Action 1: Inspire Defense
Action 2-3: Blistering Invective
Dendillion continues the staccato beat on his lute, each magical note providing a measure of protection to the group. He then fixes his gaze on one of their foes and releases a vicious diatribe of curse words at them. Each word contains fire...
Success The target takes half the persistent fire damage.
Failure The target becomes frightened 1 and takes the full persistent fire damage.
Critical Failure The target becomes frightened 2 and takes double the persistent fire damage.
Dendillion's words fall upon deaf ears as the leader seems completely unaffected.
The two warriors continue their attack, though the leader seems to want them to change tactics:
for
for
Black attacks Haldan twice before stepping away:
MISS
MISS
The leader strides around Tiny before leveling her axe at him.
MISS
for
Round 3:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Go
Chark: Go
Tiny: Go + FORT #2
Quasits: TBD
Dendillion: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Warriors: TBD
Black: 14
Red: 12 (Prone)
White: 6
Tiny Poison: 1 of 6
Tiny Grunts and commands Þóðᛞrekkr to continue its attack.
Tiny then takes a step back and flurries.
A little shaken but still standing Goliath and Charlie stay focused on the white Quasit.
HP 43/52
AC 21 (23 w/ shield)
Wooden Shield 12/12; [AC Bonus +2: [Hardness 3] [HP/BT 12(6)]
Snarecraft Snares Used: Biting Snare x3
Focus 1/1
Hero Points 1/3
Goliath
HP 38/40
AC 18
Man and beast alike join up to drop two enemies in the span of just a single breath! Goliath fails to fight off the poison:
Round 3:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Kill
Chark: Go
Tiny: Kill
Quasits: TBD
Dendillion: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Warriors: TBD
Red: 12 (Prone)
Tiny Poison: 1 of 6
Goliath Poison: 2 of 6
Chark concentrates again, and the flickering orange aura of flame expands again.
Opting to try and cut the head off the body, she focuses on the leader, sending a blazing band of orange-white fire arcing through the air at her.
Chark's flame would completely incinerate a lesser foe. Still, the burns are severe and the leader screams in pain.
The remaining quasit flies forth immediately to defend the leader, lashing out at Chark!
for and
for and
Round 3:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Kill
Chark: Fire Ray
Tiny: Kill
Quasits: ATK
Dendillion: Go
Haldan: Go
Warriors: TBD
Red: 12 (Prone)
Tiny Poison: 1 of 6
Goliath Poison: 2 of 6
Green: 18
Haldan drains some power from Hermann and readies his staff. Electricity pouring out of his eyes, he summons a Sudden Bolt at the leader (red). And he launches his staff using Hand of the Apprentice on the foe in front of him (blue).
Hero point
Chark seems to be okay after that attack.
Haldan's quick launching staff misses, and the leader dodges away from most (but not all) of the sudden bolt.
Round 3:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Kill
Chark: Fire Ray
Tiny: Kill
Quasits: ATK
Dendillion: Go
Haldan: Magic
Warriors: TBD
Red: 12 (Prone)
Tiny Poison: 1 of 6
Goliath Poison: 2 of 6
Green: 124
Action 1: Inspire Defense
Action 2-3: Telekinetic Projectile
Dendillion's music continues, that confident march inspiring safety to each of his friends.
With a deft maneuver he drops a sling stone from his pouch. The music catches it mid-air, hurling it at the nearest foe!
Dendillion opens a fresh wound on the heretofore uninjured quasit!
The xulgath warrior focuses on Þóðᛞrekkr, trying to bring the wolf down with its club:
MISS
for
MISS
The leader, knowing a soft target when she sees one, closes in to swing HARD at Haldan with her axe:
MISS
MISS
But misses twice!
Round 4:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Go + Goliath FORT
Chark: Go
Tiny: Go + FORT
Quasit: TBD
Dendillion: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Warriors: TBD
Red: 12 (Prone)
Green: 24
Blue: 10
Tiny Poison: 1 of 6
Goliath Poison: 2 of 6
Tiny grunts as Þóðᛞrekkr howls in pain.
Tiny points as Þóðᛞrekkr snaps at blue.
Tiny then works to finish blue before moving on to green.
Tiny then raises his shield.
Tiny shakes off the poison in his blood and focuses on ending the threat.
Þóðᛞrekkr scores a pair of bites, but it's Tiny's second strike that ends the threat. The fiend falls to the ground in a dead heap!
Only the leader and a warrior remain and they seem intent on fighting to the death!
Round 4:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Go + Goliath FORT
Chark: Go
Tiny: Kill
Quasit: TBD
Dendillion: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Warriors: TBD
Red: 12 (Prone)
Green: 24
Goliath Poison: 2 of 6
Charlie whistles as he sends Goliath in on the leader, taking a shot at where he wants the bear to land.
HP 43/52
AC 21 (23 w/ shield)
Wooden Shield 12/12; [AC Bonus +2: [Hardness 3] [HP/BT 12(6)]
Snarecraft Snares Used: Biting Snare x3
Focus 1/1
Hero Points 1/3
Goliath
HP 38/40
AC 18
Charlie and Goliath combine to take down the leader! It leaves a single, prone, and wounded xulgath!
Round 4:
Leader: ATK
Charlie: Kill
Chark: Go
Tiny: Kill
Quasit: TBD
Dendillion: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Warriors: TBD
Red: 12 (Prone)
Chark keeps the bless aura as it is, moving a bit closer to the lone, prone xulgath. She conjures a yellow-orange ball of flame into her hand and hurls it at Red.
Chark's spell is on target, and the xulgath writhes in the flames! It's only for a second though, as the flames consume the last vestiges of life.
The party finally catches a moment to breathe.
"Well, this is bracing." Haldan says with a chuckle while dusting himself off from any ash that might be hitting him from the newly cooked well done xulgath.
"Let's heal up before moving on to the next room."
Haldan starts checking the bodies for valuables or things of interest.
This room looks rather sparse. The equipment isn't anything special, and it doesn't look like they kept valuables here.
While everyone heals up Charlie peers down the two hallways as the group overturns the room. "That went b..b..better than expected."
Chark fusses over Tiny for a good ten minutes, taking care to tend her own wounds as well.
The party quickly recovers from the fight.
While Chark tends to the wounded the great bard Dendillion plunks down with his lute. His intention is to add a soothing melody to the Sarenite's work, but he catches on something he likes in his adlib performance and stops a few times to jot down musical notation.
Once ready, Dendillion urges everyone on. "Let's not dally too long here. I don't know about you all, but I'd much rather get back to performing for an audience that will pay us. These creatures have enjoyed far too much of my music for free."
Haldan, remembering the day before’s exhaustion from expending himself and the spells, lights a pipe full of the Halfling Leaf to calm his nerves and ease the pain. He spends time meditating off to the side while everyone heals up. Hermann is grumbling the whole time.
”I’ve been told that adventuring pays well. These creatures we’ve been fighting are clearly the exception.”
Charlie, seeing everyone ready, looks into the next hall. An enormous spiral staircase leads up from the east end of this room. Near the doorway, a large, jagged iron ring— apparently the top half of a cauldron—hangs from a frame of wood and bones next to a large stone hammer. Thankfully the xulgaths never got a chance to ring it for reinforcements...
"This leads up, s..s..should we check it out quick?" Charlie points to the spiral stairs.
"Sounds good Charlie. I can take lead and look for traps if you'd like."
A cursory look up the spiral stairs reveals that it goes up about 100'. This means it's likely access to the pinnacle of the pyramid...
"This leads r..r..right to the top. Let's g..g.go!" Charlie scouts ahead as he continues up the stairs.
"Right behind you. And by that I mean I'm a good 20 feet behind it."
Chark nods, letting Charlie and Goliath lead the way followed by Tiny and Þóðᛞrekkr. She motions to Dendillion and Haldan to fall in behind her.
Tiny tries counting steps in his head 17, 18... Wait, where was I?
The party takes the winding stairs to the top. Before the apex, the sound of wind enters the stairwell. It's dizzying to think about how high up you are.
A sun-shaped platform of marble rises ten feet above the flat, mud-brick summit of the Erran Tower. Four large columns support another marble slab over the circular staircase in the center of the tower summit, but there are no walls, so the open-air platform provides a commanding view of the Isle of Erran, the Inner Sea, and the Isle of Kortos to the south. A blazing ball of light three feet in diameter swings around the tower summit in a lazy circle, never approaching closer than within forty feet of the tower, causing shadows to spin across the marble. The orb provides bright light but no heat; instead, a soothing feeling of growth and life emanates from it. On the platform, a small heap of ripped nets, broken poles, and other debris is surrounded by several charcoal marks of geometric shapes.
You're not alone on top either. The first thing you see is a flying reptile with two huge wings and a distinctive backward-sweeping crest decorating its head. One of the creature's wings is damaged from some kind of energy attack. There is also a team of xulgath warriors who are protecting a wizened looking xulgath lost in thought. At your arrival, he speaks in clean Taldane, "We need not fight here if you allow me my studies. If you mean violence, you will find it." It is clear that his body guards expect a fight.
"Given that your people have consistently responded with violence towards us, you'll forgive me if I find that a little hard to believe," Dendillion says, speaking up for the group. "But this is a nice change of pace, so sure, let's talk."
"First off, how about you explain just what it is that you are studying. What is your purpose for being here?"
"I am here to SMASH the orb.... as I have been charged. I find it.... difficult to get to, and my steed has been wounded. I give you a choice. Help me destroy the orb or become fodder for Zevgavizeb."
"Smash? How violent. What does smashing the orb do for you though?"
"How is destroying the orb co..co..continuing your studies?" Charlie asks confused as the Xulgath appears to just be following orders as well.
"That is not for me to ask! I simply obey my master Sarvel! You help or not?"
Look at the life giving warm orb and looking back at the horrible Xulgath Tiny shakes his head. "Your maddened quest has gone on long enough."
"Then you choose DEATH! ATTACK THEM AND BRING ME THEIR SCALPS!" The mad xulgath strides forth and casts a spell. Immediately Tiny's mind is wracked with doubt, filled with questions, and overwhelmed by the mental crisis!
Round 1:
Cavnakash: Spell
Charlie: Go
Pteranodon: TBD
Dendillion: TBD
Xulgath Warriors: TBD
Chark: TBD
Tiny: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Charlie is Scouting
(Scout)
(Search)
(Detect Magic)
(Seek, Keen Eyes)
(Search)
Charlie quickly whistles Goliath to cut off the leader as he fires an arrow at the mark. "NOW!"
HP 43/52
AC 21 (23 w/ shield)
Wooden Shield 12/12; [AC Bonus +2: [Hardness 3] [HP/BT 12(6)]
Snarecraft Snares Used: Biting Snare x3
Focus 1/1
Hero Points 1/3
Goliath
HP 38/40
AC 18
While Tiny may be hurt, it's Goliath who draws first blood! Unfortunately Charlie's arrow misses!
The wounded pteranadon closes in and lands, it's wing unable to sustain flight. It pecks at Charlie twice with its large beak:
for
MISS
Round 1:
Cavnakash: Spell
Charlie: Hit
Pteranodon: Hit
Dendillion: Go
Xulgath Warriors: TBD
Chark: TBD
Tiny: TBD
Haldan: TBD
Green: 14
Tiny clutches his head in pain.
Action 1: Inspire Courage
Action 2: Strike
Action 3: Strike
Dendillion immediately leaps into song, strumming his lute and conjuring an inspirational melody!
He then overlays several plucked notes in a major pentatonic scale, adding a joyous sound that immediately soothes Tiny. His wounds begin to close.
Dendillion bolsters the party's courage while also providing succor to Tiny.
The warrior-guards scatter, two opting to open with a volley of javelins and two opting for clubs:
for
MISS
MISS
MISS
Round 1:
Cavnakash: Spell
Charlie: Hit
Pteranodon: Hit
Dendillion: Medibard
Xulgath Warriors: ATK
Chark: Go
Tiny: Go
Haldan: Go
Green: 14
Tiny drops into his stance as he leaps into combat across from Charlie and claws the Xulgath.
Tiny's two attacks are powerful and on target. The xulgath is severely wounded, and likely unable to take another assault like that.
Round 1:
Cavnakash: Spell
Charlie: Hit
Pteranodon: Hit
Dendillion: Medibard
Xulgath Warriors: ATK
Chark: Go
Tiny: Hits
Haldan: Go
Green: 14
Black: 17