Watching Ali return to wolf, Romon wonders if she isn't really a wolf that can sometimes take on a humanoid form. Shaking his head, he kicks the goblin body and makes ready to leave.
"Marak, can you take this?" the rogue holds out a bow.
"Yes, Ali, we can go on and kill the goblins. Are all of you well enough to continue?"
Romon bows to the inevitable. "Ready!" he says brightly.
It was a standard Masterwork Shortbow..which would have been a longbow for its user.
You reassemble in the workroom and head downstairs
A stone door just around the corner from the steps hangs slightly ajar, the detailed carvings that once covered its surface defaced by chisel marks and hammer blows to the extent that only a few remnants of images (mostly of gemstones and crowns) remain. The floor here is slanted toward the west.
Peering through the gap you find a hall...
Two pillars support the ceiling in here. In many places the stone walls,floor, and ceiling are caked with ancient grime and soot. Alcoves in the north and south wall contain partially damaged statues of a man in robes clutching a book and a glaive.
The entire room is canted toward the west,and whatever ancient upheaval caused the complex to tilt knocked the statues from their bases so that now they lean against the western walls of their alcoves..
Muchorak will follow Romon into the hall, keeping an overwatch while he searchs...
Perception +2 more v. traps
Quick Stealth
Although his everburning torch means everyone can plainly see him, Romon glides into the room as smoothly and quietly as possible. Halfway in he pantomimes loosing his balance and stumbling to the west.
Nothing stirs within the room..Rommon searches carefully and comes up with nothing of interest either..he moves to the doors at the far end and listens intently. Almost certainly nothing lurks behind the door
Aliwolf joins Romon at the door, sniffing for the scent of anything.
Romon smiles at the silence behind the door. Don't get cocky. Cocky thieves are dead thieves. He reminds himself in his mentor's voice.
Trap Check
Disable Device, if needed
When the door is clean and everyone is ready, the red-clad half-elf opens the door.
The door is not trapped..Romon pushes it open slowly and finds himself looking into a 5' wide passageway.
This short hallway rises in a slope to the east. Five feet from the western door, the floor is polished and shiny, unlike the dusty floor elsewhere.A pair of stone statues depicting stern men wielding glaives
stand in alcoves north and south of this section of the hallway. At the
eastern end stand two stone doors, their faces carved with strange runes. Between the doors is a third alcove in which a partially collapsed statue sits. The top half of the statue is missing, leaving behind a ragged stump of a torso.
To clarify the doors are set in the north and south walls of the passageway which is only 25' long including the end alcove with the broken statue.
"What is it with the glaives and long faces?" Romon asks rhetorically. "I thought Shelyn's faith was a happy one."
Down to the far end.
North Door
Listen at Door
Trap Check
Disable Device, if needed and no one is home
South Door
Listen at Door
Trap Check
Disable Device, if needed and no one is home
Hm what was it you said in your post before last..something about cocky thieves
As Romon steps forward onto the highly suspicious polished floor some instinct kicks in and he dives forwards as two portcullises drop sealing that area of corridor off..the statues swing their glaives down..once..twice..and then the floor opens into a pit.
Romon stares aghast realing how close he came to being mincemeat
Romon jumps quickly to his feat. Desna's teats that was close! He grins at the others, "You might want to be careful there." He tries to pass it off, but his voice is shaky.
|
Marak calls upon Nethys to open his sight to the auras of magic, hoping to spot any magic that might have triggered this trap (or, at least, whatever magic causes the glaives to move back and forth, since it seems unlikely any mechanical trap would have survived down here all these years without maintenance).
As he peers around for signs that might help Romon work his way out of this predicament , he calls ahead, "Are you injured?"
After scanning for magic, he attempts to decipher the runes adorning the statues faces, with Nethys' guidance.
The Runes are on the doors..you can't really see them from where you are.The traps do indeed seem to be purely mechanical..perhaps Thassilonian artificers were better than todays or maybe Nualia repaired them. With a rumble the portcullises withdraw into the ceiling
"I could bring lightning to strike down on the weapons that the statues hold. Certainly, enough bolts would destroy the blades. Of course it does not solve the problems of the pit or the portculli."
(How wide is the pit? With the portcullises raised I'm sure Ali, with her speed and leaping ability should be able to clear it and maybe there's some disengaging mechanism on the other side?)
The pit closes..it's a DC5 acrobatics check (DC10 if you don't take a run up) to clear the trap
"Hang on a second. Let me see if I can find the trigger." Very carefully Romon searches for the trigger to the trap.
Perception:
Disable Device
The trigger is found and the trap disabled in short order..Romon turns his attention to the doors at the far end.
Neither door appears to be trapped and he can hear nothing beyond either off them
Muchorak stands next to Romon with his blades drawn and nods his readiness...
Romon takes a deep breath and draws his sword. Nodding to the rest of the group (who are all ready) he opens the door. Usual door drill.
North or south door?
North door.
You open the door into a fairly large circular room which seems to be serving as a laboratory.
more details when I am not relying on memory while posting from work
A wide stone ledge of red marble lines the curving walls of this room, which is well-lit by four burning skulls that sit evenly spaced around the room. Three chairs rest in the room, and both stone ledges are covered with books, scrolls, teeth,bones, scrimshaw artwork, jars of deformed creatures soaking in brine,taxidermied animals and limbs, and other strange objects. To the north,a large round fountain filled with frothy blue water fills the room with the gentle sound of bubbling.
This looks like that Nualia bioch's salon. Probably clean. Romon scans for traps, then steps into the room. There ought to be something good here. The thief's eye wanders the room looking for choice loot.
Perception
Appraise Rule spoiler:
(Int)
You can evaluate the monetary value of an object.
Check: A DC 20 Appraise check determines the value of a common item. If you succeed by 5 or more, you also determine if the item has magic properties, although this success does not grant knowledge of the magic item's abilities. If your fail the check by less than 5, you determine the price of that item to within 20% of its actual value. If you fail this check by 5 or more, the price is wildly inaccurate, subject to GM discretion. Particularly rare or exotic items might increase the DC of this check by 5 or more.
You can also use this check to determine the most valuable item in a treasure hoard. The DC of this check is generally 20 but can increase to as high as 30 for a particularly large hoard.
Action: Appraising an item takes 1 standard action. Determining the most valuable object in a treasure hoard takes 1 full-round action.
Try Again: Additional attempts to Appraise an item reveal the same result.
Special: A spellcaster with a raven familiar gains a +3 bonus on Appraise checks.
Muchorak will stay near Romon (5ft-10ft) and be alert to the surroundings while Romon focuses on more singular items.
The skulls leave Inikai uneasy; the room itself suggests danger to him. He masters himself and follows Muchorak into the room. The he stops and faces Marak and holds out two vials from his belt.
"These jars contains acid. You can use Nethys' hand to throw them at foes if your morning star does not wound them. I am sorry that I forgot about them."
You search through the room..nothing of great value is here but you do find Nualia's notes..it will take hours to read them completely but a quick scan reveals her madness and her self loathing..her desire to sacrifice Sandpoint and it's people to Lamashtu is evident as is her desire to become a demonic servant of her goddess
You search through the room..nothing of great value is here but you do find Nualia's notes..it will take hours to read them completely but a quick scan reveals her madness and her self loathing..her desire to sacrifice Sandpoint and it's people to Lamashtu is evident as is her desire to become a demonic servant of her goddess
Disappointed, Romon frowns. He smiles at Inikai's offer to Marak. Tricks like that are always good to know, even if you can't do them yourself. "let's try the other door."
Back to the hallway's south door. Wait for the gang to be ready and open 'er up.
Muchorak, with swords in hands, nods his readiness to Romon.
Romon opens the door and moves in and to the side as per routine.
The southern wing of this L-shaped hallway ends at a pair of stone doors carved with the depictions of two skeletons reaching out to clutch a skull between them, while to the east the hallway narrows down to frame a circular carving of what seems to be an immense stack of gold coins that rises from floor to ceiling. The edges of these coins are carved with tiny, spiky runes.
Skeletons holding a skull. Huge stack of coins. That's easy.
"Someone keep an eye on the skeletons. I'll check the way east."
Keeping an eye out for anything unusual, Romon starts down the east hall.
Perception +2 for traps
Muchorak sheaths the shortsword quickly and places his hand on Romon slowing his motion,"This is too easy for such wealth friend" He looks about the room and lingers on the skull, "Be sure of your surroundings." Providing no more resistance to Romon's movement he re-draws the shortsword, ready for a beastie to spring a trap...
Ali scents nothing..the place is quiet as the grave. Roman realises the coins are cunningly painted stone..but something else catches his eye.
To the left and right of the pillar are tiny slots..big enough to take a coin.
"The coins are just carved stone. But there seems to be writing on them. Marak, Chel, can you make out the meaning?" Romon's gaze slips over the walls and falls on the two slots. "Hmm. Something else here. Maybe a mechanism."
Romon examines the slots and adjacent surfaces, looking for a clue to their purpose.
Perception (+2 on traps) try to ascertain function of slots -- activates secret door?
Disable Device if required
The slots do not appear to be trapped in any way..they would accept any standard coin.You cannot tell their purpose just by looking at them
The writing is old Thassilonian and not translateable.