Saga of the Sages

Game Master Nathanael Love

Thanks GM! Dimitri, sounds good!

Kenji has his bardiche in his hand and is right behind Dimitri.

"Would you like Zarisha to scout ahead?" Pirro asks as he ascends the steps.

”Zarisha, would you do us the favour please?“ Kenji asks now that he has gotten used to the extraplanar spirit.

"It only makes sense right? Wait, can she get hurt?"

"What does it matter if I am damaged?" Zarisha moans as she drifts up the stairs. "We all return to the nothingness in the end. However, insects cannot hurt me."

She floats through the wall next to Kenji.

Form: incorporeal

"Yeah! That's umm.. that's kind of what I said."

This spacious room has entrances in the southern and eastern walls. The aged remains of dressers, a large bed, and a divan lie in ruins. The husk of large hornet’s nest, gray, papery, and devoid of life, occupies one corner of the ceiling. The spaces in the northeast and northwest corners appear to be closets. Their wooden doors have all but fallen off their hinges, and heaps of disintegrated fabric mingle on the floor. Between the closets stands a single lacquered dresser covered in dust.

Zarisha emerges from the room to inform the others. "The room appears devoid of life or unlife--simply dust upon dust."

”Then let us look somewhere else!“

"Whaaaat? All she said was that there weren't bugs or zombies in there! Let's look for treasure!"

"Yes," Drea adds, "I would agree with Penthesilea that we should be thorough in our exploration of each and every room so as to best catalogue this site for historical interests."

You enter the room and can all roll perception to search now.

Drea's gaze circles the room.

Perception Check: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20

Pirro chuckles at the exchange between Kenji and Penthesilea. He enters the room to contribute to the search for valuables.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (19) + 9 = 28

"This is an odd dresser," he says, rapping on the sides with his knuckles. "There's no opening."

Perception: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 3 = 18 +2 more if this is a sneaky way of checking for surprise! :-p

"Well... it'd be a shame to just break it, let's look for an opening first."

"You are right! I forgot that we are here to research! It almost seems as if we are prey sometimes in these halls ... " Kenji muses.

Perception: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

As you examine the dresser further, you find it pulls out from the wall and has a hidden chest inside! As you look at the chest, you can tell it is trapped!

And I am back and should be back on track to post approximately daily in the midmorning.

"Can any of you tell what that trap does?" Pirro asks as he backs away.

Dmitri can only stand back and watch, as he has no skills with traps. "I can only suggest caution, this place has more bugs and traps than I have ever seen."

"I can handle this if we have a moment," the sylph says, unbuckling their armoured coat and gently placing it on the floor. Drea then produces a set of lock picks and approaches the trapped chest.

Disable Device Check: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18 Urrrgh. I failed by less than 5, so I should be able to try again, but.....trap.

Trap Attack: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (16) + 15 = 31

Damage: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3

Sure enough, a poisonous dart springs out striking Drea! They will need to make a DC 11 fortitude save.

You can try again to unlock the chest now that the trap is out of the way.

Pirro raises an eyebrow at the sound of a click. "Did you survive?"

Fortitude Save: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (3) + 5 = 8 Of course....

"Ow," Drea manages, their hands affixed upon the poison needle buried in their neck.

Do your worst, GM.

poison: 1d2 ⇒ 1

1 con damage and you will need to repeat the save until you make it or 5 more times.

Kenji is very concerned.

”What’s going on?!? Can I help?!?“

"Yikes!" Penthesilea quickly plucks out the dart and sets to work on providing a bit of first aid.

Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (19) - 2 = 17 Giving a +4 to your next Fort Save

"Well, that's not good," Pirro says as Penthesilea plucks a tiny dart out of their companion's hand. He steps forward and lays a hand upon them, channeling fortune into them.

Guidance, but it does not stack with the Heal skill.

"Ow," Drea manages, their hands affixed upon the poison needle buried in their neck.

Drea shakes their head a bit as Penthesilea tends to the wound in their neck.

Fortitude Save, Heal Check bonus: 1d20 + 5 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 5 + 4 = 18 SUCCESS!

"I'm fine," the sylph says irritably, moving to attempt to disable the lock yet again.

Disable Device Check: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7 Wow. Pathetic.

Drea curses as one of their picks breaks off inside the chest lock.

Yup. Not a rogue, I guess.

"Kenji can always attempt to open it with his 'lock pick,'" Pirro comments.

Kenji steps forward and nods.

"If you think I don't destroy anything special?"

Kenji uses force to open with a crowbar.

Strength, +2: 1d20 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 2 + 4 = 18
Strength, +2: 1d20 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 2 + 4 = 20
Strength, +2: 1d20 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 2 + 4 = 15
Strength, +2: 1d20 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 2 + 4 = 12
Strength, +2: 1d20 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 2 + 4 = 21

You pry the chest open to find 20 gold ingots bearing a seal;Knowledge (history) or (nobility) to identify. Each is worth 25 gold. There is also a magical headband concealed within (spellcraft to identify).

There are four remaining rooms on the top floor- three on the far/back wall, and the one smaller room to the south closer to you.

"I am not familiar with that seal," Pirro says, surveying the ingots. He concentrates upon the headband. "The headband is magical, but I cannot discern its powers."

School of magic?

Knowledge History Check: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26
Spellcraft Check: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (5) + 9 = 14

"That is the seal of the Keleshite sultan who governed Osirion at the time of the Plague of Madness, 2215 year ago," Drea states, their voice a little more breathy than usual. "I have not seen the like of that headband before."

"Let us take the headband with us! It might be significant!" Kenji says.

He walks to the southern room and opens the door.

"Oh, wait for Za--" Pirro begins, rising from his kneeling position and turning.

School of magic is necromancy; which direction do you head next?

Through that door that Kenji just busted through in the SE.

I love Kenji's impulsivity.

Drea takes a minute to put their armor back on.

LOL. Low Wis and Int have to have consequences.

Knowledge (history): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23

"Well I'm not sure about the historical importance of gold bars, but at least they serve other purposes..."

Penthesilea follows after Kenji

The walls of this room are decorated with a scenic vista of
a river valley running through a desert, resplendent with
verdant life and greenery near the shores. Only a few pieces of
lacquered furniture remain in the chamber. A faint, musty odor
of decomposed wood and fabric lingers in the air. A set of doors
stands in the western wall.

There is a decapitated body in the corner.

There is a ring, worth 50 gold, a simple wedding band with "To Akar from Panhet, Love Eternal" engraved on it, but nothing else of note on the body.

Knowledge (planes): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13

Zarisha regards the scene placidly.

Heal: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24

"Second headless corpse," Pirro comments as he examines the corpse in the corner. "This one is--relatively--fresher, and the head was ripped off not cut off. Unpleasant way to die..."

Knowledge Planes Check: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (6) + 8 = 14

Drea seems still shaken by the poisoned trap encounter. They are unable to offer any further insights.

"We should be wary," they suggest.

Penthesilea blanches, but smiles through it. "Guys. That didn't just get pulled off. I think it flew off! This looks just like what happens when a Vargouille gets you! Careful though, because if you don't watch out they can-"Special attacks please

Knowledge (planes): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23

Pirro performs a prayer for the soul of the dead before removing the ring from the body.

Assuming that we do not get set upon by a vargouille...

"Let us move on to the next room," Pirro says, moving back onto the balcony with Zarisha simply walking through the wall onto the balcony and then through the next set of double doors.

Vargouilles have a "Kiss" attack used on helpless targets which transforms them into Vargoulles (with a series of failed fort saves) in a terrifying process- their hair falls out, they grow wings on their scalp, sprout tentacles from their chin, and grow fangs, then finally their head pops off and becomes a Vargouille while the body dies.

They also have a poison bite that prevents damage done from healing, and a shriek that can paralyze targets within 60 ft.

A large lacquered desk, now in poor condition, sits in the
center of this room. Bookcases stand along the eastern and
southwestern walls, sagging as if ready to collapse at any
moment. Their shelves have fallen out, and the piles of dust at
their bases are all that remains of books and scrolls that failed
to survive the long years. The lacquered wooden frames of what
might once have been divans stretch along the north and south
walls, but their upholstery has disintegrated. A single door in
the western wall is the room’s only exit.

As you search the area you find some small (but of little value items) a Pentharu family seal, a set of scales, and a bronze key that would have opened the chest in the other room! I do not understand why there is always a key in a room you will almost always go to after the room with the lock!

There are two doors left on this floor the closer one and the further one.

Assuming you go to the next closest door

Most of the contents of this room have fallen apart or otherwise
been reduced to dust from the dry desert air. A foul, cloying
smell fills the room.

Here, as you enter the room, you are confronted by the very sight of what you'd seen the evidence of the creation in the room before! A vargouille!

[spoiler=Initiative]
Drea Initiative: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21
Dmitri Initiative: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14
Kenji Initiative:: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (19) + 5 = 24
Nardic Initiative: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14
Penthesilea Initiative: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19
Pirro Initiative: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22
Zarisha Initiative: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Vargouille Initiative: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (16) + 1 = 17

Turn order:
1. Kenji
2. Pirro
3. Drea
4. Penthesilea
5. Vargouille
6. Nardic
7. Dmitri
8. Zarisha

Sorry, I somehow missed your post!

Kenji walks forward and readies an action to strike with his greatsword should this being approach.

MW Greatsword , power attack: 1d20 - 1 + 7 ⇒ (9) - 1 + 7 = 15
Greatsword 2H, power attack : 2d6 + 9 ⇒ (4, 2) + 9 = 15