GM Tealk's - Return of the Runelords (Inactive)

Game Master Brainiac

Knowledge (arcana): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (19) + 11 = 30
Spellcraft: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22

"Ooh! Pretty!" Maddie squeals, looking at the gems. She picks up two stones- an emerald and a sapphire, and holds them up to her corresponding eyes, and laughs. "Can I keep them?" she asks.

It's hard to say exactly who the question was directed at, but she seems to be looking in roughly Remy's direction. At the very least, she seems to be better now that her skin is back to normal.

When they come to the room with the dwarves, Maddie glares at the goblin, "Hey, that's not nice!" Then, seeing that the goblin is blind and seeing his head turn towards her when she yelled, quiets down and tries to get over to the dwarves to check on them.

Stealth: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (9) + 6 = 15

Fergus is enraged at the treatment of the dwarves. Don't matter if they are alive or dead, they are coming with us. We will either heal them or bury them proper and the blind one will not stop us! He says with an air of finality. It takes all his training to not rush over and make the blind goblin deaf and mute for the treatment of the dwarves, but he remembers the bigger picture. They are here for the witch and not here to decimate the tribe. But still...its only one goblin?

You manage to very easily knock the chief unconscious, and leave his body in a place that no one will look first.

Once again, Remy shows her fierceness. The goblin doesn't need to be blind to sense the strength of this group. If she wasn't scared before, she is now. "Oh...okay! Fine, take them. I've had enough of dwarf stink anyway." She fliks her tongue out at Fergus. "BEGONE! But do not go after Mother Nightrush, or she will do to you, what she did to Chief. The artefact, don't let her touch you with it." she warns.

The dwarves are malnourished and terrified, but otherwise unharmed. They seem to be gagged and muzzled, and stare with you with open frightened eyes. "Mmmm-hmmm-mmmm!"

What do you want to do with the dwarves? Also, no one is going to take the +2 STR ion stone? Hehe.

After a brief break you press forward, moving through the ruins to try to find Mother. You realise now, what a strange name that is. Is she really a matronly figure? Maddie feels uneasy as she ponders this.

Deeper into the cave, you come across a hallway, which has been long caved in. An old door, broken off it's hinges is open into a small room. A five-foot-diameter space, ringed by arcane runes, sits on the floor at this room’s center. The room is empty, but you notice is has seen recent use. A pair of dirty tracks lead into the circle.

And if anyone asks, you think it will take your hours, or longer, to dig through the rubble.

What do you do? Map updates, and ive placed you where we are currently at.

Knowlege (arcana): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24

I'd take the dogslicer, if I were proficient with them! I'll hold on to it anyway, as the small character, if no one wants it. It's better if someone else has the ioun stone.

"When we are ready, it's likely that the circle over there--" Flik points to the circle of runes--"will teleport us deeper into the ruins. We should be ready for anything!"

I mean, I'm small too. But if I'm in melee, something has gone terribly, terribly wrong.

K (Arcana): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (14) + 11 = 25

Maddie nods, "I wonder what the illusion is." she adds.

I think nobody claimed the stone because there's three of us who could use it. But, that said, someone should be using it now, no matter what.. and I'll certainly do so if Fergus and Remy don't object..

Earlier

Borgol looks at the dwarves, pulling a day's rations for each from his pack. "Here, eat this. We can't take you with us, it's up to you if you'd like to stay here to wait for us or head out on your own. I can give you each a throwing axe to defend yourselves, either way... as long as you promise not to use it on us."

He pauses, then adds, "Is there anything you can tell us about this 'mother' before we go?"

Now

Borgol looks around, A dead end? That makes no sense.. He starts searching for footprints, thinking he can backtrack the goblins to whatever hidden tunnel there might be when Flik mentions the teleporter. "On the plus side, we'll likely have the element of surprise... though barely. We won't know were we are or what we're facing, but they won't be expecting to face anyone at all," he says confidently.

”I’m...I’m ready.” Alustria grips her weapon tightly in her hand. ”I’ll...try to distract her with the storm winds first. That might give you an opening...or keep you safe.”

Fergus will ungag the dwaves and say in dwarven, You are safe brothers. I am Fergun from clan Ironbeard. What are your names and where do you both hail from?

He pauses, then adds, "Is there anything you can tell us about this 'mother' before we go?"

She turns blindly to Borgol and comments, "Mother is a disease. She's found something in this place. A weapon, and it has changed her. But she cannot control it. Don't let her touch you."

Fergus will ungag the dwaves and say in dwarven, You are safe brothers. I am Fergun from clan Ironbeard. What are your names and where do you both hail from?

The dwarves take some time to come to terms with their rescue, but eventually respond. The female dwarf finally stands, "I am Kaggie, and this is my husband Toargus. We are guard from Roderic's Cove. On patrol one night, we were ambushed. That dirty human, the one with a silver tongue. We were brought here, to see some witch, but she didn't keep us for long. She threw us to the goblins to keep, and torture. That 'red-eyed' one kept us alive. Can you help us get out of here?"

They are happy to wait it out, until you are dealt with the rest of what you have to do at this place. Wwhat would you like to do with the dwarves?

--------------------------

The party each steps through the circle, one by one. Maddie realises that you need to cast some sort of magic onto the circle, which she is able to translate and mimic after a few minutes of studying it. Fergus goes first, stepping through and disappearing. AS you all step in one by one, the fifth person in - this time, Remy is unable to step through. Maddie and Remy, seem to be stuck unable to proceed.

White marble lines the walls of this rectangular room. A circle of runes adorns both the east and west walls. The room is separated by a glowing, blue wall.

You all take in your surroundings, and realise there is a small goblin, grouched to one side of the room is sitting wide eyed, staring at all of you. He looks weak and frail, as if he hasn't seen food or water in weeks. He urges softly, "Ehh, food. Water, don't hunt...me."

Flik and Alustria, you'll probably have to roll spellcraft or perception to identify the magics at play inside the room.

Sorry for splitting the party in this way, but it seemed natural.

Flik can Take 10 on Spellcraft.

"A curious magical prison. Perhaps this poor creature can tell us more. Don't worry, he won't be able to lie to us in here."

Flik offers the goblin some water from his rations.

"Now don't drink too deeply, even though you are thirsty. You will make yourself sick!"

Perception: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (16) + 13 = 29

Alustria immediately rushes to the poor goblin, helping him drink. ”What happened? How did you get trapped here?”

The goblin eagerly eats the rations, spilling the water out of the waterskin as he misses his mouth. "Is dumb goblins - dared Stiff to walk into shiny runes. Stiff the Brave, they called me. So Stiff walked into runes, and ended up here." He points to the other side of the shiny wall. "Sometimes Stiff is visited by people. They tease and call him names. Sometimes, Stiff is visited by scary witch, to see if im still here. Silly goblin will be trapped here forever. But then they leave, through the other wall."

He realises the situation you are all in and frowns. "You're now trapped here too, like Stiff."

Having a better look at this room, you realise that there has to be a way out. Maybe touching the runes on the walls, will transport you back? Placing your hands against the shimmering blue light blocking your way to the othersider of the room, the wall of force reacts and small energy waves part the wall, but only just. You think that this spell is failing, and with a little bit of brute force, you might be able to break down the wall.

Borgol looks around, "Couldn't just be a simple lock I could pick, could it? Still, I think this has a bit of give. Fergus, give me hand? Unless Flik or Alustria have a better solution?"

Alustria shakes her head. ”I don’t know much about magic, but it seems weak. Hit it hard.”

"Yes, I agree. It looks ready to fall."

Borgol draws his lucerne hammer and plants his feet, "Give me room to swing," he warns, and then slams the weapon into the barrier.

This damage assumes Borgol has the Ioun stone.

Damage (Power Attack): 1d12 + 9 ⇒ (9) + 9 = 18

I guess that settles who has the stone. We will give it to Borgol for the time being.

After a few big swings at the wall, Borgol is able to release most of his frustration into the magic spell, which soon fails. Cracks, run down the conjured wall, as the facbric of the spell begins to break. Slowly, but surely, the cavern shakes and room nearly double in size form your perspective, as the other side of the area is now accessible to you.

For your reference, the weekened spell only had hardnedd 4, and 20 hp. So it took a couple of swings at the most.

----------

Outside of the room, with Maddie and Remy…

In the previous room, the two ladies are concerned as to why the magic teleportation circle has stopped working. Standing in the middle of the circle, looking quite ready to move on, the dragon-monk has her arms crossed as is keeping her eye on Maddie. "What happened? I trust you're able to figure this puzzle out, Maddie, we need to catch up to our friends."

The smaller lady, paces around keeping her nose close to the runes on the floor, trying to figure out what she's done wrong. The circle is complete, but she thinks the Ancient Azlant ruins might be the things that are confusing her. "Hang on, Remy, give me a second. I'm sure our friends are find, I just have to...Remy...? Where did you go?" As she looks back up, she notices her friend is missing from the circle.

She sighs, and takes a step through after her friends...

---------

As the room gets slightly bigger, so does the space to fit more people. Your companions who were seemingly left behind, fall right into the room on top of you.

The goblin looks wideeyed at the lot of you. "Where you coming from? So many humans, is tribe safe? Can you help me escape this place?" He seems to be edging away from the strong ranger and his lucerne hammer.

The magically inclined of you, think that by touching the runes on the sides of each room, will send you to the original teleportation circles. Maybe this is a good way to proceed.

"Ah, I spy a rune on the far side of the room. I bet it is the way forward."

Flik will let his party-mates reflect on that, but he's ready to touch the rune whenever everyone else is.

To the goblin, he says, "You should wait here, little one. We'll come back to help you escape soon. It would be safe to come with us now."

Furgus smiles at the two dwarves. Well met. We have to deal with a witch and once we have done that, we will escort you back to town. In the meanwhile, rest well.

Fergus helps Bogol with the barrier and then waits while Flik touches the rune.

Borgol adds, "Most of the tribe has fled to safety, and the Chief is sleeping."

Borgol adds, "Most of the tribe has fled to safety, and the Chief is sleeping."

The small goblin sighs, "Knew it! You're not here to save me. And chief always sleeping. When he not sleeping, he is eating. When he is not eating, he is sleeping. Eh? Go, forget about Stiff. Bye bye!" He waves you off, scoffing the last of the rations which the party donated to him.

Flik touches the rune on the other side of the room. Instantly, he disappears. The rest of the team follows quickly, not sure what to except on the other side, and not wanting their small bard friend to find out on his own. The party feels good, knowing you've made this place safe so far, expecting your backs to be clear of any ill-will from the goblins.

You exit into a near, identical room as you were in previously. The arcane circle sits in the middle the domed centre. The door sits ajar, and those of you looking closely can see this space is well travelled. At least half a dozen footprints lead into and out of this room. As you peek outside, you see a hallway which is currently unmonitored. The carved stone extends to the east where it bends further south. You can just barely make out the door to the west which is closed. There, you can also see the other side of the collapsed tunnel which would have connected these sections of the underground ruins.

Which way team?

Remy finds the teleportation disorienting, but does her best to keep her wits about her. Once in the far hall, she looks around and points to the closest door. "Shall we start there?" She leads the way over to it and pushes it slowly open.

Borgol nods, "There's footprints everywhere, and I wouldn't know which set to follow. Seems like a good plan."

"Yeah, I guess." Maddie agrees, equally disoriented, Teleportation feels weird, she thinks.

Alustria nods; the strange happenings have her on edge, but she does her best to keep her wits about her.

The rest of the team follows the two inquisitive girls, who only a day ago fell through a tear in the wall. Somehow, their instincts lead them this way - it feels right. With every step they take, the more they recognise this place...but how? Have they been here before?

This room appears to be nothing more than a hallway surrounding a 15-foot-by-10-foot room. A double door exits the room to the east and a single door allows passage to the north. The western reaches are choked with rubble. A large stone door on the south side of the central section bears a carving of a seven-pointed star. Seven round knobs, each etched with their own runes, each protrude from a point of this central starshaped carving.

As you open the door, you immediately see an elderly woman, wearing dark black robes pacing around the central structure. Her red ornaments is obviously crimson fine silk, yet it looks like strains of blood stained on her robes. Without turning to you, her voice penetrates and echoes through the halls. "Isn't it beautiful? This place? You remember these halls, how grand they once were - Sorshen? Do you remember, this?" She reveals a gauntlet, made of gold and otherworldly metal. She wears it proudly on her left hand. She turns to Remy and smiles. "Have you come to join us on our crusade?"

At the mention of the name "Sorshen," Remy's heart lurches into her throat. This body... She thinks I'm actually her! I'm not the runelord, but I can try to pretend...

The monk takes a deep breath and steps forward, trying to appear confident. "Yes, of course I remember. My mind is as sharp as it ever was. I've come to take back what's rightfully mine. Hand over the gauntlet."

Bluff: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Remy's voice is haughty and overwrought to the point of parody. She moves with exaggerated sensuality that comes across as comical. She barely makes a convincing woman, much less the Runelord of Lust!

Ha! Well it was worth a shot!

I knew that might surprise you. I have to leave breadcrumbs to the bigger picture somehow.

For a second, the old woman seems young and full of energy, as if it's not her. As the dragon monk stumbles over her own words, something leaves her eyes as Mothers temper returns. She immediately hides her gauntlet and snarls, "Who are you, and how did you get past my Roadkeepers? Men, MEN! There are thieves! You won't take it away from me, this power is mine and mine alone!"

All of a sudden, there seems to be more of her in the space she stands. She takes out a dagger, and waves it in your direction.

Obvious Mirror Image: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

Combat start, I'll draw up initiative tracker later when I have my laptop. The party can go first. Please have your turns.

Borgol quickly scans the room, looking for a point of entry that these "men" could be coming from. "Let's see if there's any way to block the doors and keep her "men" out of it... at least until we've dealt with her. Or, at least, use the door to bottleneck them."

Maddie yawns at the overdramatic speech given by the 'mother,' Have I heard this before? I don't remember....
She digs through her pockets for a moment, and digs out a small pat of butter. With a few arcane words and a sweeping motion, the ground beneath the woman suddenly becomes frictionless and impossible to stand on.

Casting Grease (Ref DC 16)

Remy hesitates a moment. "Alustria, Flik, Fergus! Try to destroy the duplicates!" she cries. Before Mother can act, though, she rushes forward, assuming her draconic stance. As she draws near, she reaches out to try to grab the old woman, hoping to snag the real one and not an illusion!

Grapple: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (10) + 6 = 16

Will delay until the rest of the party goes so that hopefully the mirror images are gone. If not, just grab and hope for the best!

Heading the wisdom of Remy's words, Flik draws his bow and takes a shot, hoping to at least destroy an image.

shortbow: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (17) + 4 = 21 for piercing: 1d4 ⇒ 3

Fergus nods and steps up to the many mothers and tries to strike one!

Attack: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23
Damage: 1d12 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

Ye gods! She has the Infinity Gauntlet!? LOL!

I didn't expect the players to be a lot smarter than me. Good plan to deal with her guys. Although Flik, are you sure you want to move there?

Flik and Borgol seeing the doors are open, and two Roadkeepers standing guard. Fergus double moves into the room.

Alustria begins to summon a creature. For round 1!

Flik, (1) - hits: 1d4 ⇒ 3 Arrow destroys an image!
Remy, (1) - hits: 1d3 ⇒ 1
Reflex: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (17) - 1 = 16

In a swift move, Maddie lays a slipper grease under her feat. And just as Mother is about to fall, Remy takes the opportunity to dive in and catch her in a powerful embrace.

The Roadkeepers move to attack the intruders.
Shortsword: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 3 + 2 = 91d6 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (3) + 2 + (4) = 9 -- flank at Flik
Shortsword: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 3 + 2 = 71d6 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (6) + 2 + (2) = 10

Shortsword: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 3 + 2 = 81d6 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (5) + 2 + (1) = 8 -- at Remy

Are you kidding me...? They all miss horribly...

Mother Nightrush squirms under the strength of the monk, and tries her hardest to defensively cast a spell.
Concentration: 1d20 + 4 + 5 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 + 5 + 4 = 21 -- CHA+Caster Level+Combat Casting -- I believe that beets, 10+6+1?
Defensive Cast: 1d20 + 4 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 4 + 5 = 21

She goes invisible under your grasp.

Round 2 ♭ -tba-

Naturalist not active!

Mother Nightrush - Mirror Image (3), Grappled, Prone, Invisible (1')

Maddie
Remy - grappled
Alustira
Fergus
Borgol
Flik

Everyone may act!

"Nice try! But I've still got you!" Remy declares, keeping a firm grip on the invisible Mother Nightthrush. She tries to wrestle the older woman and pin her arms behind her back!

Grapple, Pin: 1d20 + 6 + 5 ⇒ (13) + 6 + 5 = 24

"If a grappled creature becomes invisible, through a spell or other ability, it gains a +2 circumstance bonus on its CMD to avoid being grappled, but receives no other benefit." So that pin should still work!

...yes, yes unfortunately it does... :(

The pure strength from the monk, combined with good intuition, holds the old hag down. Remy can feel her begin to bruise the woman, as her weak bones fold and snap under the pressure. She coughs, "Get, *cough* off me. You can't take this from me!"

I think I lost an action after giving a tactical suggestion before the map was up..

Borgol takes a short step forward, bringing his shield and blade to bear on the Roadkeeper.

Longsword: 1d20 + 7 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (5) + 7 + 2 - 2 = 12 for 1d8 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 4 + 2 = 10
Shield: 1d20 + 6 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 2 - 2 = 16 for 1d4 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 + 2 = 6

Ugh, bad diceroller.

My bad, sorry Borgol shouldn't happen again. Feel free to redo the first move. Maps are always up btw, it's just sometimes I forget the tracker because formattinf is too hard on my phone.

Ha! I thought those were statues--don't ask me why. I guess I'm just more heroic than I knew!

Flik will withdraw into the room.

Maddie unleashes her second accurate barrage of magic for the day, the arcane missile unerringly weaving through the tangle of Remy and the woman, striking her in the leg.

Magic Missile: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

Alustria's spell completes, coalescing into a giant centipede in the hallway. It quickly scurries to attack the Roadkeeper Borgol is fighting! It takes a chomp at the bad guy!

Centipede Bite: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7
Damage: 1d6 - 1 ⇒ (2) - 1 = 1

If it hits, he needs to make a DC13 Fortitude save or take 1d3 Dex damage

Then Alustria moves into the main room, firing a ball of storm winds at the other Roadkeeper in an attempt to keep him from hurting Borgol!

Ranged Touch: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10
If that connects, the enemy will take a -2 to hit for the next round. After checking the preview, though, I would be very surprised if anything I did this round worked! :D

Flik withdrawing will provoke from at least one of them, no matter which way you go.

Stab, aoo: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 41d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

Fergus will move to attach yellow!

Stab, botting: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 191d12 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

Alustria summons a centipede, who rushes to attack one of the Roadkeepers, but misses. Together with Borgol, you aretoo caught up with the monk grappling the invisible creature to focus on her spelllike ability.

@ Maddie - I belive you cannot target Mother as she is currently invisible with your magic missile. You can keep the spell and allocate the damage to one of the Roadkeepers, or do something else if you wish.

The guards shout, "No! Mother! What did you do to her!" They get violent.

Stab!: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 101d6 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8 - green
Stab!: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 221d6 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7 - yellow, hit fergus
Stab!: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 151d6 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4 - red

Round 3 ♭ -tba-

Naturalist not active!

Mother Nightrush - Mirror Image (3), grappled pinned..., Prone, Invisible (2')

Maddie
Remy - grappled
Alustira
Centipede
Fergus -7 lethal
Borgol
Flik

Everyone may act!

Remy shrugs her pack off her shoulders and grabs a length of rope from within with her free hand. Going by feel, she attempts to tie up Mother Nightthrush to neutralize the old woman. "Your Mother will no longer be able to harm any innocent people. Stand down, or we will be forced to deal with you harshly!" she shouts at the other Roadkeepers.

Grapple, Tie Up: 1d20 + 6 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 5 = 21

The DC to escape is 26. If the DC to escape from these bindings is higher than 20 + the target’s CMB, the target cannot escape from the bonds, even with a natural 20 on the check.

I always wondered what happened to the mirror images when someone turns invisible..

"Missed Action"

Borgol steps toward the Roadkeepers, trying to keep them away from interfering with the attack on their master. He raises his shield to work as a wall, slowing them, and then plants a foot, swinging his longsword with power.

Masterwork Longsword (Power Attack): 1d20 + 6 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (15) + 6 + 2 - 2 = 21 for 1d8 + 6 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 6 + 2 = 9
Shield (Power Attack): 1d20 + 5 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (8) + 5 + 2 - 2 = 13 Assume it's a miss.
Current Action

Borgol raises his blade and swings at the Roadkeeper nearest him. He again plants his foot, shifting his weight as part of the attack, increasing its power.

Masterwork Longsword (Power Attack): 1d20 + 6 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (18) + 6 + 2 - 2 = 24 for 1d8 + 6 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 6 + 2 = 13
Shield (Power Attack): 1d20 + 5 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (3) + 5 + 2 - 2 = 8 Assume it's a miss.

After his blade strikes deep, Borgol growls at all the remaining brigands, "Surrender. There's no reason to throw your life away. This thing is already over."

Ah, yep. Reading the spell, it doesn't allow you to hit something with total concealment. I thought it did. Yeah, I'll aim it at the green Roadkeeper.

Maddie, "seeing" Remy handily taking care of the 'mother,' turns her attention to the next threat to the monk, sending a telekinetic fist at the man menacing her, which goes very, very wide.

Telekinetic Fist: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 - 4 = 21d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

Flik lives a charmed life.

Flik will cast daze on the guard near Fergus. DC 13

Storm Blast: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Alustria tries to get a bead on the last remaining Roadkeeper, but her stormblast goes wild, slamming into the wall instead of her opponent. The sounds of battle and the chaos slam into her acute senses, making it almost impossible for her to get her bearings!

As the Roadkeeper doing battle with Borgol falls, the rest of them drop their weapons almost unanimously. "Alright fine, we give up."

Will: 1d20 ⇒ 3

One of them, even becomes dazed mid action.

Remy keep the pressure on the invisible woman, who is throwing profanities in your direction, sounding crazier and crazier by the minute. "What do you mean, defeated? Me? With all this power. You won't take it away from me. The gauntlet is mine. MINE. He said it was mine!..."

Once the dust settles, you notice the 3-foot-thick hewn stone walls of the central structure are made of magically treated reinforced masonry, and the door into the central chamber is a magically treated stone door with a
complex combination lock.

Mother continues her crazy speak, "You won't make me put it back there. Who would lock away such power. It belongs to me now!"

"Who said it was yours? Speak plainly, woman!" Remy snaps. She feels for the gauntlet and pries it off Mother Nightthrush's hand, passing it to her magically-inclined companions for inspection.