GM Rinaldo's Midnight Mirror (Inactive)

Game Master The Great Rinaldo!

Laiashi ducks further into the room and tries to activate her wand. Come on, come on, work!

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (20) + 10 = 30
Use Magic Device: 1d20 + 9 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 9 + 2 = 14
Seriously...

Unfortunately, all that comes out of the wand are a few golden sparks.

Nino, coming down the ladder is going to provoke from Red (it counts as climbing, not normal movement). If you want to jump down, you can avoid the AoO, but I'll require an Acrobatics check for the jump itself.

Acro: 1d20 - 4 ⇒ (8) - 4 = 4

Oof. Sorry, Nino. At least it was a short enough fall not to take damage ...
Nino drops down through the hole, but hits a slick patch on the ground and falls prone. Despite this, he swings his sword, and the magically enhance blade does its job - it slices through the shadow, dissipating its essence.

Even with the prone penalty, your attack hits, and even at half damage you do enough to defeat Red.

Patros and Ushi are both up. You are both currently prone, but not threatened.

Patros grabs a flask from his bandolier and readies it to throw.another holy water

Ushi considers the magic at his disposal, recalling that undead are unbothered by his sound bursts, and prepares to send another burst of radiance into the room if the shadow attacks either ally.

Patros, why are you readying and not just attacking? What trigger are you readying against?

Ushi, same question: why are you readying and not just attacking immediately?

ahh...i thought it was a standard to ready a flash and standard to use it?

No "readying" required - move action to draw, standard to throw. That's true for all splash weapons. Fire away!

Also, readying is a standard action. So if you have two flasks, you can't throw one and then ready an action to throw the other.

Readying to burst if the blinded enemy lucks into attacking Nino. If it flails uselessly, Nino can attack again and hopefully defeat it without Ushi using another spell slot.

Ushi: Gotcha. So your trigger is if it starts to reach in a direction that looks like it could hit Nino. *thumbs up*

Patros, it is possible you saw a very poorly written bit in the rules for using a flask of oil as a splash weapon by lighting it on fire then throwing it; THAT process requires an action to prepare the flask, then a separate one to throw. Many people have seen that and misinterpreted it (because of the poor phrasing) to apply to all splash weapons.

That said, do you want to throw now, or do like Ushi and wait to see if it tries to attack Nino?

bombs away!

Patros tosses the vial at the last shadow.

splash: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 152d4 ⇒ (2, 4) = 6

Patros lobs another holy water at the shadow. This time his aim is good, and the whole vial splashes over the creature. With a barely audible moan, it dissipates from view.

== End of combat! ==

With the combat over, you inspect the corpse on the floor. This is a middle aged woman wearing a simple shift with an apron over it; the apron is covered in splatters of wax of various colors. The woman's throat is ripped out, but otherwise she shows no signs of struggle.

A single door leads out of the room.

Laishi and Nino are suffering from the STR damage until you can either get lesser restoration cast or sleep it off, one point per night.

Anyone ... ?

I don't have lesser restoration.

"Guys, can we go to rest through the night, I don't feel well?"

Of course...perhaps we should see a healer? I know nothing of this life draining magic..

again didnt see new posts notification...i checked earlier too...likely just before you posted, Rinaldo...

GM, can Nino buy in this town +1 weapon?

"You are no longer in danger, so long as we do not find more of them." Ushi tries being reassuring. "I am more concerned about the murdered shopkeep. Even if she rose as that shade, it does not explain the second. Nor why she died."

"It hit me too. It's like it sucked the strength out of my muscles." Laiashi tightens her grip on her wand experimentally. It felt strange to be so weak. "But Ushi's right. We need more information."

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14

@Patros: That happens a lot, unfortunately. :-( If I don't see a new message in 24 hours, I always go check just in case.

@Nino: Sadly, no. This is a small town, it barely has basic gear. OTOH, it has a temple, so you might be able to get a lesser restoration if you are willing to visit a priest of Zon-Kuthon. ;-)

@Laiashi: What specifically are you examining/searching?

Sorry about not checking in on Saturday. I'll check back later this evening in case anyone posts.

We should quickly check around here...might be a clue... Patros muses, checking the small shop.

perc: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13

"OK let's look around and then we shall go to tavern to rest through the night."

perception: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21

When all are down in the same room Nino will open the door to the east.

Sorry, ended up not coming back Sunday night. It seems to be cold season again. :-(

The room itself yields no clues or hidden items.

Opening the door, the first thing you notice is the overpowering smell of hot fat. In the front of the room is a drying rack on which candles are hung while they cool. Broken and mangled, it sits in a circle drawn in blood and fat. Farther back, a furnace emits a dim light, and behind it stand several enormous vats, each as tall as a human.

The room is brightly lit, despite having no windows and only a few simple torches around the walls. A man and a woman, both suffering from tallowthroat, turn to look at you as the door opens. The woman says, "You can't be here. This room isn't for the public."

"Who are you and what are you doing here?!"

Ushi looks over the grotesque arrangement. Take 10 to identify.

”What would the public think of your rituals? I assume this woman was the latest sacrifice?”

"What are you talking about? We're just making candles here. What sacrifice?"

Just a general look around.

"You, um, you're aware there's a dead body down here, right? Just over there. There was no one upstairs, but the place seemed open, so we came looking and... found her."

The man speaks up. "Look, everything happening here is at the direction of the Baron. Our boss here is Ilquiss, you can go ask the baron if you don't believe us."

"Who is Ilquiss?"

"He's the one in charge here. Like I said, go ask the Baron."

"So the Baron has commanded you to kill this woman upon a sacrificial alter, even a crude one such as this?" Ushi gestures to the bloody setup.

Patris snorts in derision at the man's seemingly illogical explanation.

Are you mad? You cannot be serious....do you have any idea what you are insinuating? intimidate: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21to try to get the truth if possible

Nino raises his sword."Where is Ilquiss? I wanna speak with Ilquiss!"

intimidate aid: 1d20 ⇒ 6

From somewhere in the room you hear a voice say, "Well then, speak with him! อย่ามอ งมาที่ ฉัน!"

The last is a language you do not understand.

"You are Ilquiss? Explain what is going on here? Quick!?"

"I am, and I have the baron's full permission. Now go away!"

You still can't tell where the voice is coming from in the room.

What did you do? Tell me! What sorcery did you cast on me? Patros says, drawing his blade.

intimidate: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19

The man and woman both get horrified looks on their faces as Patros draws his weapon. Other than that, he gets no response.

"Guys! Let's go to rest and tomorrow we shall visit the baron."

”And leave these people to sacrifice more innocents on ‘the barons orders’?” Ushi watches for Illquis to reveal himself.

"OK then! Let's settle this here once for all!"

Nino starts casting something casts Bull's Strength on himself

Laiashi (unless stopped) moves over to the furnace and peers in. "Hmmm, this looks burning hot. Sure would be painful to have a hand stuck in there." She puts her own hand inside to test this statement, even running a finger across the hot coals.

Then she turns to the woman. "Could you tell us where Ilquiss is hiding?" She glances meaningfully at the woman's hand.

Intimidate: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19

Patros: All good. That's pretty much the reaction I expected. ;-)

Laiashi: Going to stop you from crossing the room - Nino casting a spell is going to trigger a reaction. Too bad, though, sticking your hand in the coals would have been a nice intimidate check. :-)

I have moved Nino and Patros into the room, as they have been doing most of the talking up to this point. Laiashi and Ushi are just outside the door.

Nino's spell triggers a readied action from the unseen "Ilquiss", then we'll roll initiative.

Nino Fort save: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23
You hear the disembodied voice say something in a strange language, then Nino feels himself shake off a magical effect.

Nino's spell completes in the surprise round, then Ushi and Patros are up. You still can't see Ilquiss, though his voice last came from somewhere in the back half of the room. The man and woman are still shocked at Patros' weapon coming out.

Patros darts forward and calls out to the hidden spellcaster.

Show yourself, coward! Face me like a man and I'll consider giving you a man's death!

move and ready an attack if he shows up. will do a parry/riposte if attacked in melee.

readied attack: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (3) + 9 = 121d8 + 4 + 3 ⇒ (8) + 4 + 3 = 15

I'll give Ushi a couple of hours while I get morning stuff done at work, then I'll bot him.

Maneuvering into the room and spreading out from the party, Ushi offers another blessing to the party.

Apologies, had to cover some 12 hour shifts this week. Ushi makes sure that Bless is refreshed.

The man picks up a broken piece of the equipment, and wielding it like a club, he moves over to Patros. "No, don't hurt Ilquiss!"

After Patros is resolved, Laiashi and Nino are up!

i'll chance it...

hit/miss, low=hit: 1d100 ⇒ 1