The Pyramid of Shadows (Inactive)

Game Master PathlessBeth

I assume we're all together now?

Yes

Turning her attention to Yessai, Gurrak responds

"I think perhaps my Storm Giant accent may have rubbed him up the wrong way..." Yessai says to her comrades somewhat hastily. Bluff: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 2 = 14

She tries to contain the damage. Drawing her giant bastard sword Yessai points it toward the Giant demonstratively and yells angrily toward him...

Intimidate: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (11) + 11 = 22

how far up to the top? No way to melee him from here. Any other exits?

If I read the description right we're 10 feet down in a pit. There's a reasonable chance you could jump high enough to get your hands over the edge of the pit and pull yourself out, but you would be vulnerable to the giant while doing that. If you were a normal person somebody might be able to give you a boost up for a similar effect, but if you're as heavy as an Eberron warforged that would likely take several people to make it work. And the giant could still pound you flat while you were trying to stand up. If we tangle with this guy it looks like it's going to have to start with ranged weapons.

Well, if he reaches down and overextends himself we can pull him in...

GM - so the corpses/bodies are armored/have gear? And the pile, does it still shift as if something were under it/stirs within?

Turning to the others in the pit, De'Arv'Ki whispers quieter than usual that "I can climb the sides of the pit and set a rrrrrope on a piton on the top side, is this what we want to do?"

Mundarion whispers back, "Let's wait to see what the giant is going to do first. Otherwise you could end up pounded flat."

Mundarion also takes a quick look at the bodies to see if there might be something salvageable.

Perception check for salvageable stuff: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (1) + 11 = 12

Gemheart pulls out a gem. "Anyone of you psionic? Try to use this. Supposed to find secret doors." he whispers.

how far up to the top? No way to melee him from here. Any other exits?

It is 10 feet to the top of the pit. There could be something at the bottom of the bit, but if there is, it is buried pretty deep in dead bodies.

GM - so the corpses/bodies are armored/have gear? And the pile, does it still shift as if something were under it/stirs within?

Indeed, the corpses are all armed and armored, as if they died in battle. They have lots of different kinds of weapon and armor you can find any mundane equipment you want in the pile. The corpses appear fresh, as if they died at most a few hours ago.

Gurrak growls back at Yessai

Yessai may need to improve her giant-sweettalking-abilities:) There might be time to save things before the creature attacks...but it would be tough.

Gemheart cannot succeed at any of those skill DCs. He will switch from the lucerne hammer to the bill. It'll be harder to climb out with armor on, but he isn't taking any chances. He has no DEX modifier to AC to lose, anyway. He will assume total defense until a course of action is decided upon.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (19) + 9 = 28

What info can i get about the door?
Tapping the others to draw their attention, De'Arv'Ki attempts to point out

Knowledge: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (3) + 9 = 12

Yess sighs. Sometimes only pandering to greatness was the only way. Happily this was not one of those times. Hopefully the creature's common sense rested in one of its two heads. She held her arms out wide and took a knee, genuflecting for the sake of the deception.

"You are truly perceptive, Gurrak. We entered your pit looking for the plants, roots and all. Let us slay the plants, and you can decide what to do after. If you kill all of us, we can not help you. And if you don't, you lose. Either way you will be less able than if you allow us to help you."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25

Mundarion readies his longbow and casts Gravity Bow. He does not point it at the giant though.

ASF Check: 1d100 ⇒ 69

And the spell goes off normally.

Mundarion whispers to Paddfoot, "Go ahead and do that if this thing attacks."

@Mundarion: Well let's just hope she doesn't see you readying your bow...;)

Darned if we do, darned if we don't. Gemheart is already swapping weapons around and we're still not sure whether there's something moving around under the bodies. I did specify that I wasn't pointing it at the giant.

Mundarion whispers to Yessai, "If the giant is worried about the bow tell him that I think we're being followed."

Mundarion makes a show of checking the area/sector behind the group.

Hang on, i'll securrrre a rrrrope to the outside of this... wonderrrrful pit...
De'Arv'Ki proceeds to climb out of the pit, secure a piton, hang her rope from it and glance around warily, as if looking for something...
Climb = 28 (take 10, +18)
Strength Check to imbed a piton: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15

Yess wipes a fine bead of sweat off her forehead. Standing up, she translates for the party.

"Okay. She thinks we've found plants in here, some kind of enemy of hers. She's moving back to allow us out. She wants us to go and find plant-creatures generally and... root them out...".

Mundarion breathes a sigh of relief. He takes a little bit of time to see if any of the bodies has stuff he wants. He's hoping to find a few throwing darts and more arrows.

Perception check for gear: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (3) + 11 = 14

De'Arv'Ki successfully secures and lowers a rope into the pit.
DC 5 climb check to get out for everyone else.
Mundarion picks up 30 arrows and 15 darts.

Outside of the pit you can get a better view of the room. The pit roughly sits in the middle. To the west*, is a marble staircase about ten feet wide, leading down. To the east is a corridor splitting two ways. To the south, there is a hall leading to a green, shaking wall.
To the north lies a much longer corridor, one which you cannot see the end of.
There are no apparent light sources in the room, but the room is filled with dim lighting by whatever sort of magic created the Pyramid in the first place.

Gurrak stands to the northeast of the pit. Behind him is an alcove on with five hooks on the wall. Each hook has a head on it: a catfolk's head, an orc's head, an elf's head, a drow's head, and an Elan's head. Each head looks as if it has been decapitated less than an hour ago.

*The Pyramid is its own demiplane, so directions like 'west' are arbitrary. I chose one side of the pyramid to be north, just to make communicating descriptions easier.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21
De'Arv'Ki walks up to the wall with the head hooks slowly, in case Gurrak gets mad again, and investigates the:

Take ten on climb check

Thomas will stand with the rest of the party and eye the giant nervously.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29

Yessai looks at the drow head.

"That head is moving."

She indicates it to Mundarion, before addressing it in elvish.

(Take 10 on Climb check also = 10 + 1 Str, -1 ACP = 10)

Mundarion puts the extra arrows in his quiver and places the darts in various different spots on his weapons harness.

Mundarion simply takes 10 on his climb check. He asks, "What are we going to do with the silver dragonborn? Just leave her there?"

Who is Nightblade, Harska and Garash Vren? If Yess hasn't met the former two, what do they look like at least?

@GM - I think you missed this... I purposefully do not read spoilers not meant for me... Crazy, I know...

Gemheart climbs out with no trouble, and takes little interest in the perceived "battle trophies" of the giant.

"Where to?"

Nightblade is a dragonborn thief who was aiding De'Arv'ki and Midio. Harshka is a silver dragonborn sorceress who Gemheart and Mundarion knocked out, who is in the pit. Garesh Vren is not here--he/she/it is someone Nightblade knows.
"Please, someone help me carry Harshka out of the pit,"
Nightblade begs of the group.

The shaking drow head shakes a bit more. A soft, female voice whispers back

Gurrak, however, notices Yessai's gestures and is eyeing her suspiciously.
The voice continues

Yess considers the "voice" momentarily

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19

before turning to the edge of the pit to assist hauling the scalykind out. She calls over her shoulder matter of factly in Giant

While working at the edge of the pit Yess whispers to Mundarion.

Mundarion also tries to do a Sense Motive on what the "head" said.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (1) + 9 = 10

And with rolls like that isn't helping much.

Mundarion says: "Granted that the head won't be going anywhere under its own power, but we don't know what the giant is going to do with it. I've also been thinking about what Karavakos said. That to get out of here we would have to 'kill us three times.' The 'us' implies that there's more than one person we have to kill. The question is, does that include the giant?"

Mundarion says: "Granted that the head won't be going anywhere under its own power, but we don't know what the giant is going to do with it. I've also been thinking about what Karavakos said. That to get out of here we would have to 'kill us three times.' The 'us' implies that there's more than one person we have to kill. The question is, does that include the giant?"

Thomas will also observe the skull.

Sense motive: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13

I was assuming Mudarion returned comment in Elvish.

@GM - are the creature's two heads differently gendered?

When she is done bellowing she raises a javelin in each hand, pointed into the pit.

is at variance with:

Gurrak stands to the northeast of the pit. Behind him is an alcove...Gurrak does not move--he seems relatively calm.

Actually I meant for Gurrak's gender to be ambiguous.
Those sensing the motives of the voice within the drow head do not notice anything suspicious.

In response to Yessai's question, Gurrak waives to the south:

Nightblade looks around at the group and asks again
"Is anyone going to help get Harska out of the pit?"

Mundarion sighs and then says, "Oh alright, I'll help."

Mundarion then moves to help Nightblade.

De'Arv'Ki moves back towards the pit, and states, "Let me help you... What did you say you name was, elf?"

Yess was already assisting/helping the dragonborn out of the pit..

Yess considers the "voice" momentarily...

before turning to the edge of the pit to assist hauling the scalykind out.

Hearing Gurrak, Yess turns her head.

Then in Common, loudly and with great emphasis and obviously for the benefit of the creature if it speaks common :

"Let's get the last of us out of the pit and do the great Gurrak's bidding! Keep to ourselves and don't linger over the heads!!!"

Whilst they are helping harska out of the pit, De'Arv'Ki whispers to yessai and mundarion :

Mundarion takes his Dart back from Paddfoot and replies in Elvish:

As soon as Mundarion is finished helping Harska out of the pit he casts Detect Magic

ASF Check: 1d100 ⇒ 5

And then he tries again. ASF Check: 1d100 ⇒ 45

The spell having finally gone off, Mundarion looks around trying to determine what level of magic is operational and what school(s) of magic are involved.

Spellcraft Check: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21

He he he, got you dart! by the way, what does ASF stand for?

Yess was already assisting/helping the dragonborn out of the pit..

Yessai wrote:

Yess considers the "voice" momentarily...

before turning to the edge of the pit to assist hauling the scalykind out.

oops:P

He he he, got you dart! by the way, what does ASF stand for?

Arcane Spell Failure chance

The head cries out again

Ah, cool. thanks for that
De'Arv'Ki murmurs softly to Mundarion in elven:

i just realized. I can speak elvish too! Actually, if gemheart can speak it or take a point in linguistics next level, it could be our party launguage. Makes others less likely to understand us or eavesdrop :)
Where am i? Why are there bodies beneath me? WHY IS THERE BLOOD ON MY ROBES? Have i died?
Midiotoziggeroto apears to be in a state of shellshock, shaking lightly but has thrus far shown no signs of being aware of what was going on around him. Then, without warning he lets out a quiet moan and winks out of existance.
Ahhh. AHHH! Get. Me. Out. Of. HERE!
POP!
Midiotoziggeroto teleports 1d4 ⇒ 4 to the West side of the pit, towards the staircase. He then ports again, ending up cowering against the wall on the staircase, clutching his head in his hands.
Ok. Calm down buddy. Think. What happened? IwaswithPadfootandNightbladewhenIwentdowntheholeandaghosttookmethroughapyra midlikeportalandIamnotDEAD!
Then hearing the others speak in elvish
You guys are here too? Another room? Theres a staircase here, lets go down that way, away from here! POP!
And with that the Elan ports down the staircase again.
Sorry here. Normally he wont be so... Jumpy. It was the best way that i could think of to quickly catch back up. Oh ya, he was speaking in elven there.

After hauling the unconscious dragonborn out Yessai makes a great show of being tired.
She gets to her feet gingerly, walks up to Gurrak and beyond. She addresses the creature again, attempting to draw its attention away from the others' consideration of the head.

Bluff: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21

Thomas will start moving towards the stairs Midoto teleported to.

I will then turn to Mundarion.

No probs, you seem to have caught up easily midio. Also, all of this speech is in elven
De'Arv'Ki proceeds to retrieve her rope and piton, then catchs up with midio, proceeding to ask him "Arrrre you ok, little hunterrrr? you seem... disturrrrbed, much like a kenderrrr I know would get..."