon head, a female human head, a jackal head, a male human head, and a ram head.

Astoroth examines the carvings with interest as he attempts to determine the significance of these creatures.

Knowledge(engineering): 1d20 + 14 + 1d6 ⇒ (6) + 14 + (3) = 23 (to figure out how to work the door)
Knowledge(arcana): 1d20 + 15 + 1d6 ⇒ (15) + 15 + (6) = 36 (to identify the sphinxes)

In order to unlock the door, it's almost certainly necessary to press the sphinxes in the right order. Unlike many locks and traps, this is one that cannot be disabled or easily bypassed by any method short of entirely breaking it apart - it's built too securely for that.

Looking at the symbols themselves, the sphinx heads almost certainly represent a hieracosphinx, a gynosphinx, a cynosphinx, an androsphinx, and a criosphinx. They... well, they clearly called him the Pharaoh of Sphinxes for a reason. It's a bit obsessive, really.

There were two obvious solutions - the question was which did the Pharaoh use. One option was to press the buttons in alphabetical order, although the multitude of languages on Golarion made this unlikely to have been chosen. This puzzle was on the outside of the inner chambers, which meant it was designed to be solved by someone wishing to gain entrance. That left one option: the buttons had to be pressed in order of the creature's strength and power. The question was if they needed to be arranged in order from least powerful to most powerful or vice-versa.

INT Check + Inspiration: 1d20 + 8 + 1d6 ⇒ (4) + 8 + (1) = 13 (can I get a hint?)

I can't find any info on cynosphinxes, by the way. :-(

They're from Adventure Path #82. The Cynosphinx is a large, jackal-headed sphinx that acts as a hoarder of knowledge. CR 6, by the way, since you seem interested in arranging them by overall power.

It was not immediately obvious which order the buttons would need to be pressed in order to unlock the tomb - nor what might happen if they failed. You could keep searching through the rest of the pyramid to look for hints, of course, or simply start pushing things and hope they worked. Trial and error had worked for you during the Test of the Starstone...

Kozuri, meanwhile, was watching your studies with an interested look - archaeology was apparently not something that bored her.

That would explain why it didn't appear on d20PFSRD. And, hey, when I see the other sphinxes are CR 5, 7, 8, and 9, it's a natural assumption. ;-)

"There are a several possible combinations, and I'm not sure what will happen if I guess incorrectly. Please step back a little." Taking his own advice, Astoroth steps as far back as possible while still being able to see the buttons. Then, drawing upon the power of magic, he attempts to telekinetically push the buttons in the order of least-powerful to most-powerful.

Hyracosphinx, Criosphinx, Cynosphinx, Gynosphinx, Androsphinx

I'm assuming that I can do this because I have the Finesse talent, but please correct me if I'm wrong. I can also telekinetically push a pebble or something to push the buttons.

As you press each button, there's a click from behind the door, but no sign of it unlocking. There is, however, a thump from overhead - and looking carefully, you can see a small wooden tube moving back and forth. It likely held something nasty at one point, but whatever was once there is gone now.

Well, that eliminated one of the 120 possible combinations - assuming none of the buttons were supposed to be pressed multiple times. After waiting for a minute to make sure nothing else happened, Astoroth tried pushing the buttons in reverse order.

Androsphinx, Gynosphinx, Cynosphinx, Criosphinx, Hyracosphinx

The tube up above continued moving, but there was still no reaction from the door - that combination seemed to be incorrect. "Huh." Kozuri said, watching as you pressed them. "...Maybe it's a bit more complicated than that?" she suggested.

Where does the Cynosphinx fall in the hierarchy of sphinxes? As hoarders of knowledge, they may be ranked differently than their CR implies.

Not terribly high. Like many multi-creature categories in Pathfinder, CR is generally the main way of ranking them. XD So they're more important than the hieracosphinx, but less important than the criosphinx.

Ah, let's try swapping its place, then.

"That's very possible. Unfortunately, unlike the Pharaoh, I'm not an expert on sphinxes. Seeing as the most obvious options didn't work, I'm attempting to gain more insight on the locking mechanism. Do you have any ideas?" Unlike many deities, Astoroth was not afraid to admit his shortcomings and ask for advice. After all, learning from the knowledge of others meant that he learned something new.

Hyracosphinx, Cynosphinx, Criosphinx, Gynosphinx, Androsphinx - then in reverse order

As he pressed the buttons this time, he paid close attention to the clicks coming from behind the door. Perhaps he could use them to figure out the correct pattern.

In other words: Can I 'Mastermind' the answer? ;-)

On your fourth attempt at pushing buttons, the door finally clicks open and slides aside on old (but clearly working) mechanisms. Kozuri had been watching with interest, giving you plenty of room to work, but didn't seem to be very knowledgeable about these kinds of things.

Carvings cover the walls of this otherwise bare chamber. Two statues flank the far door, and...

Know Religion: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (11) + 15 = 26

...you recognize them as statues of Anubis, god of mummification, tombs, and the undead. He was still active before your fall, and as far as you know, this hasn't changed. A brief sense of nervousness flicks through you, and it only takes a moment to realize why - passing attention from any deity is bad enough, but any display of godly power could get their full attention - and have incredibly unpredictable results.

Astoroth pauses at the entrance to this chamber. He'd have to be especially careful here. "Miss Kozuri, I will be limited in regards to what I can do for some time. Please be particularly alert for trouble." His warning made, he carefully entered the chamber, scanning for trouble as he began to make his way through.

Take10 on Perception for a 25. see hazard and read magic are still up

There are some hieroglyphs on the wall, but they don't seem magical - just old. There were no traps within the chamber that you could see, though that didn't mean the room itself was safe.

Kozuri, meanwhile, simply nodded and shifted her stance slightly, clearly ready to try and react to trouble.

The lack of traps was a good thing, but there could still be a hidden guardian. Remaining alert, Astoroth approached the hieroglyphs to examine them more closely.

The hieroglyphs were almost certainly written in the ancient version of the Osirani tongue - not a language you knew, but definitely one that could be deciphered if you were fortunate enough to find a good sample somewhere within the room.