Basically, if I want to run a one-off short module, if I want to test how I work with a group, if I want to do something short and sweet and at least a little bit wierd... it goes here!
Sorry, I'm overseas, internet is bad, so I'm going to be brief. Don't forget the +2 to attacks and saves from heroism, Usawoti.
sense motive:1d20 ⇒ 19
Inarus steadies himself with Usawoti's help. "Thanks." He tells Usawoti gratefully. He lets the mouse burrow into his shirt. 'Yeah, probably safer for him there, though what is he?' Inarus wonders idly.
Inarus's feet begin to move in a dance as he whips the vargouilles good. Activate 1 round archeologist luck as a swift action. Also shifting 5 ft, to stand side by side witg Usawoti. I have 10 ft reach and max 3 AOOs per turn.
Uswoti: you forgot the +2 from Heroism (as noted by Inarus); otherwise, you didn't roll the "potential damage" of your Holy weapon v. evil foes. Otherwise, it looks good.
Uswoti: you forgot the +2 from Heroism (as noted by Inarus); otherwise, you didn't roll the "potential damage" of your Holy weapon v. evil foes. Otherwise, it looks good.
...otherwise, you didn't roll the "potential damage" of your Holy weapon v. evil foes. Otherwise, it looks good.
I wasn't sure that the fungus/mushroom/pustule/self-eating/tentacle-ridden/batwings-for-ears head was evil...I mean who are we to judge, could be a wrong place/wrong time thing...just sayin'...
The lot of you quickly begin moving, but it proves a more tedious (and swift) task than exciting - the creatures quickly squish, squelch, pop, fizzle, and otherwise stop their twitching entirely - even the weirdly fast-growing fungal shelves and colonies seem to die.
Soon the task becomes less, "worrisome" and more, "tedious and disgusting" - and, "daunting" as the rain of heads continues, and the number becomes... impossibly large. A few almost recover, but quick thinking, sharp eyes, and deadly weaponry take them down before they can truly fly.
After a good ten minutes or so, the heads stop falling.
It takes a good twenty minutes (long enough to turn into a dull, boring slog, albeit one with admittedly dangerous creatures you're putting down) before any of them manage to get off so much as a screech - and it's a pathetic one at that, barely audible... but audible enough that it has an effect. As one raspy scratch manages to get through (before almost immediately being put down by a sharp, swift arrow from Golnan), you notice an attempt by a whole chorus of others...
Holy carp, that's a lotta dice!:
Muwahahahah~!:1d100 ⇒ 13 Muwahahahah~! Pt. 2:1d100 ⇒ 58 Son of Return of the Muwahahahah~! Pt. 3/4.76:1d100 ⇒ 41 QQ-moar:1d100 ⇒ 29 Wat:1d100 ⇒ 15 Eh...:1d100 ⇒ 51 WEALP:1d12 ⇒ 9 WEALP2:1d12 ⇒ 7 WEALP3:1d12 ⇒ 1
There is a single moment of relative silence, and then you all hear... something... a deep and ominous booooonnn~nng~! sound, followed by an eerie tuneless piping. Voices begin oddly adding something akin to musical "dots" - joining together to create a minor tune, with an occasionally unnatural sound, before some bizarre cross between a whistle and hum buzzes, and the voices fall silent for the breath of a second, a lingering voice fading to somnolence.
Then a beautiful aria rises from somewhere - over the ridge? from the hideous heads you are working so hard to destroy? from the earth itself? from adjacent to you, sung to your very ear? - for a brief time, being joined by the chorus of voices and fading on a lingering echo...
... only to start immediately again, exactly as before.
You don't know:1d20 ⇒ 12 You definitely don't know:1d20 ⇒ 15 No, I don't care what it looks like, you're wrong:1d20 ⇒ 10
Inarus-only:
Inarus watches as the chorus flows, and shattered, rotten, flayed bits of the puss-filled fungus fall to the earth all around, bursting to new life and surging forth into the black, rotten morass infecting the sea beyond, as one of the heads surges forth triumphantly, and begins cackling with maddened glee, speaking in its vile language, even as the entire region surges with lightning bolts arcing across hundreds of heads, exploding them in an orgiastic frenzy, and, as the sky turns to even-greater blackness all around, causing the black tide of vile darkness to surge toward you - hundreds of creatures strong!
The explosion takes it past Usawoti's ankles - the closest of the three of you to this madness - who immediately begins seeping tiny amounts of the vile black liquid from every orifice (including pores) - beginning to sweat forth the nastiness and filth as it surges, his eyes turning entirely black as he stares up at the heavens! ... and Golan suffers the same fate, almost immediately.
Your new little mouse-friend cowers, horrified, in your shirt.
... what do you do.
Golan and Usawoti:
As the chorus of screeches causes waivers and breaks under the clear warping of reality, they see one of the heads briefly break free, laughing maniacally and screeching something in its language, before black lightning surges through the earth and all around shattering a multitude of the vile things and causing vile puss-laden eruptions and spore burst that (ever-so-briefly) catch flame before turning to incredibly fine ash.
... and then across the entire region, the fetid corrupt death suddenly spawns into fresh life as flowering bushes, plants, grass, berries, and even a few sprouts of trees.
The burst of verdant life rushes up to and past first Usawoti - the closest to this madness - and then Golan, who suddenly find green sprouts and soft flowers blossoming from their flesh, hair, and feathers.
A humongous swarm of brilliant butterflies bursts forth with this brief gasp of pure life, as the stormy sky is suddenly shriven over-head, and a brilliant series of sheets of incredible color* that were hiding beyond the darkness, illuminating all in a soft low light.
* Determine among yourselves and your history if you have seen such a thing as an aurora before.
Also: I'll need a Will save; DC 40; you may make this save each round. If you fail the save, you are dazed for the round, by the shifting beauty above. If not, you may act normally.
A powerful roar* is simultaneously heard in the distance, as a couple dozen of the heads that survived the bizarre scene before you scrape themselves along.
The heads are within range of a bow, and you have a 45% chance of having 1d3 near enough to you for melee; roll it at the beginning of your turn. Any of them have a 10% chance of still being able to get themselves airborne.
The aria gets Innarus puzzled. 'How can something evil like flying heads have such beautiful voices? Or maybe it's something else?'
Inarus quickly backs away from the black tide of vile darkness, then uses his whip to coil around Usawoti, hoping to pull him out of it.
(Drop bardic performance, lingers for 2 rounds(lingering performance)? Forgot Fate's favored trait, Archaeologist luck would give +4 to hit and damage
I... don't really think that feat's rules do much for you in this particular situation...? I mean, I don't think you added anything that didn't belong, and it's good to know you have that, though! I expect awesome things from Inarus, now... :D
I'll definitely allow lingering performance. It's fine - generally, if you've spent solid resources to do a thing, you can do the thing, so long as it seems good; that said, going over some of those kinds of questions and tricks in the Discussion is a good idea, so I can help remind you, should you forget at some point, and so I know if I'm accidentally hitting you with something that would otherwise entirely negate the party's ability to handle it. I try to avoid that.
You beat his CMD, you may drag him half your speed: 15 ft.
Inarus only:
The dark tide swarms across your friends, and begins oozing from them, as they join the impossible aria, the black blood-like dark waters frothing forth from their empty maws and slack-jawed zombie-like visage, death having claimed them!
As you try a hopeless attempt to save one of your already-dead comrades from savage dissolution, you haul him away, only for the surge of filthy nauseating death to swarm up to you and attempt an assault - over half a dozen of the filthy things surrounding you on all sides! Golan quickly is overwhelmed by the filthy tide and falls to a series of blows and slams; you get to watch as his flesh is corrupted and melts before you, his bones animated as a necromantic hideousness, as he turns - and Usawoti, surrounded as he is, cannot last!
Every time you are hit, please roll a fortitude; the DC is 30; if you succeed, you are sickened for 1 minute (duration resets, so long as you succeed all, it's only 1 minute); if you fail: any 1 failed save yields nausea 10 minutes, and 1d3 Con damage.
Please describe, in intricate detail, everything that you are experiencing as a character in your post, no matter how bad this seems. If you do die, I have exactly one trick to avoid a TPK (and maybe even your character's death) - this kind of trick can only be used once, however, and I don't guarantee your survival, here. It may be a shorter pregame than anticipated (but if so, that's fine - I'm more or less ready to start the other). Your death, here, may complicate it, though.
If you do survive, please let me know what you do, and quickly!
Golan and Uswoti only:
Though dazed, the two of you hear Inarus grunting and struggling with tremendous effort, while Golan actually feels himself being attacked by the other man! He falls to his face as he's pulled feet first, in a daze, toward a wordless crazed-looking Inarus, amidst this otherwise surreal scene of beauty in the midst of the horror!
Both men can actually see the visions afflicting Inarus' mind playing above him and within his aura, revealed by the aurora - how Golan and Usawoti seem to be almost zombie versions of themselves, surrounded by those vile sea-ooze-things, their flesh dissolving, and their bones reanimating into dead things.
From this point on, I will no longer be giving you secret messages, Golan, as Inarus believes you have died and become an undead. You are free to read Usawoti's, however, and both of you may read Inarus', now, despite it saying "Inarus only." Golan and Usawoti, please make a second save each day of gameplay - for this purpose, Golan, I'd prefer a single dice roll each day/"round" of action, though that mass one was ideal for a starter - at least, since Inarus chose to drag Usawoti. Thanks!
In the distance the roars turn into a loud massive pounding, as an enormous thing can be heard pounding in your general direction.
Golan remains utterly overwhelmed but what is going on, his consciousness floating along helplessly, like a leaf trapped in a cyclone - utterly powerless to do anything, but observe.
Falling heads, spirits, when will it end?’ Pressing on through the raining pustule filled facial horrors, after what seems like hours of stomping and kicking and trying to calm Mope the heads stop falling and after what became a long boring slog through the vile creatures…the chorus begins….’By the spirits, what is that?’ Usawoti begins to look around nervously.
Then a beautiful aria rises and fades becoming a lingering echo, only to return to the chorus of screeches and suddenly the clear maniacal laughter. Usawoti calls to his animal companions, ”Stay close friends, it is always the darkest before the dawn.”
Black lightning surges through the earth, the horrendous faces incinerated to fine ash, across the entire region, the fetid corrupt death suddenly spawns into fresh life as flowering bushes, plants, grass, berries, and even a few sprouts of trees. ’I knew it, light and goodness will prevail in this forsaken place.’ Usawoti smiles as a swarm of brilliant butterflies bursts forth with pure life, a brilliant illuminates all in a soft low light as the aurora becomes visible. ”Look Shuvuu, the aurora, how long since we have seen the northern lights.” Usawoti was so distracted by the lights that he didn’t even notice the violent roar.
’What is that, why would that happen.’ As a waking dream shifts from pleasant memory to a nightmare, Usawoti stands transfixed with horror as he watches Inarus attack their mutual friend. ’He thinks were zombies, he is under a spell, will he attack me next? I must stop him before Golan gone.’ Usawoti stands transfixed by his own nightmare as in the distance the roar turns into a thunderous pounding.
fort:1d20 ⇒ 18 trying to follow the flow here, if my understanding of the events are off let me know ;)
Usawoti - it's actually you the whip is dragging; otherwise, it probably doesn't matter much anymore, or won't soon...
I knew that was happening but I wasn't sure how Usawoti perceived it. The good news, no matter what happens, his consciousness can continue so we can keep the dream scape thing going into eternity...butterflies and rainbows for everyone...
fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (10) + 13 = 23 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 3 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (5) + 13 = 18 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 2 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (11) + 13 = 24 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 3 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (8) + 13 = 21 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 2 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (16) + 13 = 29 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 3 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 2 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (18) + 13 = 31 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (10) + 13 = 23 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 3 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (18) + 13 = 31 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (2) + 13 = 15 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 2 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (1) + 13 = 14 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 2 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (7) + 13 = 20 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 1 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28 con dmg:1d3 ⇒ 3 fort save:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (17) + 13 = 30
Inarus watches in horror as the dark tide(ok, maybe not exactly the right kind…but you get the idea) consumes Golan and he is animated as one of them. As the dark tide begins to crawl over him, slamming him with a barrage of blows, he manages to gasp out,”Erevel, run! Save yourself!”, before he succumbs to the gut wrenching nausea, and starts puking his guts out. (With nothing coming out, since ring of sustenance;) Each blow saps his life force, with a deathly lethargy flowing up his veins. It soon becomes too tiring to even draw breath, and he succumbs to the darkness beckoning him…
"Idiots. ***-*******-****** imbiciles." Ereven mutters. "Every last one of you."
He has on his face what appears to be a pair of blackened sand-glass partial-orbs hastily cobbled together with wire (leaving his eyes no longer visible) and stuck to his face with a gum of some sort.
"At least have the thrice-cursed decency to spew it in ****ing bag." he grumbles. "It reeks... oh, wait, no, that's just you.". Did... he just make a joke?
He ignores the apocalypse happening everywhere and walks up to Golan.
Quickly moving his hands across the ground, more of the blackened glass forms in bubbles, that he strings with wire and then uses spirit gum to stick across his eyes. Inarus watches the man paste the odd contraption to a skeleton. He then walks back toward the festering remains of Usawoti and does the same.
Golan, Usawoti, you have lost the dazed condition. You can see a reflection of Inarus' view - a hazy vision - in his aura, however, sunglasses aside, things basically appear to you as they did before Inarus attacked you. Without those glasses, though saves will be made each round.
Inarus is... confused. Even as a vile ropy darkness consumes portions of him and his veins course with poison, he... is fine? Is he? Or is he a rotting husk? Alive? Undead? It... is the kind of thing that could drive a man mad...
Inarus, you have no damage and your scores are normal. Mmmmmmaybe none of what you saw actually happened?
"Stop blubbering over the living and get ready. He's almost here, and those ****-heads are just about to-" he's cut off by an enormous roar as a sight so incongruous as to be hard to believe rears its head above the hill - a green serpentine dragon the size of a horse gripping an enormous lance riding a massive elephant-like creature skewering several of the rotted vargoulle-like parasites and turning toward you!
Draconic speakers only:
"Invaders! Taste the steel of sin for my mistresses! Not even the ashes of your worthless stuff will remain!"
"Was he always this much of a ********? It's been so long, I can't recall. Well, it's your show, 'heroes' - I can't interfere..." Erevel slinks off nonchelantly past the two scaly terrors, who ignore him entirely.
An enormous crossbow bolt launches itself towards you, going wide, but another from the quiver hanging off the side of box the serpent-thing rides within loads itself with no hands intervening, and the beast charges, lance down...
Roll initiative! The only time it matters for this is if something comes up where one action would negate another. This duo has taken their actions for now.
With a clear threat to focus on, Golan ignores the crumbling reality around him, casting aside all other concerns, so that his world contracts down to himself, and the strange beast assaulting the party.
"I'm alive? How?" Inarus pets himself all over, incredulous at finding himself in one piece, when his last memories were of him being engulfed and consumed by the dark tide. 'Or was it just a nightmare that I've awoken from?'
He glimpses at the corner of his eye, Erevel strapping thebdark glasses on a skeleton of Usawoti. 'No, don't look. Therein lies the path to madness. Or maybe...I'm one of them too...just living on borrowed time.'
Take 10, knowledge arcana 28 on dragon, and take 10, knowledge nature 25 on elephant. I have not updated my character profile for skills with heroism bonus.
concentration check for mirror image, DC 19:1d20 + 14 ⇒ (8) + 14 = 22
images:1d4 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
He speaks some words and gestures, with his feet moving in dance steps, and 4 images of himself appear. Mirror image + archaeologist luck
Pah, posted the whole lot, forgot to roll for init
Inarus sings out a single note, and a golden coloured trip wire appears in the path of the charging Mammoth and its half dragon rider, and anchors its two ends to some local vegetation.
’Imbiciles, Imbiciles, what, who, aaaahhhhhhh, Ereven is calling us imbiciles, I never thought I would be happy to hear…glasses? He made glasses?’ Usawoti temporarily forgets about the lights and butter flies and his friend trying to kill them as his attention is drawn to Ereven. ’Reeks…did he just make a joke?’
’Inarus, did not see things the same as I did, does Golan?’Looking through his new made glasses Usawoti realizes that not everything had been what it seemed to everybody.
init:1d20 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7
Then Seeing the mounted attacker as Ereven declares that he was unable to help them. Usawoti turns toward the attackers. ’They are large, two can play at that game’ Smiling to himself. ’Well, it actually would be three since he is mounted.’ Usawoti resting his hand on the handle of his hammer calls upon the spirits and requests their assistance to be the size of an ogre. ”Sünsnüüd nadad avarga khemjeeg olgokh.”
Shoanti:
”Spirits grant me the size of a giant.” [ooc]I’m assuming that it’s ok that Usawoti speaks Shoanti, using Mongolian by the way
As the steed and rider surge forward, you each gain a better look at the two absurd and terrifying creatures.
The rider is a massive horse-sized serpentine and wingless creature that has jade scales and antlers, and sounds like grinding stones as it shifts side to side, riding forth. Spiked silvery metal covers much of its form, and you realize that it's wearing armor sewn into its body and woven into its scales and using augmenting its body. Bizarrely, it holds a massive lance, and has numerous other weapons strapped to its body. A banner flies high above, with a black winged horse with a "negative" symbol roughly approximating an ornate "Y" across it displayed on one side; and on the other is a dragon in knightly armor, riding an elephantine monster, with a winged and clawed shadow behind them.
The very elephantine monster pictured on the flag is also visible before you; an antlered thick-skinned beasts bearing down with large dull green-black ivory tusks flanking a long, prehensile snout, and a mouth full of razor sharp and hideous teeth. Dull black and jade scales form patchy protection along the leprous blemished flesh. Malevolent yellow eyes stare out from evil-looking barding of blackened steel that seems to have been imbedded into the thick hide.
The monstrous "knight" roars with a voice that echose with the grinding stone noise, and declares something, as the two continue to surge forward!
Speakers of Draconic:
"I, Dishadraluongg, the Dragon Knight, and my Susulakun, the Steed of Lest, shall devour your bones and steel, liquify your flesh and drink it, and leave your blood as an offering to our mistresses! The dark gods will-!"
Suddenly, the creature is cut off as a flurry of three powerful arrow shots rain in on it!
... but of the three, only one manages to pierce its shimmering armor, the other two bouncing off of its glittering surface; though the solitary arrow that succeeds, does strikes exceedingly deep, causing the dragon to cry out in a language all understand - "hurk!" - before muttering something at the strix who so boldly and successfully struck him.
Draconic speakers:
"You! You made me bleed! Bleed my own blood! ... MURDER YOU~!"
Snarling in fury, it clamps as its beast continues to surge forward, until said horrifying monstrosity of a mount suddenly finding resistance under its own feet!
CMB!:1d20 + 25 ⇒ (16) + 25 = 41Exceeds effective CMD of 29 by more than five.
... but it snaps right through the musical tripwire, and continues forward!
A massive bolt from the ballista atop the monster in front of its howdah launches at the nearest target!
Attack Inarus, sort of!:1d20 ⇒ 10 Damage:3d8 ⇒ (7, 2, 7) = 16 I have not yet looked to see if it's succeeded - loading is a pain right now. You get to tell us if you get hit!
Either way, the massive lance charges toward Inarus and seeks his heart!
It screeches at the strix, almost entirely ignoring its current situation, successes and failures...
More Draconic speakers only:
"Devour your soul! Possess your corpse! Spit! ****! ****! Kill! ****!"
It breathes hideously,
Yet even more Draconic only!:
"And then I will do the same to your people, your elders, your women, your men, and your children! Their corpses will be my play things and food! **** you!"
’This one truly enjoys the sound of his own voice, a shame I do not understand what it is saying,’ Usawoti holds his breath for a moment as the mount is slowed down by the musical golden strand, but shakes his head as the beast breaks it and presses on, somehow firing the ballista attacked to its howday.
’I don’t think it has made Golan happy though.’ Usawoti flinches as the feathered bowman buries another arrow into the armored rider. Drawing his hammer and praying ” sünsnüüd ene daisan minii jinkhene daisan bolgokh” he steps forward and attempts to hit the rider with the full force of his hammer.
Inarus, given the average size of a forest dragon by age, it seems that this one may be... comparatively small (as they were outgrow "large" earlier in life), or rather young: specifically juvenile.
As a mighty hammer simply bounces off the side of a powerful mammoth and the armored rider atop it, and a deadly whip fails to find purchase anywhere across the scaled-and-armored duo, the dragon whips its head down.
In common, it cries, "You dare insult my mother, you piece of fleshy filth?! I'll insult your mother in her bed tonight! And when I'm done, she'll beg for m- hurk~!" his sentence once again cut short by a vicious arrow sliding between scales and plates.
In a horrifying sound, the dragon screeches something, hand upon its own chest,
Abyssal speakers only:
"Dishadraluongg deliver me from these filthy peasants!"
Twin surges of energy flush through the creature as darkness briefly leaks from its eyes...
Boy, what fun this is!:
What could it beeeeeeee...?:1d20 + 15 ⇒ (4) + 15 = 19 What could it beeeeeeee...?2:1d20 + 15 ⇒ (9) + 15 = 24 Hahah, oops!:2d100 ⇒ (8, 75) = 83 Hahah, oops^2!:2d100 ⇒ (5, 14) = 19 Clarity 1:1d100 ⇒ 85, Clarity 2:1d100 ⇒ 7, Clarity :1d100 ⇒ 60, Clarity 4:1d100 ⇒ 65
The creatures eyes widen in surprise as the power begins surging out and around from him instead, flaring with burning pain, as ripples spread across reality!
Reflex DC 15 for half, else take 6d6 ⇒ (6, 3, 5, 4, 4, 4) = 26 fire damage.
As the waves of the magical flare ripples forth, the first slams into you all sending everyone, even the dragon and his mount, to the earth, hard, tossing the dragon off the fierce monstrosity, while the second sends the dragon nearly five hundred feet up, with others find themselves similarly displaced:
Golan finds himself shifted suddenly five hundred feet away,
Inarus finds himself almost a thousand feet in the air,
Usawoti finds himself two-hundred fifty feet away and 325 feet high,
Mope finds himself tossed deep into the fields with Shuuvu, though at different locations,
the mouse finds itself on the dragon's shoulder,
the dragon finds himself shifted suddenly five hundred feet in the air,
and the beast finds itself... five feet shifted away,
... as people begin to fall, rapidly, the waves hit Usawoti and Golan again, shifting them a second time back to the ground, immediately adjacent to the beast (about two hundred feet from where you were).
The a mass of ground you'd all just been inhabiting at your initial meeting (now several hundred feet away for most of you) suddenly vanishes. The entire region drains of color, as an enormous, deep and horrible pit opens below; the colors drained from the region surge forth blindingly beyond the borders of the newly gray region.
Golan and Usawoti may ignore any problems that would arise from this, but you are both effectively prone on the ground adjacent to a prone mammoth-like horror.
Both dragon and Inarus vanish, while the area in and around the newly-formed pit is scoured by sudden winds and pulsates with a sickly glow and an enormous swarm of centipedes surges forth from that same ground covered with brilliant (if gray) light, as the black waters surge up from the lowered sand, the monstrous water fighting the monstrous centipedes for dominance.
The mammoth surges upward, to its feet but seems uncertain. It swings its enormously terrifying head and makes strange snuffling noises.
Golan, Usawoti, you may act, but you probably need (or want) to stand, first.
Anyone who is trained could always make a Spellcraft to attempt to identify whatever spell the dragon was casting.
It's probably not that important, but I figured I'd mention.
Inarus only:
Inarus finds himself almost a thousand feet in the air, alone, with really few things to save him. His actions are expended by the telport, and he has no balance, and little frame of reference, except that he is "very far up" and "going down fast" - too fast, really.
Still, his body and soul pull at each other; his flesh attempting to drag his mind and spirit down into the literal pit of despair a thousand feet below him... while his mind and soul pull toward another body entirely.
But... which other body?
the mouse who found itself upon the dragon's shoulder? Currently, Inarus is aware, it is terrified and desperately desires to know where its recently-discovered cozy warm nest has gotten to. It has an intelligence of 2.
the dragon that found himself shifted suddenly five hundred feet in the air? Currently, Inarus is aware, it is wondering what happened to that disgusting ****-face of a mortal, and speaking to the other Dishadraluongg. It has an intelligence of 14.
or... the soul of the dragon kept hidden within itself? Currently, it's furious with dragon-Dishadraluongg for being such a moron... but it has been with him since birth, surely they can salvage the situation together; after all, it was unexpected by anyone that the primal magic would be functioning... the sisters must be properly "trained" to serve them, as is right. It also has an intelligence of 14.
You also suddenly find that your possessions, gear, and jacked have all switched sides - where the right sleeve was, now there is the left, and the reverse. Even the hand you were holding your whip in has changed! Strangely, similar things have happened to the mouse and dragon...
You may choose to switch physical bodies with any of the three choices above, let it happen at random, or attempt to negate it with a will save. If you think of another option, I'm all ears. Well, no: I've two ears, and I won't be using them, but rather my eyes, but you get the idea. :)
Golan stands up, and walks away from the creature.
Hm? ... interesting.
In standing up (and, one supposes, in walking away), you provoke.
As Golan stands, the creature's enormous ears perk, and its prehensile proboscis searches for the offending thing, in an attempt to gore with its horrifyingly nasty-looking tusks.
Where-he? There-he!:1d100 ⇒ 38 Knocks but once!:1d20 + 24 ⇒ (13) + 24 = 37 Not in the face!:2d8 + 8 ⇒ (6, 3) + 8 = 17
The massive monstrosity roars and buries one of its tusks into the earth a hair's-breadth from Golan, ripping large chunks of it, some of which rain down upon him!
As an aside, does anyone speak Abyssal? I could check, but I'm lazy, haven't had much sleep in the last 36+ hours, and am ready to collapse. Also, you know, slow internet. So! Sssssoooooo...?
Inarus:
Inarus wrote:
Does evasion make any difference to the effects of being thrown into the air?
It does not, I'm afraid. The re-positioning effect is akin to dimension door (though is not that exact spell), and is part of a primal magic surge. The actual spell he was attempting to use (twice, no less), was shadow conjuration - both concentration checks clearly failed. I'll let you trade your reflex roll (unfortunately only a 4) for an Acrobatics check, though, if you like (making your total of... oof, 6, didn't know you lacked it when I started this sentence), which you could add your luck to for a total of 9... yeah, that's not going to be anywhere near enough to have a controlled fall from this height, I'm afraid, though I'm unsure if that would help all that much, considering.
* but only a little, 'cause I'm a GM and therefore probably evil or something; also this is a prequel with you guys against impossibly overwhelming calamitous forces, er I mean, a bunch of easy monsters with lots of money... yeah... >.>
Inarus chooses to go into the soul of the dragon kept within itself.'Maybe if its pissed with the dragon-Dishadraluongg for being such a moron, we could eject it, and come to an agreement with the dragon'
Abyssal is such an ugly language. Pui! And why aren't you getting any sleep, TL?
Inarus chooses to go into the soul of the dragon kept within itself.'Maybe if its pissed with the dragon-Dishadraluongg for being such a moron, we could eject it, and come to an agreement with the dragon'
Abyssal is such an ugly language. Pui! And why aren't you getting any sleep, TL?
Inarus suddenly finds himself loosed from the bods of corporeality and mortality as his soul and spirit and very essence are separated from the body he once held.
He was able to watch as the essence of a demon from the depths of the abyss passed him, briefly in their shared non-existence, and traded its incorporeal form, currently inhabiting - no, more than that sharing a very lifetime unity with - the forest dragon currently afflicting the lot of you.
Inarus' mind instantly becomes filled with demonic abyssal thoughts as his very essence finds its new home and new existence - as a shadow demon.
Congratulations! You've just physically become the non-physical creature that is a shadow demon! Fortunately, you even currently have a body! That of a pygmy young adult imperial forest dragon (which just so happens to be identical in every way to a juvenile forest dragon; I'm aware that's not how the Young Template works; quiet, you, I'm GM! ò.Õ. You have access to the demon's stuff, but you must "bargain" with that other part of "yourself" (who is, much like the demon that passed you in temporary non-existence, named "Dishadraluongg") to get it to use the dragon's abilities. Either way, you can fly and are at 4 hit points out of a current maximum of 162. You may, should you so choose, at any time separate from your current host as a full-round action, at which point both his powers and yours will be reduced.
Your alignment doesn't change, but you may be fighting your own envious nature, or find yourself more easily influenced by creatures associated with your demon-lord patron (like succubi for Nocticula). That said: free extra hit dice (you keep your levels), take the better of the physical/mental scores of you or the demon (except strength for which you must rely on a host) and no LA.
The cost? "Listening" to the demon in the body you've grown so attached to your whole life invisibly plummet to its actual death in the midst of a 300 foot pit deep below. Such a shame, because he'd finally achieved the corporeal existence he'd always wanted. You know? Ah, irony. Stupid primal magic from those stupid witches. (Stupid witches?)
Feel free to ask clarifying questions. Dragon is currently flying and invisible.
I'd have tried to save my old body if I could...(i.e dive down and catch). The idea was to hitch a ride on the dragon and catch my old body. But to be honest - if I stayed in my old form I don't think I'd be able to survive the fall anyway...
’It didn’t even phase him! What do I do now?’ Usawoti redoubles his hold on his hammer as it vibrates almost out of control from the resounding strike. Preparing for the worst Usawoti shifts his feet and awaits for the worst that the dragon could do. What happened was not at all what he expected.
Instantly tossed high into the air, too afraid to close his eyes, he sees Mope and Shuvuu tossed into fields. ’Well at least they are away from the dragon. What happened to the dragons?’ Strangely enough he is so distracted by the location of the others that he is momentarily forgetful of his own imminent demise.
As quickly as he was tossed in the air, Usawoti finds himself sprawled on the ground beside the mammoth like dragon, his legs and feet propped up against it. ”Well at least you didn’t land on top of me you overgrown gecko!”
The Dragon mammoth monstrosity quickly jumps to his feet as does Golan, ’Blast that thing is fast, maybe I shouldn’t have goaded it, goad, elephant, it’s a joke.’ Pondering the wisdom of teasing the creature, Usawoti, breathing a prayer ”tulaan süns nadad tusaldag.” resting his hammer on the ground uses it as a cane to stand. Then grasping it two handed he swings it at the mount, hoping it is too distracted by Golan to notice till it was too late.
Shoanit:
Battle spirit help me.
Large, forgot spells he cast: AC 31, HP + 10 + 1d10 ⇒ 7 Swift action: Battle spirt, Move: stand up possible AOO, Attack: + 1 Holy earth breaker (PA, FF, WF, WV), heroism, holy, bain, battle spirit
... Inarus! One more thing! Those nightmare visions? They're gone, by the by. Your "new" er... "buddy?"... "person you passed in non-existence that one time?"... whatever is now experiencing them instead. It was quite happy to do so, right up until the end.
As the elephantine monstrosity stumbles in struggling to its far-too-massive feet, Usawoti slams into it with a hammer blow that the even-larger-than-normal man feels reverberating down his hammer back into his bones!
The magical forces playing through his earthbreaker manage to shred through any resistances the creature's unearthly hide holds to mundane weaponry, as it shrieks in a surprisingly high-pitched rage...!
Meta-information, at least for now: 131-42 = 89 hp. AC 40-7 = 33.
Because, though that's not the current plan for RotR, we're learning.
Also, you know, because it's easier than leaving things a sekerit.
What? I'm not a lazy GM! DANG IT! >:I
'Oh Lord. I've just killed myself.' Inarus thinks to himself, as he watches his old body fall into a pit, 300 feet below.'
'At least I took the shadow demon with me...or was it me anymore?'Inarus has a momentary idle thought.'Enough woolgathering. You'll need to return to help your friends! Even if they'd probably shoot you for what you are, now, unless you find a way to warn them first.'
'Dragon?' He tentatively tries to communicate by projecting this thoughts to the other entity sharing this body.'I'm not the shadow demon who used to possess you. He's dead now. My name is Inarus.I'm not like him. I won't force you do things you don't want to do.'He tries to fom his thoughts as coherently as possible, trying not to let the fear he is feeling from being thrust into a totally new situation leak out.
Inarus probably sounds like Meena from the movie Sing now.
Yeah, going slow and easy on communications till I can figure out my new body. Good thing I've had quite some practice in shape shifting.
’that’s like hitting a slab of adamantine masonry, at least the thing is still on the ground…crap not for long!’ Seeing the reptilian beast of burden beginning to reclaim it’s feet, Usawoti, tightening the grip on his hammer swings at the lumbering beast again.
’Blast, it’s armor is tough, we need to soften it up a little’ stepping back a bit, Usawoti asks the spirit of battle ” Tulaldaany süns achaalal ene araatan saad uu.”
skald:
’spirit of battle please hamper this beast of burden.”
aoo, 5 ft step back casts “Hampering Hex (Su): The shaman causes a creature within 30 feet to take a –2 penalty to AC and CMD for a number of rounds equal to the shaman's level. A successful Will saving throw reduces this to just 1 round. At 8th level, the penalty becomes –4. Whether or not the save is successful, a creature affected by a hampering hex cannot be the target of this hex again for 24 hours.
Hey! You made it without the need for other stuff!
As Usawoti slams the creature again, the hardness of the spiked metal plates shifting across and within its hide becomes apparent.
Meta-information, at least for now: 89-46 = 43 hp. AC 40-5 = 35.
Inarus:
"YOU ****, YOU ABSOLUTE ****ING ****-****~!" echoes through the currently-shared mind. "WHAT DID YOU ****ING DO, *******?!"
The shared dragon body begins shuddering, as Dishadraluongg attempts to (vainly) seek the demon he'd so long been a unified creature with - so long, in fact, that you begin to realize, the two have never been separate so long as the dragon has lived.
You begin to see the history unfurl as it hatched with the demon and it sharing but a singular mind, and a goal...
It's memory... wrote:
"...tear apart civilization to steal the riches thereof and grant itself eternal glory, and "honor"... of sorts.
To that end, since birth, it - this unified duo of dragon and demon named "Dishadraluongg" - had sought out powerful creatures, perfecting its skill at arms and battle, and breeding its very own filth-imbued herd of mounts. It had kept these, as it assaulted strange places and weird civilizations - locations both familiar and alien to Inarus.
And still, it hadn't been enough. It had lain defeated - dead, for all intents and purposes - at the hands of a paladin.
"Awww, da precious... is da poo' widdle dwaggi-poo daaayyyd~" it was the first time it, he, [i]they had heard that voice - those voices, really, a chorus of voices that were different, yet alike.
They had called him-them. From another time. Another place. Its body had reformed, as had its favorite son and mount (also killed by that same paladin), and restored to its rightful glory, given its rightful place, along with its true soul...
And Dishadraluongg was once again whole, and wealthy beyond measure.
Only recently have the troubles started. Ever since they had arrived, spreading it, his mistresses' powers had begun fluctuating, and his life force - held together for nearly 10,000 years now - had seemed to be fluctuating.
And now... and now...
... "[/b]WHAT THE **** DID YOU DO, YOU USELESS ****ING ****ER?![/b]" it screeched. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD~! GIVE ME BACK TO ME~! GIVE ME BAAAAAAAACK~!"
Mentally, it begins going through the normal protocols, praying to itself (you?) seeking its own power (your power?) to destroy you...
"DISHADRALUONGG, HONOR US BOTH WITH MY POWER: DELIVER ME FROM THIS WORTHLESS INVADER~!" it cries, attempting to utilize its - no, that's not right; attempting to utilize your - greater shadow conjuration ability to destroy you, "the invader" and a pestilence from its own mind...
... do you grant its spoken wish*? Allow it to access your greater shadow conjuration? Trick it by letting it access one of your other SLAs instead? Just... separate yourself from its body? Something else?
* You become aware that you currently have exactly one wish that you can grant this creature. Part of the original pact that the nameless shadow demon had crafted, before it became Dishadraluongg with this dragon (done by successfully sacrificing a djinn and pouring its blood atop the incubating egg), was that it could achieve the ultimate power of wish... but only in service to a "master" - so, clearly, what better master than himself? Of course, nothing was ever so simple... none the less, you have the (remaining) one-time ability to grant a wish to that creature you are bound to... the dragon Dishadraluongg. Should you sever your connection, this is shattered and lost, but no particular harm comes to you because of it. Until then, you have the ability to grant an uttered desire (though, similar to a glabezu, those lucky corporeal *******s, you can twist it, if so desired).
You may look at the Sense Motive and "Draconic speaker" spoilers below without making a check or otherwise knowing the language - you're currently sharing the dragon's mind, after all.
As Golan looks for the dragon, a sudden screeching speech, tinged with complex emotion, begins echoing around the region.
Sense Motive DC 25, anyone can make it:
Filled with fury and despair and confusion and emptiness - a desperate clawing for something missing.
All those who speak Draconic:
"YOU ****, YOU ABSOLUTE ****ING ****-****~!" the voice cries, "WHAT DID YOU ****ING DO, *******?!"
A minor pause with strangled emotional utterances, then, "[/b]WHAT THE **** DID YOU DO, YOU USELESS ****ING ****ER?![/b]" it screeches. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD~! GIVE ME BACK TO ME~! GIVE ME BAAAAAAAACK~!"
The briefest of moments, then "DISHADRALUONGG, HONOR US BOTH WITH MY POWER: DELIVER ME FROM THIS WORTHLESS INVADER~!"
The dragon's wish - "DELIVER ME FROM THIS WORTHLESS INVADER~!" - I want to corrupt its wish. Could I actually haul the soul of the dragon out - with no body it'll die, right? So that I get the dragon body for myself? It asked to be separated from me - well I am technically granting the wish :P
Inarus wishes he could shudder with horror and revulsion mentally as memories wash over him, like a wave crashing upon the shore. He had wanted to save the dragon. He truly did think that the dragon was just another hapless victim, under the control of its evil counterpart, not realising that they were both one and the same until now.
'After all that abuse by its shadow demon half its still fanatically loyal? And wants to eject me from here despite me that I promised I would not make it go against its will?'Inarus is truly terrified at how deep the seeds of evil within the dragon Dishadraluongg have taken root and the sheer depravity of the grown tree of darkness. Inarus has briefly wonders if there was a way to have changed the dragon to what it used to be, before the corruption, but if it was done since it was an incubating egg, probably not.
Inarus is jolted back to reality by the dragon trying to access his power to wipe him out from Golarion forever. 'Seperate myself from its body as it demanded? No! That would be sitting by and letting evil win. I'd die before I'd let that happen.'
Inarus thinks frantically. 'There must be another way!'
As the monster screams out the words of power," DISHADRALUONGG, HONOR US BOTH WITH MY POWER: DELIVER ME FROM THIS WORTHLESS INVADER~!", inspiration strikes Inarus. 'You want to be delivered from me? Fine, it shall be done. I'll deliver you. Into Pharasma's boneyard.'He thinks, filled with righteous rage. He bends his will into twisting the wish, attempting to cast the dragon's soul out with a great heave. The dragon's body thrashes in mid air for a moment, giving a pained roar as both souls fight for dominance.
Finally, Inarus emerges tired, but victorious. The foul, malignant presence that has been by his side ever since he entered, was gone. He felt pure. Clean. 'Hopefully I'll be able to use this body as a force of good, to atone for the sins committed in the past.'He stretches out his wings and flies, revelling for a moment in the pure joy of flight.(Yes, I love to fly). He tests his new vocal chords. "Ahem. Ahem."
I'll sing to the party(before they turn me into a pincushion), so in my next post I'll make a song, but that will take a bit.
"My name is Inarus, of the horse clan, I belong,
In their honor I sing this song.
Of thirty five summers that I have seen
Many places that I have been.
I may be some draconic monstrosity and a little green,
But as a human I’d rather be seen.
I’ve thrown out some demons, claimed a new home.
But please don't harm me, I'm now all alone.
I'm still the same, deep inside,
To right wrongs in the world I still will ride.”
Inarus sings the song once, then as he dives down, he sings it again.
Golan searches for the dragon, a grim satisfaction at the sounds he hears, as Usawoti seeks to destroy the elephantine monstrosity.
Suddenly, in the lower edges of the clouds a writhing dragon becomes visible, thrashing in the sky, a terrified "squeak~!" echoing from the area, and then, flying straight into a cloud-bank, a voice booms from above with all the fury of thunder and grinding stones!
"My name is Inarus, of the horse clan, I belong,
In their honor I sing this song.
Of thirty five summers that I have seen
Many places that I have been.
I may be some draconic monstrosity and a little green,
But as a human I’d rather be seen.
I’ve thrown out some demons, claimed a new home.
But please don't harm me, I'm now all alone.
I'm still the same, deep inside,
To right wrongs in the world I still will ride.”
The dragon bursts forth from the clouds, undulating in its silvery armor, its teeth glinting in the consistent low lighting across the region.
Again, as it lowers it sings in a voice that's one part beautiful harmony, one part grinding basalt,
"My name is Inarus, of the horse clan, I belong,
In their honor I sing this song.
Of thirty five summers that I have seen
Many places that I have been.
I may be some draconic monstrosity and a little green,
But as a human I’d rather be seen.
I’ve thrown out some demons, claimed a new home.
But please don't harm me, I'm now all alone.
I'm still the same, deep inside,
To right wrongs in the world I still will ride.”
It continues its spiral approach downward toward you.
Inarus! ⊙_ʘ:
Yeah, I don't really have anything to add, here, as we've covered everything I can think of in the spoilers and PMs - I'm mostly just doing this to weird out the other guys. That said, if they accept the dragon as you, go ahead and start posting as if the dragon is you.
I have assumed that Inarus would speak his tribes language...I hope it is not a problem.
Inarus's mother was of the Sklar Quah tribe. but He doesn't speaks Shoanti, what would he know that a dragon wouldn't Not taking his eyes off of the monstrosity in front of him, Usawoti calls over his shoulder. "If you are who you say you are, who are my companions and what are they?"
Upon noticing the dragon above, the vile mammoth shudders with something*, rears up, and looses with a powerful roar, filling the air in front of him - and in front of Usawoti - with needles!
