Naturally Gnasher turns to the old fashioned way of opening a door. He beats on it for a long time but it finally yields, but boy can Gnasher feel it in his arms.
At one end of the room, a great stone sarcophagus covered with arabesques and calligraphy sits, displayed upon a tiered dais. Opposite the sarcophagus stands an ancient shrine consisting of an upright wooden box, its faded colors also covered with ancient scribblings in black and gold. The shrine is flanked by short rows of badly tarnished candleholders holding naught but clumps of dried tallow.
Looking past the tired gnoll, Tarak observes the room.
"Ominous." he notes, and casts detect magic to look around.
Catching his breath from knocking the door down, Gnasher points at the calligraphy, "Funny shapes are writing? Anyone know how to read?" He moves closer to the sarcophagus and then the wooden box, inspecting them, but not moving to open them while he is recovering from the fatigue.
You find cobwebs with lots of dead bugs. And an unopened sarcophagus.
Malgrim looks at the wall and says, "That language does not look like any I have seen around here."
Having waited patiently as they looked around, Gnasher eventually slid the crowbar under the lid of the sarcophagus, and attempted to pry it off so they could look inside.
Tarak detects no magic until Gnasher opens the sarcophagus. at that time he detects ring on its finger that is magical. Nothing jumps out and attacks though.
Shocked that nothing terrible jumps out of the sarcophagus, Tarak looks over the ring.
"It be magic, sure, but I know not what it is."
"It's a Ring that gives a small resistance to fire." Urah pipes up after examining the ring upon being given his chance to look it over.
"And these is all about some woman or female's dedication to Rovagug. Cool. Actually lists out everything she did in his name." He informs teh rest after studying the words.
"I think she's in this though. or was." he deadpans. pointing towards the sarcophagus.
Chuckling at Urah comment, Gnasher removes the magical ring, tossing it to Urah as he heads out of the room. "Firestarter know fire, want fire ring?"
Moving back through the rooms Gnasher headed down the eastern hallway, pausing looking north, he investigates the hallway that appeared to end in stairs.
H12: The corridor slopes slightly upward, heading to a collapsed staircase buried beneath tons of rock and bubble.
H11: The rough-hewn passage widens, emptying into a larger excavation site in which the upper corner of another, older structure protrudes from the surrounding earth almost a yard above the floor. A sizable hole has been cracked out of its ceiling, from which protrudes a ladder of lashed sticks that leads down into the structure.
Urah hands the Ring back at Gnasher.
"When I get the ability to fling copious amounts of fire around. You'll be in the thick of it. Better to gather our enemies you see. This ring will aid you better."
Accepting the ring from Urah, Gnasher nods. Holding the ring between thumb and foreclaw he turns to Malgrim and Tarak, offering it to either.
Leaning over the lip of the building and looking down the hole, Gnasher turns shaking his head. "Gnasher cannot see bottom." Not remembering if any of his companions have a magic spell to cast light, he asks. "Any way to drop light see how deep?" He gestures back the way they came, asking, "Or go back, not worry about deep hole."
"I am innately resistant to some fire. Someone else should wear it." Malgrim says.
Malgrim kneels to look down the tunnel. "We should probably clear everything around here before trying to go down further.
"Aye, lets clear this area before we go looking for more monsters down in the deep dark." Tarak agrees, still annoyed to be out of sight from the sky.
H10: At one end of the room, a great stone sarcophagus (sound familiar?) engraved with arabesques and calligraphy sits, displayed upon a tiered dais. The top of the sarcophagus lies broken in several pieces on the floor. Noting remains but dust and a few crumbled bits of yellow bone. Seems like this fellow did not have the foresight to lock up the room like the other one. You all do your thing and cast and search and search and cast, but there is nothing in this room of interest.
You are back at H18.
Nodding at Malgrim's response Gnasher holds the ring up for Tarak to see. Asking "Storm Blessed?"
Agreeing with the others, Gnasher turns from the pit and returns the way they came, turning left into what is apparently another burial chamber. Relieved that he didn't have to pry the door open, he was disappointed with the contents. Gesturing back the way they came, "Tribe go back to spider room."
Moving quickly past where they found the two gnolls and slaves, the giant gnoll, the now dead ogrekin and the two large spiders. Gnasher pauses at the door south of the spider carcasses. Carefully inspecting the door, he gestures towards it, asks his more observant companions. "Look safe?"
Malgrim looks over the door for any traps or other dangers. He says, "Let me take a look."
H19: The group passes through the doorway after checking carefully only to find another corridor ending in a door. This second door reveals stairways leading both up and down. The corridor and the stairs are full of spiderwebs from the spiders you defeated, but are easily navigated except the way down. The way down the stairs looks pretty clogged and to make progress will require that the webs be removed.
"I can try and power wash them away, but I am not sure what drainage there is below." Malgrim says as he looks at the webs.
Tarak takes a look at the stairs.
"Up or down?"
Doing his best imitation of a human frown, Gnasher looks at the stairs. Thinking about the time that it might take to clear the lower stairs, he gestured towards the upper stairs "If tribe clear above, won't need to worry about something coming down while tribe clear below."
Using his bardiche he clears the few cobwebs from the hallway, then the stairwell as he begins to climb the steps going up. Keeping as watchful eye as he can while he moves.
Urah shrugs as he follows Gnasher along..........
One way was as good as another.
Tarak nods, "Works for me." and prepares to follow the gnoll up after they clear the webs.
The stairs wind up and end up in building D, the middle of the three minarets you found with no access from the ground. The stairs continue for quite a ways up. There are landings at 50' increments and you end up at a dizzying height of 120' above the courtyard. the view provides a full aerial panorma of the temple and it's grounds.
His breathing getting heavier, Gnasher eventually stops at the top of the spire. Clearly disappointed that there are no gnolls to kill, he pauses looking out the window then at the other two minarets; trying to determine what their interiors may hid.
All you see is a pack of monitor lizards availing themselves of the feast you left behind.
"So, down it is." Malgrim says and then will wait to let Gnasher head down first.
Nodding in agreement with Malgrim, Gnasher begins to head back down the flight of stairs. Pleased that going down was easier than going up, he pauses where they entered the stair well. Asking, "How shall Tribe clear the webs?"
"I can just burn them all. I guess." Urah steps forward and begins doing just that.
'Fire is better than chopping away at them with my bardiche' Nodding at Urah's recommendation, Gnasher follows the ifrit down the steps. Standing over the sorcerer's shoulder, bardiche in hand watching for any would-be attackers and clearing away any remaining cobwebs so they don't get in Urah's hair.
You reach the bottom of the large staircase where you find a door.
"Is this the lower level the slaves said the Carrion King be at?" Tarak asks, "I be good on spells for the moment, but I can not shift any longer today".
Nodding his head in agreement, "Yes, lower level, though not what slaves told tribe about." Gnasher places his ear against the door, listening, then checking it for traps.
Looking at the others, he nods towards the door. "Shall we?" as he attempts to open the door, into the unexplored area.
Gnasher hears that there are folks conversing in Gnoll on the other side of the door before passing through. He happens to hear something like Your Majesty, or Big Chief, or whatever the title is in Gnoll.
Malgrim nods at Gnasher and waits for him to open the door to progress.
Nodding back to Malgrim, Gnasher points toward the door, whispering "Voices." Then swinging the door open he steps through, grasping his bardiche in both hands.
Turns out the door is jammed. It is going to take some effort to break through. On the bright side, if you do on the first attempt there is a good chance of surprising them on the other side!
DC 24 strength check, aids are allowed as well as creative uses of spells.
Tarak sighs at the lack of ability to turn into some awesome giant creature to bash the door down, the druid then puts a shoulder to the door to assist Gnasher.
Malgrim tries to quietly pull out his crowbar and holds it out towards Gnasher.
Reaching out and taking the crowbar from Malgrim, Gnasher made sure he had plenty of space beside where Tarak was standing to swing the crowbar. Turning to Urah, he gestured with his paw, "Move back a little, Gnasher will rage and grow." Turning back towards the door, he sets the edge of the crowbar into the doorjamb and begins to rage. His paws grow into overly large claws, his eyes glow red, his fangs enlarge and he begins to froth at the mouth. While his brown hide takes on a red-orange cast to it Jerking on the crowbar hoping to tear the door off of it's hinges, failing the first time, he tries again.
At this point it means that you will eventually break through, but whoever is on the other side has enough warning to react. Which means...
You finally break through to an empty room.
ancient plaster frescos of serpentine beasts line the walls. An assortment of weapons hangs from spikes pounded into the wall, including a chipped iron greataxe, a blood-red leather whip, bladed leather gauntlets, and an assortment of battleaxes and throwing cleavers. Along the north wall, huge semi-circular columns, twenty feet across, intrude into the room, creating wide alcoves, while in the middle of the room rests a pile of mildewed bearskins. A set of battered double doors stands ajar to the west, and another to the east. You hear a commotion coming from the east.