[dice=AwesomeStrike]1d20 + 8
that doesn't live up to it's name.
Guldun sprints after her companions, reloading her crossbow at the top of the stairs
Vetch triple strides and gets in front of the whole pack.
"Stop there and you live! Keep running and the ranger we have waiting outside will turn you into a pincushion!"
The orc seems willing to take his chances. He steps up to Vetch and attempts Tumble through the druid's square.
He tumbles by, but it slows him down.
~+~Combat Round 6~+~
Guldun
--Telly (-6)
Orc (-36)
Ooze
Uhtred (-39)
BGG
Vetch (-12)
~+~Combat Round 7~+~
Guldun
--Telly (-6)
Vetch pursues and uses burning hands on the fleeing orc.
vs. DC 18 Basic Reflex Save
After a scorching from Vetch and a solid hit from Uhtred, the orc is reeling. It's amazing that he's on his feet.
+~Combat Round 6~+~
Guldun
--Telly (-6)
Orc (-62)
Ooze
Uhtred (-39)
BGG
Vetch (-12)
~+~Combat Round 7~+~
Guldun
--Telly (-6)
Guldun runs down the stairs and carefully aims through the cover from her friends
for
Guldun's bolt find's its mark in the orc's side, and the damage is too much for him. He falls lifeless to the floor.
The cave is mostly quiet. There are some animal sounds coming from the entrance area, but you feel safe enough to explore.
Vetch starts searching about the room where they vanquished the final orc, stepping carefully around any broken glass or pools of alchemical liquid disturbed during their initial fight in this room.
There is about 20 gp of alchemical equipment on the tables in this room that could be recovered.
Additionally, you think you could complete the alchemists's work and create a lesser frost vial, a lesser acid flask, and a minor elixir of life with a couple minutes' work and a DC 15 Crafting check.
In the alcove to the south, there looks to be an area for storage of alchemical gear and reagents. You can tell that most of the barrels and crates are quite old, but the gear and equipment in the laboratory is of the same style and make and looks as if it may have once been stored here. The equipment here is old but quite valuable to the right buyer. If you returned with a wagon, they could load it all up and sell it.
Based on the smell and general unpleasant mess it contains, the room to the northwest appears to be a refuse pit. Scattered among the bones are a few trinkets, including a low-grade cold iron dagger, a wolf fang talisman, and 8 gp in miscellaneous coins.
Orc Gear
Guards: javelin (5), orc knuckle dagger (4), shoddy breastplate (2)
Alchemists: lesser acid flask (4), lesser alchemist’s fire (3), lesser bottled lightning (4), minor elixir of life (4), orc knuckle dagger (2)
Alchemist Boss: crafter’s eyepiece, lesser bomber’s eye elixir, orc knuckle dagger, studded leather armor (All of his bombs are infusions, so they won't work for you guys.)
The first thing you notice about the room to the north is its entrance: Made from stout wood and bound with iron, the pair of doors is crudely decorated with a carving of a small rural village that has been set ablaze. Anyone examining the carving can tell it must have been made many
years ago and, despite its poor overall artistry, the village bears an unmistakable resemblance to Etran’s Folly.
This room was once the study of the orc alchemist. A small stash of coins worth 18 gp and a fine set of silver scales worth 30 gp sit atop the desk.
There are also a large amount of notes, mostly written in orcish. They seem to catalog what was going on at this site. It would take a little while to go through them, but they look pretty thorough.
The room beyond that, which housed the blood ooze, is a grisly scene. There are a few desiccated corpses hooked to alchemical equipment that was obviously used to drain their blood. There seems little of value here, but there is an interesting note pinned to the northern wall. It is titled, "Delivery Instructions" and gives directions to a destination in the hills to the west, starting from a point described as "Hallod's drop-off stump."
"Sounds like a plan. That should give us some time to go through all this paperwork too. Anyone speak orcish?"
Guldun will tend to Telly's wounds
and an hour later
and an hour later
and an hour later
one more hour
"Maybe whistle for Noala? She might."
Stepping inside the cave, a cloud of smoke hovering around the ceiling becomes visible. Curled up in the back of the cave is a cat that looks to be on fire. It glares at the sight of another creature entering, letting out a weak snarl that fades into a plaintive yowl.
"Poor kitty. What did these mean old orcs do to you? Come here and I will take care of you." Vetch will find a clean(ish?) bowl and fill it with water.
Vetch, the cat calms down and lets you approach, but unfortunately when it goes to drink from the water, the liquid boils away before the feline is able to slake its thirst!
Guldun will start looking through the alchemical items for anything that looks like it might put a fire out
"What have these beasts done to you? Guldun, that is an excellent idea. Fight fire with fire as it were."
You could use one of the frost bombs to chill the water for long enough that the cat could drink.
Assuming you do that, that cat looks very relieved--and at least as friendly as a cat that's on fire can look. It perks up noticeably. Vetch, you think that now that it is feeling better it just wants to escape this cave.
Vetch does just that, and then makes a clear path for the cat to leave.
The cat scampers out of the cave, leaving a faint trail of smoke behind it.
A few minutes later, Noala enters the cavern: "Did you see that cat? It looked like one of the corrupted animals, but it was surprisingly calm and responsive. I let it go."
She tells you that she didn't see anything else escape the lair. "What do you make of this place?"
Noala says, "What reason could they have had for running these experiments?"
A good question. Poking around the notes from the head alchemist's office can provide some clues. The notes are written in a mixture of common and orcish, so they are a little difficult to go through.
The notes seem to be records of experiments conducted to create permanent mutations in creatures by exposing them to energy mutagens. While many of these experiments were ultimately successful, they had an unintended side effect: the creatures became far too bestial and unreliable as minions.
One of the most recent notes says, “The coagulant thing is finally taking shape. It might not be what she asked for, but she is sure to be impressed! When it is ready, I will take it to Spite’s Cradle and show it to the mistress myself.”
One other note catches Vetch's attention: About 3 years ago, someone named Vilree commanded the orcs to capture a human. This person was placed in a covered pit in the woods and exposed to something that the notes refer to as the viridian vapor. The last note on this experiment reads, “The human died in agony in less than a day. We burned his body and filled in the pit as instructed.”
"Sounds like we have our next set of leads. And some incriminating evidence against this Vilree. Do the notes mention where this pit might have been?"
"Noala, any idea for a location of this 'Spite's Cradle' that is mentioned?"
"I have no idea!"
"I have no idea!"
"Then maybe you can help us make sense of this map we found . . ."
"I think all that sprinting just now, really stretched my legs out"
Guldun says joining Uhtred in his jog
Noala tells you that she is relieved to hear the orcs will be conducting no more experiments in her woods. "Unfortunately, I do not believe that this one laboratory could possibly be responsible for all of the blights I've located. I suspect that this Vilree must be ultimately responsible. Let me see that map."
After studying the drawing for a moment, she hands it back to you. "It's a crude drawing, but I would say the destination is in the foothills of the Five Kings Mountains, about 20 miles west of here. If you are to get to the bottom of this, I think you'll have to travel there and bring this Vilree to justice. For Bort’s sake, if not just for the sake of the woods.”
Guldun adjusts her pack and gives a nod
"Ready when you are"
"Perhaps we should head back to town, see if we can get any more information on the route there. Easy paths, dangers to avoid and the like. Get a good night's rest at the inn and then set off in the morning."
"Uncle Good Good, I fear you spoil us."