GM Kirsdrake's Eberron Case Files (closed recruitment) (Inactive)

Game Master Kirsdrake

Alua looked up at the spirit. "Gahdtruggis? Is that your name?" She looked at the item covered in shreds of fabric. "Is that what you were protecting? Is that the tower?"

Erix, who felt somewhat useless here, did his best to keep watch.
"You need someone to touch the potentially lethal thing?"

Alua looked up at the spirit. "Gahdtruggis? Is that your name?" She looked at the item covered in shreds of fabric. "Is that what you were protecting? Is that the tower?"

Twin nods.

Erix, who felt somewhat useless here, did his best to keep watch.

"You need someone to touch the potentially lethal thing?"

An appreciative grin, as if acknowledging a particularly funny joke.

"I may not know much about this archeology stuff but I'm pretty sure that when something is displayed on an altar as a focal point in the room that it's probably important."

"Ummm... I tend to agree.. We do have some details from the texts... ummm... the spirit... Gahdtruggis... is likely the best clue we have... Phin could you go closer to the item on the altar and Alua could you watch if Gahdtruggis's spirit looks horrified or delighted? ", Lupi said.

Posting at the same time, my post may be ignored. Looking forward on finding a volunteer to touch the item :).

If nobody else volunteers, Lupi will certainly do it.

If nobody else volunteers, Lupi will certainly do it.

Godo to know there's someone ready and willing to sacrifice their body and/or soul for science! (ie. to see what happens when you push the big red button with the "Do not push this button under any circumstances. Any! Not even if you are bored." note taped next to it)

history: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13 info on the ancient orc?
religion: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9 info on the gatekeepers?
arcana: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (4) + 9 = 13 info on the dragon Vvaraak?
Awsome! Three terrible rolls >:[
"Hmm, 'born under the sentinel' in 'the war against madness' driving them into 'Khyber's embrace'? Alua, I wonder if your friend here was one of the early Gatekeepers. I'm sorry, for some reason the details are escaping me. Something about a dragon teaching the orc about druidic magics to fight off chaos beneath the earth and seal them in the underworld." Sorry, probably reaching a little too far for those rolls.

"The waters must funnel the powers of the local ley lines in some way - fascinating! 'To join in the great work'? Khyber indeed?!" Baran showed something on his face he hadn't before, he was an enabler, someone who seemed not endlessly happy but never entirely deterred. Right now he seemed frustrated, powerfully so. Their fingertips were brushing against the details of the ancient past and he couldn't nudge fate and put it within their grasp. He started pacing and the frustration drove any thought of practical matters from his mind. He was a thousand years away and trapped there.

He looked to Lupi, "Can you mend anything here enough for me to copy some of the details into my archeology journal? I think a rubbing would be too much pressure. Simply turning the pages was detrimental." He moved to the water-rune.

He looked to Lupi, "Can you mend anything here enough for me to copy some of the details into my archeology journal? I think a rubbing would be too much pressure. Simply turning the pages was detrimental." He moved to the water-rune.

"Oh yes, ummm.. a good point", Lupi said pulling out a scroll from her scrollcase. "I do have one Mending scroll. Shall I try with Gahdtruggis's journal?"

Kirsdrake: Depending on how one reads the description of a Mending spell this might be useful?

Kirsdrake: Depending on how one reads the description of a Mending spell this might be useful?

Yes, Mending was the one thing that you might have used... but it's not of very much use now, after the fact. If you had used it before you started reading the book, it would have prevented any more damage being done to the pages and I'd have given you a bit more useful information (for a given value of "useful"). But it won't do much to restore pages already broken - or, rather, it may restore the pages themselves, but being a 0-level spell, it's not very smart. And you could consider writing itself "damage" done to a pristine page (ink is like dirt that seeps into paper, and in this case, the pictographs etched and scratched and stamped into the cupper sheets are not much different from cuts and tears). So at this point, it may restore some pages, but won't do anything to restore what was once written on said pages.

[dice=history]1d20+7 info on the ancient orc?

[dice=religion]1d20+7 info on the gatekeepers?
[dice=arcana]1d20+9 info on the dragon Vvaraak?
Awsome! Three terrible rolls >:[

Nope, never heard of the orc.

Nothing specific about the Gatekeepers. Sure, you would at least recognize the name of the major Druidic orders, but they are secretive, and that roll won't let a non-member like you recall anything of real use.

Where did you even get this name? I for sure didn't mention her. Google-fu at work, perhaps? ;^)

Sorry, probably reaching a little too far for those rolls.

Dragons teaching humans and other races the secrets of magic is a well established legend (also the truth, but few peole really know it), so feel free to speculate about that. Over at Argonnessen, the local humans actively worship dragons (not exactly common knowledge but perhaps uncommon - not a state secret, certainly. And the dragons of Eberron are a pretty unusual bunch, as they have formed a secret society of sorts (the Chamber) that oversees and unravels the Dragonic Prophecy... this part is very much a secret, and quite another can of worms. Extremely cool one in my mind, though.

Where did you even get this name? I for sure didn't mention her. Google-fu at work, perhaps? ;^)

It was a not too deep dive into the support material representative of read I did that Baran has not.

Alua looked at the "tower", wondering at its name. Perhaps something was lost in translation. "Gahdtruggis, I wish we could talk properly. I don't understand why you led us here. We had to break through two wards to do so, and it seems that they were doing a good job of holding back the aberrations back there. Surely us coming here has made this place more vulnerable, not less. Now those creatures have access straight to here, and to the outside world as well."

Unwilling to allow Phin to risk herself over the object, Alua moved towards it. "I guess there's no point in doubting your intentions now. We've come this far. Is this what you need us to do? To take it from here?"

Assuming he doesn't indicate otherwise, Alua will attempt to clear the debris off the tower so they can examine it before picking it up.

Casting 'summon instrument' to create an alphorn and using it in-turn to cast prestidigitation and slowly clean the pedestal and lance/sceptre/giant's femur.
"In the distance of the well sounded a low groan, flat and resonant. The low sound became bolder and more resounding and then they saw it, a great horn where no instrument had previously been noticed. It looked to be fashioned from the tusk of a massive mammoth of old." Barn continued to play the great horn slowly and steadily and the vibrating sound seemed to touch only the remaining cloth of cobweb and any dust not removed by the water rune.
Alphorn

It was a not too deep dive into the support material representative of read I did that Baran has not.

Right. I definitely don’t mind about you guys finding out things about the setting (I simply love it and would like nothing more than others to get interested in it), and I apologize if I gave the impression that I didn’t approve of that. As long as player knowledge is kept apart from character knowledge, and you keep in mind that I may have tweaked some bits here and there to suit my own fancy and the needs of the particular campaign, we are golden ;^)

The mournful notes from Baran’s conjured horn echoed in the chamber and gently stripped the item resting on the altar of its coat of spider silk and tatters of ancient fabric, revealing the yellowish-white item to your eyes.

Right… how should I describe how the thing looks like… I have a good mental image, but to put it into words… first, take your average shorspear – a haft 5’ or so long, topped by a foot-long blade. Then, you take long, 3-inch-wide strips of cloth, 4 of them, and glue one end of each to the very point of the spear’s head. Then you start wrapping the spear with said strips of cloth, very tightly, lacing the strips together as they frequently overlap each other, until all but about the lowest foot of the haft is wrapped over. Only, the strips are not cloth but ivory or bone or some rock of identical hue a quarter-inch thick. It is impossible to say if the spear really was wrapped by something flexible like cloth that was then turned into stone (or whatever the heck it is), or if the whole thing is carved from a single piece to look like the strips were a later addition. The bottom part of the haft that is uncovered by the strips is carved in painstaking detail, and now that the term “tower” has been mentioned you can indeed imagine seeing tiny windows and balconies and decorative statues a sixth of an inch high in their minuscule alcoves carved into it.

"Gahdtruggis, I wish we could talk properly. I don't understand why you led us here. We had to break through two wards to do so, and it seems that they were doing a good job of holding back the aberrations back there. Surely us coming here has made this place more vulnerable, not less. Now those creatures have access straight to here, and to the outside world as well."

The spirit of the long-dead orc scowled at you, again displaying its frustration as it was unable to clearly communicate its wishes to you. It gestured at the way you had arrived, then at one of the rubble-blocked tunnels that had once led away from the rooms you were in. Next it knelt down and grasped the air in front of it with both hands, before making tossing motions over his shoulder, then standing up to point one finger straight down.

Alua Riversong wrote:

Unwilling to allow Phin to risk herself over the object, Alua moved towards it. "I guess there's no point in doubting your intentions now. We've come this far. Is this what you need us to do? To take it from here?"

At this, the spirit gave Alua a solemn look and a nod, once again pointing a finger down at the floor and shaking its head, baring its teeth and tusks in what was clearly a sign of displeasure or hate.

And we now have everyone except Erix crowding around the staff/spear/thing, suggesting they may pick it up… if one of you is actually going to pick it up, I’d like to hear that IC. You may rest assured that I fully intend the thing to be picked up by someone – either one of you, a NPC from the expedition, perhaps the Professor himself or, in case you decide to persuade everyone to leave the thing alone, someone from the other expedition will sneak in to snatch whatever it is that’s got you people so hot and bothered. If one of you ends up holding the thing you will have some say in certain later parts of the campaign’s overall plotline. If not, you end up watching from the sidelines as someone else makes the decisions ;^)

Now that the item was cleaned and free of cobwebs, Phin took another look for anything that would suggest a trap was lying in wait to catch a thief unawares.

perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (4) + 9 = 13

Her senses and instincts determined that nothing new was revealed by the magical cleaning and she figured it was safe enough to touch. "I don't see any traps but that doesn't mean that I haven't missed something. I think it only fair that I take the risk. I'm also the most expendable. Erix has proved himself the protector, Alua the healer, while Baran and Lupi's knowledge have proved invaluable. I on the other hand, have spent most of my time unconscious or dying."

The elf reached up to lift the strange looking 'tower' from its perch on top of the altar.

If someone really, really, really wants to do it instead then Phin will defer. I just thought this made the most sense...

Baran let the instrument disappear and took a few steps back to give Phin room to work.
Moving to the top of the steps

If someone really, really, really wants to do it instead then Phin will defer. I just thought this made the most sense...

Excellent! And good that someone other than Alua took it, since she already got her scars from one of my artifacts (a certain dagger is Fabian's game) - only fair to let someone else bite the bullet this time :-)

"Hey - you're not expendable." Erix protests "But... depending on what this thing is warded against... yeah, might not make a lot of sense to let me touch it. On the other hand, I can take a beating pretty well..."

Phin gave a small smile in response to Erix's words, "You're just saying that Cub because I've saved your life in the past."

Her face set, her voice filled with resolve she said, "I'm not just thinking about the damage it may do to the one that picks it up. I'm also thinking about the damage the wielder may do to others should the artifact have a mind of its own."

Alua stared at the spirit, trying to understand. "They're digging in? To avoid the ward? Coming up from below?" She looked back, as if expecting to find the horrible creatures already clambouring to catch up to them. "Okay, we will take it from here."

**

Alua opened her mouth to tell Phin not to touch it, but had to admit she made a good point. "Okay, but start with a touch, not with a grasp. I don't have much healing available to me, but I can do the glowy body thing if you need it." She stood poised, alert, ready to try to save the elf if she needed it.

Ready, I guess.

Alua stared at the spirit, trying to understand. "They're digging in? To avoid the ward? Coming up from below?"

The spirit nodded its head, pointed at you, then at its own eyes and finally made an expansive gesture in the general direction you had come from.

The elf reached up to lift the strange looking 'tower' from its perch on top of the altar.

As Phin’s fingers slid over the weapon’s haft, she could feel a slight tingling in her fingers, as if from static electricity. A feeling that suddenly surged, causing your fingers to spasm and grasp the “tower” in a tight grip. Alarmed, you reflexively tried to pull your hand back and yanked the staff from its resting place – you felt a little bit of resistance as if the artifact didn’t want to be moved, but the feeling abated almost as soon as you registered it, leaving you to wonder if you had imagined that part. You took a few steps away from the altar, the rather comfortable weight of the weapon in your hands, and the burst of electricity that had forced your hand had passed as if it had never happened in the first place.

Alua could see the spirit pointing a finger at Phin – or perhaps the artifact she now carried, make a fist, press the fisted hand against its chest in what might have been a salute and gave you a low bow… before its form began to fade, the sole task that had prevented the spirit from moving on now completed.

You had little time to reflect on this, however, as earth suddenly rumbled beneath your feet, showering dust and tiny chips of stone from the ceiling. And a foot over the alter in the middle of the floor-drawn rune – whose cerulean luminance had visibly faded after Phin had picked up the artifact resting on the altar – something was taking shape. A small roiling cloud of shadows and pure white light, churning and pulsing… and growing!

Knowledge Planes, Baran: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10
Knowledge Planes, Lupi: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26

Lupi’s roll is good enough to figure out this thing might – might! – be an Aukaraks. A free-floating planar breach, like a mobile- wandering manifest zone, an area where the boundaries between Eberron and one of its orbital planes of existence have grown thin enough for the other plane to intrude here, to enforce its own natural laws over those of Eberron. These things are said to be actually common on the continent of Sarlona, but on Khorvaire they are rarer than miser’s generosity. Unlike regular manifest zones (of which you all have some experience, as Sharn is built on top of a permanent manifest zone Syrania, the Azure Sky), the Aukaraks – or Reality Storms, as the laymen prefer to call them – are mobile, and always temporary… but they can certainly make a short time seem very, very long indeed, to someone trapped inside one’s zone of effect.

Also, rarely, a Reality Storm can form of two opposite-aligned planes, and that’s when things can get really interesting…

???: 1d2 ⇒ 2
???: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 2) = 7

Alua felt a momentary sadness as the orc warrior's spirit began to fade away - he had started to feel like a friend. But before she could do more than bow in return, the room started to shake.

The oracle took one look at the strange manifestation, then shouted, "Time to go! Move, move!" She began motioning the others back the way they'd come.

Phin's hair began to lift as the static electricity from the staff coursed through her body from her fingers. She gasped in surprise as the artifact drew her fingers tightly around it, almost like it was impatient to leave and was hurrying her along by making sure she gripped it firmly. And yet when she pulled at it, she felt resistance. Her brow furrowed in confusion, You're giving me mixed messages, Tower. You want me to hold you but you don't want to leave?

The rogue barely completed her thought before the resistance dissipated along with the electricity which made her thing she had imagined the whole thing. She stood a short distance away from the altar, gripping the Tower in her hands.

She easily shifted her weight as the ground began to shift to keep her balance but she did not like the looks of the swirling light that almost looked like a rip in the air. Phin was already on the move towards the door as Alua gave the order to retreat. "Definitely! Please tell me it's time to get back to the surface, right?"

"Yes, let's go! That is a Reality Storm, a kind of planar breach, keep away from that!" Lupi shouted and started going away from the room. She was fascinated to see such a phenomena, but also very aware of how dangerous it is.

Erix relaxed as Phin continued corporeality, and returned the salute to Gahdtruggis. He tensed right back up again when the earth stated shaking. With quick thought he used his knowledge of archeology to grab what he assessed as the most valuable remaining item - which is to say picked something at random - and fled.
"If we're lucky the quake will bury that damned tunnel. If we're really lucky it won't bury us as well!"

Baran tilted a bit to the left as the first rumble happened. "Thas lift ... Phin? ... How did that ... whoa, did you feel ... What?", he looked about trying to get his barrings, A Reality Stro ... I, uh. We should." When Alua told them to get going he looked about like he couldn't remember what his feet did. Finally, he remembered and hustled out oof the room back to the ten foot rise and started to claw his way up.
climb: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19

Proper post coming tomorrow, but let's give you a little sneak peek to what's coming with the first roll... ,^)

1st Gravity shift: 1d4 ⇒ 2 During first obstacle, gravity in the ruins will shift 180 degrees - what was once the ceiling is now the floor. Gradual shift, as giving the lot of you regular unavoidable fall damage would be too deadly

Ruin escape, phase 1

The rumbling that had begun the moment Phin had picked up the artifact showed no sign of settling down – quite the opposite, as tremor followed tremor, occasionally accompanied by deep crunching and sharp snapping sounds of bedrock in mortal agony. Add to that the brewing planar disturbance that Lupi had just warned you about and no-one was arguing against the need to make a quick getaway. Except, the ruin was not going to make it that easy on you.

You all felt a strange lurching feeling in your guts before the very world turned on its head. Literally, as you all found yourselves floating – for a brief moment, before gravity reached out to embrace you once again with some urgency… but instead of pulling you down it kept pushing you up! After a nausea-inducing moment as you felt the ruins shift and turn you found yourselves on your knees on the stalactite-filled former ceiling of the chamber, staring wildly around as you tried to regain your bearings. The sudden shift was not taken well by the room’s prominent features, and you could all see and hear the stalagmites breaking up and falling down (up?) to crash all over you. And behind your back, the reality storm kept pulsing, churning… growing, inky blackness warring with brilliant light as one tried to consume the other.

Right, let’s start with an easy one to get you in the mood… the ceiling over the rune is 30’ from what was once the floor. The stairs are now up above you, but the ceiling is almost level all the way to the upper terrace – NEW ceiling drops from 30 to 20 feet as you move over the second terrace, and from 20 to mere 10 feet as you get to the uppermost one. The new floor of yours is not exactly smooth (plenty of small stalactites to dodge around), but not much in the way of climbing is needed. The gravity shift has disturbed the stalagmites growing from the once-floor, though, so it’s raining sharp spikes of stone, and the reality storm is casting some absolutely wild lights and shadows all over the room, making footing seem more perilous than it is and creating a perfect opportunity for jump scares.

So, let’s see your posts about getting to the tunnel leading to the chamber where the last batch of enemies you killed had spawned – I will place the next obstacle and checkpoint there. Write a post and make a single roll appropriate to your method of getting you there safely.

Lupi felt an uneasy feeling as her stomach turned upside down. After a short while spinning in the air she found herself lying on the stone again, this time on the surface formerly known as ceiling. The noises from the bedrock snapping around her made it almost impossible to hear anything, but out of an instinct she tried anyway "That's the Reality Storm!!! Go, go, go!!!"

She tried getting up, but a stalagmite from the floor-turned-ceiling almost hit her. She managed to narrowly dodge it, but it hit her long skirt punching through it into the stone ceiling. Unable to move Lupi tried pulling herself free. She lost precious seconds on ripping her skirt before she could get up and run towards the exit.

Escape Artist: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22

Lupi could not see the others or the exit corridor as the rain of stalagmites blocked her vision. She scrambled around a group of small stalactites, when a flash of light from the Reality Storm momentarily revealed the exit corridor. Lupi run towards it slipping on the gravel coming from the broken stalagmites.

Once in the corridor she could also see her friends. Hopes of an easy escape turned fruitless as she turned back and noticed the Reality Storm had grown considerably. "Keep going!!", she shouted as she run through the shaking corridor secretly hoping the next chamber would be calmer...

Thank ye, that's the spirit!

survival: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 1 = 20 Trying to judge the best path through the dizzy lights and the uneven roof features
Casting prestidigitation - colouring objects to leave a trail behind him for others to follow.
Baran stopped a moment and looked through the path trying to find an area of stalactites, now arranged like stalagmites, that might function as hand holds. He started moving his way amongst them steadying himself as he went. As he did he spoke his story and wherever he touched a good handhold or foothold there was a little bright white print left. "The well was vica versa as the storm tried to carve their grave, both the pall and the knell. What did the five but move onward!" Fist sized stones rained down to his left and right. "Hoping he had judged a right path ... ahhh ... the boy left breadcrumbs."

Making sure that the others were all in front of her, Alua ran past the strange watery rune, wondering if the now-departed spirit of Gahdtruggis had known this would happen. Her musings vanished (much like Gahdtruggis had) the moment her feet left the floor.

Drifting a moment through space, Alua thrashed uselessly, her arms and legs vying to find purchase. The moment lasted forever, yet it was only seconds before she was tumbling up (UP?!) to the ceiling. She landed badly, on her side, and groaned as she picked herself up to her feet.

The phenomenon they were running from pulsed with strange lights, creating a dizzying vista of shadow. Catching sight of Baran's lights, (at least, she hoped that's what they were), the oracles ran as best she could, dodging rubble that was falling upwards towards them from the floor below.

The change in perspective was dizzying, and Alua felt her gorge rise. Swallowing dryly, she sternly told herself not to vomit, as this was definitely not the time.

A large cracking sounded over her head, and she glanced up to see a particularly large chunk of the floor falling towards her. Throwing herself forward, Alua attempted to roll clear of the debris. She was nowhere near as nimble as Phin, however, and landed badly on her hand, landing in a bit of a heap.

acrobatics: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12

This is the part where Alua really suffers from only having decent bonuses for social skills.

Phin was in the process of securing the Tower to her back when the ground began to dangerously lurch beneath her feet. She managed to finish tying it just as her world turned upside down. The elf had amazing spatial awareness when it came to her body but she was immensely challenged as her feet lifted off the ground and she was pushed by some unknown force towards the ceiling. She had spent many a night running along narrow ledges and swinging from ropes which gave her the experience to not flail helplessly.

The rogue had no choice but to tuck and roll as she nearly crashed into the ceiling that was now the floor. The blue light had dimmed and it took a moment for her to get her bearings to find the exit as she sprang to her feet. Thankfully Baran was leaving a magical trail of light for her to follow.

Phin noted the new ground was more even and started to run for the exit when something crashed into the floor just inches to her left. She realized almost too late that what was once the floor was raining stalagmites down on them. ”Gravity thou art a heartless b%$##,” she murmured as she dodged another pillar of falling rock.

She ran another few steps and caught movement coming down right in front of her. She came to a sudden stop with her arms moving in little circles to help stop her momentum. A huge stalagmite crashed down before her and she had to throw herself to the right to avoid being crushed. In mere seconds, Phin managed to find the rhythm in the falling debris and began gracefully moving through the chaos in a series of jetés, pirouettes, and pliés.

acrobatics: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (15) + 10 = 25

The elf made sure to keep tabs on everyone else in the group as they moved towards the exit, making sure that no one was left behind.

Out of curiosity, wasn't the huge carved rune filled with water? What happened to the water when the room flips?

Out of curiosity, wasn't the huge carved rune filled with water? What happened to the water when the room flips?

Damn, knew I had forgotten something... the water flows naturally (there's a natural reservoir up over the roof level from which gravity pushes water down pipes and up onto the rune's surface, and the rune's grooves are ever so slightly inclined so the water flows through the rune and down into waste pipes and down into a natural underground river) and the gravity shift will mean it will rain down on you. Which will lower the rune's effectiveness, but that's rather beside the point now ;^)

Ruin escape, phase 1

2nd Gravity shift: 1d4 ⇒ 1 Shift 90 degrees clockwise… so the way out is now directly below you, and looks like a mighty big fall! The river in the next room becomes a waterfall, with water tumbling down in the same way you need to go, making everything slick and slippery as well as pooling in the rooms “down below”. There’s about 130’ straight down to get to the foulspawn barracks room and the next checkpoint. Immediately ahead is around a 25’ drop to get to the edge of the ledge you climbed up earlier… although things are not quite as dire as they seem since the room’s previous north wall isn’t smooth, so you may find some hand and footholds by moving to your left and right while making your way down (also, you might find ways to the far side of the room by crossing over to the room’s previous ceiling if you want, and finding some natural stone ridges there that the gravity shift has turned into narrow ledges. Have fun ;^)

Phin led the way past the rain of falling rocks to the upper terrace and the beginnings of the way out of the ruins, closely followed by Lupi in her now-tattered skirt. Baran, doing his best to mark the way for the others came to regret his decision as the pulsing, competing effects of Irian, the Eternal Day and Mabar, the Endless Night quickly consumed the light-based magic. Alua, on the other hand, came close to being squished by one particularly large stalagmite that the tremors had cut loose, and while she escaped immediate death she was peppered by shrapnel as the falling spire of rock detonated on impact. Erix held the rear, trying his best to use his shield to interpose any more such natural grenades. The tremors of the earth were getting worse by the moment, and furtive glances over your shoulders showed the storm gaining strength minute by minute.

You were squeezing your way through the tunnel when you felt the world shift around you once more, but in the narrow confines of the passage, with the gravel and small stones shifting under and around you the exact effects were hard to tell… until Phin came to the end of the passage, and saw that instead of a wide platform and a 20-feet drop to the room bisected by the small river, you almost plunged out into void. The second shift of the gravity had brought you to the lip of a cliff, with the once-picturesque river having been transformed into a waterfall. Far below, the second set of sigil-carved stone doors stood as they had, water already pooling around the right-hand portal that you had pushed open. So far, the door remained stuck in its position, but if the weight of water building against it and the wall, or another gravity shift or earthquake happened to force it shut…

Alua stared at the sudden drop down, and felt for a moment she was back home, staring over the edge of a bridge at the tower's base that disappeared into the fog below. At least this drop wasn't as high as those in Sharn. High enough to kill

"Who has rope?" she shouted, trying to be heard over the sound of the new waterfall. The water was falling on the doors, and if the weight of the water managed to shut them, they could be in real trouble. "We don't have time to wait for the ground to become down again. Can we tie off to a stalgmite and climb down?" The stalagmites were sideways now, and would make a convenient tie-off.

Not sure if anybody has rope left. I think the DC to shimmy down a rope is probably lower than climbing the floor. Though either way, Alua is effed. I'll write more depending on the rope situation.

climb: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

EDIT: This is a very cool scenario!

I do recall saying I used my rope at the bottom of the cliff to where the aberration fled - sorry. I will try to give a little help though. Starting a bardic performance - inspire competence for a +2 to one skill one time for one person (Alua).
climb: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19
acrobatics: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13
Going for a clumsy parcour down a few rocky features.

It came Baran's turn at the edge of the tower room's sideways corridor. He looked over the end and into the black as his companions essayed the climb. "No matter what the hero, whomever, by what name, their's a six foot well waiting to greet us just that same." He climbed over the lip as vertigo tempted his wits. His hand slipped and he looked to fall but pushed away from the wall. He clumsily and momentarily kicked off a broken stalactite to grasp at a second more sturdy formation further down. "Heroes hold on tight to every notch and burrow as they fight hard for every day trying to fall tomorrow."

Can we tie off to a stalgmite and climb down?

Knowledge(Dungeoneering(stalagmite knowledge/determine slope)): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (3) + 9 = 12Not as good as I hoped, better compensate with a long text :).

Lupi looked around to see a good stalagmite and found one on the walls. "Alua, try this one!!!, she shouted over the noise from the Reality Storm. The stalagmite was ancient, it was likely mostly formed already when Dhakaani goblins were roaming this area. It was also more than a foot thick, so it should be sturdy enough to support the weight of all of them. But the flashing lights from the Reality Storm caused Lupi to miss that the recent shifts on gravity had caused cracks on the surface of the stalagmite and it was not as reliable as it seemed. In fact a new change on gravity might rip the stalagmite off.

Before going down on rope, Lupi also took a thorough look down. The height was dizzying, but she tried to keep in mind the long hours she had taken to read books on underground caves. She pointed down shouting "Go down through the stalactites there!!" Lupi was hoping the stalactites would provide good handholds for an easy descent, but she could not see from the distance the stalactites were very slippery. In fact had she studied just some seconds more she would have seen a path with a rather easy slope and good footholds.

Lupi impatiently waited for her turn and when it came she grabbed the rope tightly. She bravely moved over the over the edge and started descending. Soon she started feeling her fingers slip on the rope. The last thing she could think was "I hope I will not hit the others, when I fall..."

Climb: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (1) - 1 = 0 Kirsdrake: Here is also a Climb check, in case you need one. It could not have been worse :(.

Phin could barely hear Alua over the sound of falling rocks and thundering water but one word stood out for the elf and that was the word rope. She knew she had basic climbing supplies with her, after all what kind of a catburglar would she be if she didn’t? But it was not nearly good enough to help some of those who were with her. If they ever got back to Sharn, she would have to spend some money on a proper climbing kit that hopefully included a harness of some sort.

Using her expertise in tying off ropes in the upper levels of Sharn using less than ideal surfaces, the rogue secured her rope to the stalagmite that Lupi was pointing at. The wizard had known about arcane things and so Phin hoped that her wealth of knowledge also extended to the natural world.

Phin grabbed hold of the rope and yelled at both Alua and Lupi, ”Try to mimic my movements and if you start to slip, try to wrap the rope around your wrist to hold you in place until you can regain your grip.”

climb: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13
aid another: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13
acrobatics: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (9) + 10 = 19

The chaos created by the gravity shift proved to be more distracting for Phin than she would care to admit. It was much different than the quiet night of Sharn high above the streets. It may have been just as dangerous but the quiet allowed one to focus. Her climb down may have been harder than expected but her natural grace saved her on more than one occasion.

It was obvious to everyone in the group that it was imperative that the doors stay open long enough for them all to get through. As soon as her feet hit the ground, or at least what was the ground at the moment, the elf was on the move to do what she could to keep them from closing. Not having anything bigger than herself, she placed herself in the opening to hopefully block them from moving. The fact that the doors would most likely crush her with their weight never occurred to Phin as she stood in the gap. With water gushing at her and thoroughly soaking her, she screamed at the others, "Hurry hard!"

Kirsdrake: Here is also a Climb check, in case you need one. It could not have been worse :(.

Climb check is not needed, even if you are doing just that... chase scenes are a special case, and any skill that helps you overcome the obstacle works. Multiple checks in a single post do not help your case any, although they don't necessarily hurt...

Oh Phin, you little Canadian curling fan you!

Alua grabbed the rope and started down, trying to mimic Lupi's movements. Her heart was beating wildly, and she blinked sweat from her eyes.

She was less than halfway down when she slipped. Shrieking, she grabbed for the rope, but it slid through her suddenly lifeless fingers.

Lupi's form rushed up at her as she fell, and Alua realized she was going to hit her and knock her off. Instinctively, she changed into her energy body, suddenly becoming a glowing, white creature, beautiful to look at, and insubstantial. She passed through the goblin/elf, and she closed her eyes as the ground rushed up at her.

Not sure if/how this will affect falling damage. I can use energy body to heal myself after, though, so if I don't die, I'll do that.

Erix reacted on instinct as the ground left his feet, and curled into a ball under his shield so the debris from the explosion...
It took him a few moments to realise it wasn't the shock wave of an explosion, and then he was swimming helplessly in the air, only to plummet against the 'floor'. But those moments of instinct meant he found himself at the rear of the group.

He'd done his best to catch up, running furiously with his shield held up like an umbrella, all too aware a larger rock would simply break his arm.

The world shifted again, and he spent a moment fighting down nausea. A moment that saw Phin shove herself between the gap in the doors like a green branch between enormous shears.

Taking his cue from his old friend he let himself drop, and did his best to stay close to the wall, letting his armour and shield take the brunt of the impacts on the way down in the hopes he'd land with bruises instead of breaks. The shield broke loose from the strap on the third impact, hurtling down to the 'ledge', bouncing off and plunging towards the ground below.

Erix hit the ledge, rolled, and in a move he'd learned at the recent athletics carnival did his best to turn the vertical movement into horizontal. The move was effective, and he didn't feel a tendon snap, though he was pretty sure he tore a muscle in his calf and definitely ripped the hell out of his armour.

He sailed out over the gap, towards the far roof-wall below and the dubious safety of the stalactites.

first thought was rolling AC (+10), but I guess Acrobatics makes more mechanical sense?
acrobatics: 1d20 + 8 - 2 ⇒ (20) + 8 - 2 = 26

Ruin escape, phase 3

3rd Gravity shift: 1d4 ⇒ 4 The world takes a somersault and ends up the same side up ;^) Your stomachs do not particularly approve, and all the water flowing and pooling around going round and round leaves everyone properly drenched, if the climb through a waterfall just now hadn't managed it ;^)

Anyway, low rolls so you lose some distance… not that it was a surprise given the particular obstacle the gravity threw at you.

The climb down steep and wet slopes proved a harrowing experience, despite Lupi’s and Phin’s best efforts to try and choose a safe route for you to follow – in many places during the descent there simply wasn’t a good way to be found. Many a finger was rubbed raw by the sharp stone ledges you were forced to use for handholds, but several long minutes later you found yourselves amidst the clutter of the foulspawn barracks, as the gravity shifts had scattered the abominations’ possessions all over the room. Erix was the first to arrive, his shield and armor sorely tested by his reckless hurtling down the cliff, from one obstacle that briefly caught his fall to the next, but despite numerous bruises and dents in his shield, he somehow avoided any true injuries, joining soon after by Phin as the two fought the weight of the water pooling behind the partially-open door, holding it close long enough for the rest of the party to slip through.

Not soon after you had dropped down into the room the massive stone portal succumbed and closed after you… which was just as well as that was when another gravity shift hit, this one sending you tumbling all over the room as the whole world as you knew performed a slow somersault, eventually settling to the same orientation as before your frightening climb down. As you sorted out your arms from your legs and fought to regain some sort of stable footing you noticed a rippling in the room’s stone wall, the one facing towards the place the reality storm had manifested in. The stone seemed to be… fading, almost. Perhaps the storm, not bound to Eberron’s laws was simply expanding in each direction and was simply ignoring obstacles such as bedrock as if it wasn’t there… because, from its standpoint, it wasn’t.

The foulspawn barracks had some stuff you weren’t interested before, but feel free to find some rope etc to help you along, as the next step requires climbing up for a change, to first reach the refuse-filled chamber where you found the foulspawn and then get to the first sigil-sealed door that leads to the room where goblin and foulspawn ghosts were waging their war. The entry into that chamber will be the beginning of the 4th phase of the escape.

There is one 20’ climb from the next room to the small chamber on the way up (marked with the Red 1 icon), and another 10’ obstacle to reach the tunnel leading up to the refuse-filled room (Red 2 at the end of that). The second one pretty much require you to use ropes or get on each others’ shoulder or something, while in the case of the first, higher climb you might find some purchase on what used to be the ceiling (and is currently the left wall as you are facing towards the exit). Also, the crap (literal and figurative) in the refuse-chamber will have shifted, so the first lucky sod into the tunnel might have to do a bit of digging to clear the way ;^)

Soaking wet and bruised all over Lupi followed the others to the foulspawn barracks. The gravity again slowly shifted and for a moment Lupi was worried they would drop back to where they started. After spinning slowly in mid air for a while, Lupi found herself lying face down on the same spot where she started. Except somewhere from the foulspawn stacks a long pile of rope had flown beside her. She rose and happily offered the rope to Phin's way more potent hands "Phin, take this!!"

The foulspawn barracks were even more messy than earlier. It was not only the chaos of changing directions and the intense noise and splashes of light from the Reality Storm, but here also the mental noise from the strange creatures in the next chamber made Lupi dizzy. The creatures were clearly feeling the Reality Storm too, their screeches were getting louder and even more chaotic.

It took Lupi some time to get herself oriented on, where they should continue. The refuse-filled chamber was now "upstairs" and it meant there was more climbing coming up. Lupi was happy to leave the preparations on climbing for others and concentrated on shouting advice. She was worried to see the route blocked by a refuse "If we hit the refuse on the wrong spot, it might slide down in one big piece." The thought of being buried in refuse was concerning Lupi.

When the others got up and digging Lupi tried to shout them the safest spot to dig. "Don't dig there!! It might collapse!! Try on the left side!!"

Knowledge(Nature(Identify natural hazard)): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (7) + 9 = 16 Not sure if a big pile of refuse is a hazard, but trying to avoid the refuse hitting the fan :).

strength: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 1 = 19 Help open the door
engineering: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (15) + 7 = 22 Tie the end of the rope into an effective bosun's chair
It was like they were in a chainmail-cleaning tumbler. Baran couldn't see much as rocks and rain raised into the air and combined into a furious slurry and he rose to meet it. He couldn't see much but he certainly felt it as he landed again battered and covered in grey mud.

He got up slowly and looked around. Seeing that they were standing on the doorway he shifted stone away to expose one side. "Perhaps as a group? He waited for the others and did what he could to help lift one door away from the other. As they got the door slightly open he shoved a rock in the crack and with each effort he used a larger rock to make the opening larger.

"Lupi? You are the lightest but, Phin, you are the most agile. Do either of you want to volunteer?" Baran used Lupi's rope and tied a series of loops into the end: one to act as a foot rest, one to function as a kind of seat, and one to loosely capture the waist. "We can lower the volunteer into the next room. They can use it as a swing to try to make it to the next landing. They could then tie off to something there and we can rope crawl over."

Oops- cross posted with Lupi
Baran tore off a piece of cloak and wrapped it over his mouth. If there were another gravity storm in this room he wanted to not breath it in directly.

He started digging through the refuse using his dagger to help break down material as he went he spoke in a voice that tried to choke down the smells. His speech helped him to not think of the vomitous texture of the offal he worked, but followed Lupi's instruction to avoid a crap-valanche. "The well began to churn violently, the five worked hesitantly, moving together intrepidaciously, to once again see sun. Let not foul leavings of dare burden such as they."
Using prestidigitation to clean his hands and then giving up to focus on cleaning the hands of the lead digger

Alua landed hard on her hands and knees, after drifting up into the middle of the room again. Her stomach, having had enough, heaved. She emptied the remains of her last meal onto the stone floor (wall?) below her.

Groaning, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and pushed herself to her feet. She looked around, trying to get her bearings and understand the room she was now standing in.

As I understand it, we have two climbs before we get to the gross stuff? Is south still down? If so, it looks to me like we have to drop down to the bottom of the map, walk along what was the wall, and then basically hand-over-hand to get to the first ledge. What was the wall of the ledge is now our ceiling in this orientation, is it not?

I think I agree with Alua. The way I read Kirsdrake's post, we have two climbs, one of which is before we get to the refuse.

It was one thing to choose to spin, somersault, or twirl through the air with the aide of ropes but it was quite another when you had no control. Phin felt the word begin to spin albeit ever so slowly. She felt the need to protect the artifact strapped to her back and so she contorted her body however she could in the air to make sure that whatever happened, she didn't land on her back.

When the world stopped moving, the elf's stomach didn't. She stood for a moment, leaning against whatever was handy, to regain her bearings and wait for the room to stop feeling like it was spinning. She glanced up and saw the stone wall beginning to ripple and her heart sank. Obviously they didn't have time to regroup, they had to press on. Having left her rope behind and knowing they would need some to get out, she began searching around thinking, Didn't Baran tie his off somewhere around here?

perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21

The rogue had been digging through whatever rubble when she heard Lupi's voice offering her rope. She gratefully accepted the rope and immediately dug out her grappling hook to tie it to one of the ends. "This will make it easier when we have to climb out."

I know that Phin already used her climb skill but I don't see anything else feasible to use unless you allow her Escape Artist skill. Obviously I don't want to be penalized but I also don't want to over-reach using different skills. Any thoughts?

Erix retrieved his shield, then rushed to the foot of the first climb.
"We can wash this crap off..." he promised "but if that thing catches us, we're done."
He flipped his damaged shield and held it out. "Right, one at a time. C'mon, get on and I'll boost you up!"
strength: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23 aiding, I guess?