Well, I needed to search them to help their families find peace, right? Too bad most of them didn't have any personal items left, but I stand behind my decision <cough, cough>. Hopefully the few things we did find will help prove that we found the right group. I appreciate you helping me out. I feel sort of weak.
After the bodies are buried and the place is aired out, Zairiah checks the creepy statue for traps.
Aggrammar grumbles something along the lines of 'crazy lass' as Zairiah goes to check the door.
Zairiah moves over to the statue and looks around it and hear in her head a little voice asking her touch it. But she does not find any traps but you can walk by the statue without any problems.
Zairiah tells the group about the little voice urging her to touch the statue, and she encourages people not to do so, and to stay well away from it.
Although she is still worried after seeing the pile of bodies, she decides that she has to assume the room is safe otherwise, and she retrieves her weapons and looks to their guide to see if he is going to show them anything further.
Abdalla says, "I have never been inside here before."
Here is the map:
Zairiah looks around for the supplies that the former 50 people must have had, hoping to find a lantern or at least a few torches.
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Your group makes sure not to touch the statue as you cross the entrance, you see a hallway that goes off to both the left and right and it is 20 feet in width and 60 feet in either direction. The hallway takes a sharp 90 angle in both directions and after being fairly thorough you go end up at what is marked 2a on the map. The walls are carved with impressive reliefs depicting the lush, tropical jungles of a once verdant kingdom, you find a pair of
bronze portals flanked by bas reliefs of shedu.
Zairiah checks the portals for traps.
Zairiah checks the portals and she finds no traps but she does find that the doors are locked.
Zairiah attempts to unlock the doors.
Zairiah is able to easily open the ancient locks and pushes the doors inwards. Beyond lies a waiting room (b), where visitors would rest
on stone benches along the walls and admire the basrelief sculptures of lions adorning the walls. There are doors to the left and right. There are also another pair of bronze portals straight ahead with Shedu reliefs.
Zairiah peered inside, looking for murder holes. She still hadn't gotten over the pile of dead bodies, and was feeling paranoid.
If she sees none, she will enter, checking out the sculptures (but not touching them), to see if they seems like they can come to life.
Only after checking the whole room will she approach the doors, checking for traps and then unlocking them if necessary.
Fadilah decides that some extra caution is warranted and sends her gen to fetch a continual light spell.
Unfortunately, the gen is unable to help.
Zairiah moves forward to open the double brass doors with the shedu in front of her and she finds out that they are locked and she moves to open them
GM Rolls
As Zairiah is openning the door in front of her she hears a strange noise from coming from either side, catching glimpse of 20 skeletons attacking your group of 5, four skeletons peel off on each of you, but Fadilah can act at the same time as her skeletons but Abdalla is taken unawares.
Surprise Round
Zairiah, Nura, Aggrammar, Fadilah can go too but her actions happen at the same time as the skeletons.
The skeletons are all wearing their faded golden uniforms.
Aggrammar stands ready to lead the way and open the door, once Zairiah gives him the 'thumbs up'
”Stand back!” - Aggrammar urges his companions, stepping forward with scimitar in one hand and his holy symbol in the other - the disc of Hajama gleaming in the darkness.
”Avast ye monsters!” - the dwarf roars.
of the Skeletons are turned and make their way to the opposite side of the room. All of the ones moving towards Agrammar and two moving towards Fadilah flee.
Fadilah pivots and uses her staff of the sea to blast one of the approaching skeletons with water, hoping that the concussive force of the blast will damage the skeleton or at least knock it away.
Nura makes a "tsk" sound as she spots the skeletons closing in. Realizing that he scimitar will be of little use, she looks around for a bludgeon of any sort.
Zairiah uses her torch to try to knock the skeletons away as they approach her.
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Fadilah slams one of the skeletons coming towards her with two blasts of water knocking the skeleton backwards
Zairiah hits one of the skeletons coming towards her.
Nura searches for some sort of bludgeoning weapon.
Skeletons 1 attacks Abdalla crit with its bronze khopesh
Skeletons 2 attacks Abdalla miss
Skeletons 3 attacks Abdalla hit with its bronze khopesh
Skeletons 4 attacks Abdala miss
Skeletons 5 attacks Abdalla hit with its khopesh
Skeletons 6 attacks Nura hit
Skeletons 7 attacks Nura hit
Skeletons 8 attacks Nura crit
Skeletons 9 attacks Nura miss
Skeletons 10 attacks NUra and this one drops its sword on the floor
As Agrammar turns towards the Skeletons with his Rod of smiting with the lions engraved on it the Skeletons that are turned flee but rest of the skeletons stop and one steps forward and speaks first in Chun
The group of skeletons form up into parade rest and one which is wearing a more ornate insignia steps forward like either a sergeant or a junior officer and says in Chun
Combat Over
Zairiah, seeing the skeletons stop, goes to assist Nura and Abdalla with their wounds.
"Is it talkin'?!" - Aggrammar roared - "Can I take a look at that?" - Aggrammar borrows the dictionary, trying to understand what has just been said to him.
"Why did ye attack us? What is it ye're guardin' here oh Farzid, First Khopesh of the Royal Guard?" - Aggrammar asked.
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The skeleton named Farzid says, "Your Grace, we were ordered to guard entry into the next room by someone, I do not remember by whom but we saw your Royal Scepter oh Azaltin and we realized we were mistaken, we think your brother is or staged a Coup. It is such a long time ago. Please Forgive us heir of Azaltin"
The skeleton looks crestfallen, like it wants to tell Agrammar more but it does not know or cannot remember and it seems a bit frustrated but happy follow your orders.
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"Ye were probably ordered by the same fella who... Hmmm... Well, nevermind" - Aggrammar grunted in thought - "What do ye know of tha ruins, the dangers they hold?" - he added - "And have ye seen others passin' by here?"
Agrammar
GM Rolls
The skeleton says "Well, the doors to left lead to some offices that were used by Satraps when they were in the capitol and beyond them were the main mosque and to the right rooms used by some of the King's staff before the coup. Through the doors where your companion was trying to open is King Azaltin's wife's favorite garden it has a beautiful fountain with all of the destruction, I wonder if it is still intact. I am sorry but I cannot recall more."
After making sure that Nura and Abdalla are okay, Zairiah learns what the skeletons know of the area.
She says to Aggrammar
Perhaps you could have your ... friends... accompany us as we tour the area, and then release them? They have served long as well, and deserve a rest.
Whatever Aggrammar decides though, when everyone is ready, she continues on to examine the garden. Then her plan is to examine the right rooms, and then last the offices which the skeletons said have the main mosque beyond.
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"I would love to see the remains of the fountain, and perhaps imagine its former glory," says Fadilah wistfully.
The gallery (a) is strewn
with skeletons and the plastered walls are marred with
ancient, dried blood. An rose garden (b)
occupies the center of the gallery, illuminated by
continual light. In the center, an ornate fountain (c)
splashes contentedly.
The fountain at the center of the garden is adorned
with small, leering centaurs and contains cool, clean
water.
There are three doors to the left, two doors straight ahead and there are two doors to the right.
The skeleton says "Well, the doors to left lead to some offices that were used by Satraps when they were in the capitol and beyond them were the main mosque and to the right rooms used by some of the King's staff before the coup. Through the doors where your companion was trying to open is King Azaltin's wife's favorite garden it has a beautiful fountain with all of the destruction, I wonder if it is still intact. I am sorry but I cannot recall more."
"You have helped us much with this information" - Aggrammar nodded.
Perhaps you could have your ... friends... accompany us as we tour the area, and then release them? They have served long as well, and deserve a rest.
"I would like to have them along, but they have suffered enough" - Aggrammar pondered - "They should be released from this servitude" - he turned back to the skeletons - "If I release ye from your bond, will ye be able to move on?"
Agrammar
Zairiah looks around a little more carefully.
She is wary of the skeletons and the centaurs, and the walls that looks like there was some ancient butchery in here. She approaches the roses and examines them and the water, trying to determine whether anything is safe to touch before they move on.
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Zairiah
Zairiah stops when she realizes that the roses are likely harmful.
She turns back to the group and says
Hmm, those roses look like Roses of Forgetfulness. We should probably explore elsewhere for now.
She retreats back outside the gallery and checks the doors to the right.
Zairiah opens the doors to the right of the room where you were attacked by the Skeletons and you see what looks like a long abandoned office with some broken cedar desks and shelves. There is a long worn out carpet.
Zairiah searches the desks and shelves just to see if there is anything valuable here, but if there isn't, then she returns to the skeleton room and checks the doors to the left.
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GM rolls
Zairiah leads the group through the different rooms before the getting to the palace mosque and in the corner of the 3rd room she finds a frame that is a soiled canvas and then a mouse scurries across it and it reveals an art object from the time of Azaltin that needs to be cleaned.
Entering the Mosque from the skeleton chamber through the vast (35 yards high) portal leads to the courtyard. A monumental dome above a square base, around 40 yards high, rises on the opposite site of the courtyard. The dome is the largest cupola of the mosque. Two other domes associated with the iwans, more modest in size, face the center of the long sides of the courtyard. Thus Azaltin's Mosque implements the classic architectural type of the "four-iwan scheme" which was known to be used during the time of the Loregiver. There is elaborate artisanal work with mosaics in colors of green, turquoise and purple with various shapes being represented. Moving your eyes from the ceiling to the floor level of the mosque, you can see a grisly scene had happened here where there is dried blood on the floor and skeletons' bones strewn about. However, next to the main altar, you see the skeleton of the high priest bent over against the altar with a bronze scimitar that could not be removed and the priest had cut down from behind while he prayed. A small sealed jar is still somehow clutched in his hands.