Eyeing the bones in the second sarcophagus suspiciously, When ya done there, the dwarf points his thumb at the bracelet around the second skeleton's wrist, ya might wanna gaze yar eyes on this.
Setting the lid to the side, Gwernach presses his luck and moves on to the third box...
Moving away from the first sarcophagi, Sasithorn keeps wondering exactly what the nature of the leather belt could be, and while he is thinking he peers at the bracelet in the second sarcophagi, and he sees that it is non-magical in every way. However, the craftsmanship is superb, and the gold wire bracelet is probably worth a considerable sum.
Meanwhile…
Gwernach takes a quick look at the third sarcophagi and finds more traces of blue and orange pigments, but cannot make out a defined shape. Opening the wooden lid he finds another slim skeleton, this one has no jewelry, no belt, but the garment remains here seem to indicate that this individual was buried wearing a multi-layer assembly of robes and skirts. The fabric appears to once have been dyed deep colors, but now has faded, and rotted to a tread bare, dull brown color.
Hmph, thas ones empty, Gwernach frowns as he examines the interior of the third sarcophagus, Well most-lay. Tha body's there an some rags.
"Hostiles approaching!" Marvin calls out, putting away their musket and readying their dagger. For the benefit of their newest companion, he calls out the creatures' weaknesses. "Slicing is effective, melee is inadvisable as their tentacles can trip and grapple within range. Light-sensitive."
Xor turns and casts Light 20' down the hall
Diarmal lifts the lighted arrow to his bow and takes position behind his allies.
When the light erupts down the passageway that Marvin is watching, the creatures that were lurking there suddenly fly into a rage and come barreling toward the chamber at full speed
Eh? More o'those things ya say? Readies his longbow.
Xor – 17
Gwernach - 16
Sassithorn - 15
Marvin - 11
Diarmal – 6
Round 1…
Xor quickly calculates the forward movement of the creatures, and realizes he is running out of time.
Xor Blesses the party
With the passageway filled with pale yellow light the advancing monsters seem a bit disoriented, but continue forward, though not as quickly.
Marvin steps forward, knife in hand, concluding that the best course of action is to form a chokepoint and prevent the monsters from rushing into the room.
When they get within 20'
Drawing back the string of his bow, Gwernach looses an arrow down the passageway. From the moment his fingers release the arrow however, the ranger realizes the shot is wasted. The sound of wood deflecting off of stone confirms it, Bah! Infernal contraption!
Xor – 17
Gwernach - 16
Sasithorn - 15
Marvin - 11
Diarmal – 6
round 1, wrap up
As the creatures continue to advance, Xor speaks a few simple words while making a strange gesture. A feeling of hope swells up in his companions.
Gwernach loses an arrow down the confines of the passageway, but the missile strikes the wall.
Sasithorn takes a moment to place an enchantment on one of Gwernach’s arrows
Marvin moves closer to the passageway entrance, hoping to stop the advancing monsters before they can get into the chamber
NPCing Diarmal
Round 2…
The monsters come closer. The creature at the front tries to move passed Marvin and Diarmal, just as Xor unleashes a barrage of rocks aimed at the lead creature.
One of the rocks strikes the creature right in the center of its body and at first it appears as if the body rebounds inward absorbing the impact, but the force is too great and the body continues collapsing in on itself until the creature implodes vanishing from existence on this plane
The rest of the creatures move closer
The crerature's tentacles lash out at Marvin but he manages to keep his feet moving and defends himself with his arms
Tent_red – destroyed by a rock
Gwernach's eyes sparkle from the incandescentness of Sasithorn's magics. Drawing the bow string taught, the ranger angles his shot for the advancing creatures loosing the arrow as the beastie comes into view.
Marvin counter-attacks with their dagger but focuses more on blocking the way than doing any damage.
Tentacruels – 17
Xor – 17
Gwernach - 16
Sasithorn - 15
Marvin - 11
Diarmal – 6
Round 2, wrap up
Gwernach fires an arrow at one of the beasts, and the missile seems to pass almost harmlessly through the creature's body.
But the glow of the Black Candle magic lingers emanating from the holes left in the monsters body and a sizzling sound can be heard as smoke wafts out of the wounds.
Marvin tries to slice at the body of the creature attempting to force its way around him, but the tentacles effectively block his attempts.
The way of positive life energy rolls over the creature in the front shattering its dark life force into oblivion and then spreads back down the passageway disintegrating the remaining two monsters
Wool now, Thot waddunt to bad at all.let's ed on down and get the rest of em[/b]
"While I believe it important to cleanse this sacred place of such evil creatures, there is no telling how many more may lurk within the catacombs below. The very fact this place was once sanctified to the old Drasbian pantheon may have attracted the beasts. We should proceed with great caution."
Right. Slinging his bow, Gwernach takes up his waraxe and selects the hallway from which the Tentacruels had appeared. Moving quietly he picks up the glowing rock along the way. Holding the rock like a flashlight, he shines the light into every corner of the hallway keeping his eyes peeled for any more of those things.
Marvin sheathes their dagger, wielding their musket at the ready again. "This unit will continue acting as lookout for the perimeter while the area is being inspected."
Gwernach puts away his bow and takes an axe in one hand as he slowly makes his way to the east. After retrieving the glowing rock in the passageway, he holds it up high above his head with the other hand to shed as much light as it can.
The passageway has a slight declined angle to it and continues straight for another forty feet before it ends in a small chamber with a single sarcophagus.
The sarcophagus here doesn’t look as old as the others you found, and is not adorned with any carvings or paintings. It is made from wood that has been stained a dark black color, and it is bound shut with three bands of iron that have no means of removing them unless you destroy them or the sarcophagus.
The opposite wall of this small chamber bears a stone embedded in the center of the wall with a small inscription in ancient elven script.
Gwernach stops at the threshold of the chamber and signals the others to follow. In a hushed voice the dwarf expresses his feelings about the ominous black sarcophagus with the iron bands, Am think'n tha's not someth'n ta open right away. Then pointing to the stone embedded in the center of the wall he adds, Diarmal, thas more o'tha old writ'n.
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Diarmal runs his hand over the text as he translates the old tongue. The words are jumbled, likely from the difference in dialect a few dozen centuries can bring. Or perhaps more, Diarmal notes as he glances around the chamber. He keeps a lighted arrow in hand, running it along the wall to direct attention to particular words as he speaks.
"Seems to be something about a betrayer of some kind... The names are Afalon Moradrul here, and Belrasande here, though it is difficult to tell which is doing the betraying in such ancient text. There's also mention of the Beauvingian goddess Moloween--here--which is unusual, even in such an old Drasbian tomb. I suspect whoever the betrayer is, they have been interred here as a punishment."
Although trying to be understanding, Gwernach puzzles with names of people he's never heard of as though they are supposed to mean something. As he cradles his war axe he offers, Right...so bad man lock'd up in a tomb fa betray'n tha goddess. Let me know if ya gonna open it, Ah'll be down tha hall.
Figuring he's out lived his usefulness in this chamber, the ranger makes his way back the way they'd come, tossing the rock playfully in the air and catching it again as he goes. Returning to the first chamber containing the three sarcophagi he selects one of the two remaining passages - north. Illuminated stone in hand, he tosses the light down the corridor and sees what happens.
Gwernatch takes the light with him as he leaves, leaving the others in darkness.
Once he reaches the northern passageway he tosses the lighted rock a way ahead of him.
Xor follows Gwernach as he has no interest in coffins
Looking over his shoulder at Xor, Gwernach shrugs nonchalantly Looks like anoth'r one, and heads down the north passage.
Gah...leave the dead to rawt
Diarmal refreshes the cast of light on his arrow, keeping it ready as a torch to guide him through the dismal tombs. Not wanting to disturb the dead, he returns to the antechamber while Gwernach heads down another passage to (apparently) another crypt.
Making his way down to the chamber, Diarmal looks for another inscription for who is interred within.
Gwernach follows the passage to another small chamber, with a single sarcophagus. This one is simple, unadorned, and made of dark wood. Against the wall behind the sarcophagus is another small metal plaque.
The plaque is imprinted with a flowing script similar to what was seen in the other chamber. Without an understanding of the formal symbology of the script, reading it is very difficult.
Well? Tha a nice guy buri'd 'ere? Should we pop open tha trunk? With a smile, Gwernach's inquire clearly shows he is here merely for the prospect of finding treasure.
Diarmal runs his hand over the ancient script, hmming as he translates the difficult dialect. "Huh. This may well be an ancestor of my own clan. Seems a Amodel Illsut is interred here, though his significance is hard to place. There is mention of Nerimexetas, a goddess of the sea, and and apparent relationship between Amodel and her voice. It is unclear whether this voice was her mortal speaker or an embodiment of the goddess herself. In any case, this one may be safer to open, though I'd urge caution without a proper ritual to disinter these ancestors. At the very least, a glimpse of the man within may offer some insight to his purpose."
Moving over to the sacrophagus and looking for a good spot to start prying it open Gwernach asks, Do ya hav a particul'r rich-u-al in mind? or should we just go slow-lay?
"Unfortunately I did not deal much with the departed... Lady Aisling's light guides me to aid the living in their struggles, not the deceased in passing on. I can say a few prayers, but I cannot say for sure if the dead will approve."
Shrugging, Gwernach gets to work and the sound of creaking wood soon fills the chamber.