Randtam thinks he has heard the man's name involved in some of the crime circles of Ustalav but nothing specific about grave robbing. He knows that the Way generally frowns on grave robbing, especially if is the graves of undead aligned with the Way.
Eyes of Randtamra reveal nothing new of note.
"Ah, whose grave disturbance offended the Way?"
I don't know. Bones are bones; yeah? Plus in my line of work the victims aren't usually much for conversation. Listen, I'm clearly not much of a threat to you lot and if you cut me loose I can tell you about a few of the things you have probably yet to encounter. Whadda ya say?
"Tell the people whose graves you desecrated, and maybe they'll talk to you about the encounters that lay ahead for you."
Uuranx ends his time with the living.
"Well I guess that decides it, where to next?"
I suppose it's for the best, but it would have been nice to see if he had any useful information before killing him.
"I must have been visited by the shade of Alamin. She never put up with evil of any sort."
Pharasma doesn't have much room for grave robbers but it might have been nice to see what the man knew before sending him to judgement. I approve of your fervor for justice Uuranx but maybe a bit of delayed fervor next time. Oh well, I'm sure we'll discover what's around soon enough. Lead on Balator!
Once Uuranx gets done murdering the bound and defenseless man in the chair the party considers its options. There is a door in the far side of the hallway to the South and another in the NW corner of the room you are currently in.
Check door in NW corner.
The door seems benign enough and after some inspection you risk opening it to reveal a roughly 20x30 room with a door on the far N side.
Dozens of moldering relics litter this room, some haphazardly crammed into gilded display cases, others arranged with care and placed on tarnished stands.
Check out the room.
"Can someone detect magic on this stuff, don't want to leave something useful behind."
Cast Detect Magic on the items in the room.
Randtam looks at suprise as Uuranx so swiftly slaughters a helpless "evil" man sitting in a chair.
This is quite shocking from my comrade Uuranx. He did not allow a true attempt to interrogate this man.
Uuranx, I have spoken with Alamin about situations like this. You did what you believed was right. Stay strong.
Look around room before we go. Any items or areas Uuranx missed with his detect magic. Eyes of Randtamra...
Balator and Randtam's careful inspection reveal four ceremonial headpieces worth 2,000 GP each. A number of gems worth 5,000 GP total. There are four exquisite wands, exhausted of all charges, worth 1,000 GP each due to their fine craftmanship and historical significance.
The remaining artifacts are worth 3,000 GP to the right collectors of such macabre things. The remaining items are unable to survive removal due to their fragile state.
There is nothing magical in the room.
Check the N door and on we go after collecting loot.
Ancient sarcophagi lean haphazardly along the walls here. Stained teacups and cracked saucers are set on a low table, next to a matching teapot sitting atop a silver warmer. The gruesome remains of a desiccated human forearm lies on a small chopping block among powdered remnants of a bitumen soaked shroud.
There is a door in the NE corner.
It looks like someone has been chopping and grinding a mummified arm into powder for some reason. Quite possibly the oddest thing you have seen in your travels to date.
Mummy unwrapping parties and the consumption of powdered mummy skin—either inhaled as snuff or brewed as a stout tea—have long been in vogue among the fashionable elite of Ustalav, particularly those with memberships in secret societies such as the Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye. Adherents of the Whispering Way also partake of this concoction, but while the Ustalavs use dead mummies in their tea ceremonies, Whispering Way initiates prefer the taste of the living dead.
Randtam shares his knowledge and collects as much of the "snuff" as he can.
What have we gotten ourselves in to. The Esoteric Order of the Palatine Eye, are they involved. Are they aiding. Or are they in charge?
As Randtam prepares to move into the room his eyes of Randtamra reveal two invisible creatures which he immediately recognizes as stalkers. They appear to be the ones responsible for transforming the mummified arm into a consumable powder.
Very little is known about these enigmatic and mysterious creatures, as their very nature makes details of their true form difficult to discern. Brought to this world from the Plane of Air, these creatures fulfill tasks for those who conjure them. Invisible stalkers act as guardians, assassins, and trackers, occupations in which they excel. Their natural invisibility and skill at stealth allow them to follow their quarry without detection and give them the upper hand when it comes to exterminating a mark.
Many invisible stalkers resent this and see these petty tasks as nothing more than chores dictated by mortals. When given a particularly complex or bothersome task, an invisible stalker seeks to find a loophole in a poorly worded instruction. For instance, wizards calling an invisible stalker into service with the instructions “protect me from danger” might find themselves escorted to a faraway hidden location, or even brought to the Plane of Air.
Due to their constant summoning, many invisible stalkers harbor hostility for those dwelling on the Material Plane. Those invisible stalkers new to the mortal world only know the stories of their kind and tend to keep an open mind about the intentions of those who call them. Over time, or in the service of a particularly vile master, invisible stalkers form negative opinions of these creatures of flesh and bone, leading to their tendency to pervert their instructions and cause harm to their masters. For older and more experienced invisible stalkers, the only thing protecting those who summon them is the magic that binds them. These creatures automatically try to use inconsistencies in the wording of their tasks and literal twists on the intention to find a way to inconvenience, injure, or even kill the priest or arcanist that brought them to the plane.
Beware invisible stalkers.
Share all my information about them. Wish I had glitter dust or color spray.
I back away and point at where they are.
Summon 2
Small earth elemental stands in front of invisible stalker
Can Balator tell where the creatures are and attack?
The keen eyes of Balator can just make out two faint shimmering forms in the room. He's not sure how well he would be able to track them in combat.
DM: Are the stalkers advancing or doing anything threatening?
"Maybe the stalkers are here to guard something? Randtam, Uuranx, have you detected any magic here?"
Randtam can see that the stalkers seem to be making 'mummy dust', apparently to be mixed in with the tea for later consumption. It seems to be a very time consuming and tedious process; they do not appear to be paying the party any attention.
There are a total of 8 large stone sarcophagi one either side of the room.
Detect Magic and evil in the room.
Uuranx gets no readings from the invisible things he can't see (he would if they were evil), but he does detect significant evil from each of the sarcophagi.
pass along the info...
"Maybe the sarcophagi contain mummies for the dust they are making? Does anyone have anything that would be particularly useful against mummies?"
I have several spells prepared which could help us and they must first overcome my hide from undead abjuration.
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/h/hide-from-undead/
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/u/undeath-ward/
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/u/undeath-to-death/
"Then lets go."
Move towards door in NE corner.
Fine stone-cut stairs lead down into inky darkness.....
Down we go.
After about a hundred feet of descent the stairs end in a long room 15' by 60' that is lit with braziers filled with continual flame spells. Battered wooden doors hang ajar in the intersecting hallways of what appears to be a dormitory; each open door exposing a simple unkempt cell beyond.
Four robed forms (monks maybe?) wander the main foyer performing various tasks.
They seem entirely unaware of your presence, with three on your right and one on your left. A long hallway leads off in the middle of the wall to the south, more wooden doors on either side.
Have the four robed forms looked in our direction? Does Balator think they are undead and that Benedict's spell is preventing them from seeing the group?
Check the closest door to the left while trying to keep an eye on the 4 robed forms.
Randtam or Uuranx feel free to contribute any ideas.
I say we bypass them if we can...
It appears as if Benedict's spell is shielding you from their awareness, but it could just be the robes.
Behind the door is a small monastic cell that is filthy and unoccupied.
Move past the monks towards the hallway on the far side of the room. Check and open each door in order as we head down the hall.
Behind the third opened door is a thin man dressed similarly to the ones you fought in the room above with the negative lens. He sputters for a second before yelling out You hear the sound of other wood doors being opened.
The party has a surprise round of action,
And wins initiative; so post 2 rounds of action before the enemy can act.
There is the man in the monk cell, the four robed figures are now headed towards you (three together and 1 single), and you can see at least four other men coming out of doors spread throughout the area.
Cut down the guy who called out the alarm.
Round 1
Round 2
Need 2 rounds of action from everyone but Balator.
~BUMP~
Uuranx says a prayer to Iomadae and readys himself for battle.
He attempts to Demoralize the Opponent the round before they get there.
"Rush quickly to your Death!" he roars and flexes his iron-corded thews.
Summon 4
Soldier Ants using superior summoning.
Ants will attack an individual coming out from the doors. Allow comrades to choose their opponent. Occupy so bad guys cannot attack others.
AC 15 HP 22
Ant #1
Ant #2
Ant #3
Randtam fires magic missiles
Of all the days to not pray for a barrier of blades....
On the first round Benedict casts
You bring special favor upon yourself and your allies while bringing disfavor to your enemies. You and each of your allies gain a +1 luck bonus on attack rolls, weapon damage rolls, saves, and skill checks, while each of your foes takes a -1 penalty on such rolls.
On the second round he casts
The spell deals 1d8 points of damage per two caster levels (maximum 5d8) to each evil creature in the area (or 1d6 points of damage per caster level, maximum 10d6, to an evil outsider) and causes it to become blinded for 1 round. A successful Will saving throw reduces damage to half and negates the blinded effect.
Uuranx can roll two rounds of melee as he is prepared for the onrushing foes.
His savage roar seems to have the desired effect as the approaching enemy becomes
With several savage cuts Balator kills the man discovered in the small monastic cell before turning to brace for the onrushing combatants.
Randtam summons ants directly in front a similarly clad man, blocking his approach. The man is bitten twice and thumped by a volley of magic missiles.
The cloak hoods fall back from the four forms you originally espied in the area, which are clearly some type of skeletal undead, a thick tangle of discolored entrails loll from their skeletal jaws like clawed tongues.
2 skeleton things and 2 robed men on both Uuranx and Balator while the remaining 3 men assault the ants:
Man
DC 24 FORT save or become sickened
Skeleton
DC 21 FORT save or paralyzed for
Man
Skeleton
DC 21 FORT save or paralyzed for
Man 1
Man 2
Man 3
Party action
Of all the days to not pray for a barrier of blades....
On the first round Benedict casts ** spoiler omitted **
On the second round he casts ** spoiler omitted ** inflicting [dice=]5d8 to each foe.
Ants are beaten back to their celestial plane.
Randtam conjures black tentacles to grab and crush evil monks not in battle. And of course grab any others.
Checked ant #3 lives. 2/22 HP left
attack skeleton thingy first
with falchion
last attack
now 2 images
2nd round of attacks
with falchion
last attack