Dawn's Dimming Light (Inactive)

Game Master rorek55

As you make your way forward, you find yourselves descending deeper into the earth, the moisture in the air slowly fades, and a heavier, thicker air sets in with the taste of dirt and dust. After nearly two hours of walking, you come across another large cavern like room, however, halfway across the room the entire floor rises in an almost sheer cliff face about 40ft upwards. The cliff is jagged, with plenty of areas one can use for handholds. As you look around the room, you notice several smaller holes in the wall as well, and you can hear a clicking sound similar to long nails tapping, or scurrying, on stone. It almost sounds like it is getting louder.

Climb DC for the wall is 16, you move at a quarter speed(rounded up) unless you do an accelerated climb, which moves you at half speed and increases the DC by 5. Feel free to make other checks if you see fit.

"I'm betting rats. Who else bets rats?" Not confident in being able to climb that without a rope, and we're almost certainly going to need a rope to get Ardan up. Anyone got any ranks in climb?

Warren looks and listens, "I have a bad feeling once we get in here there is going to be trouble. Sprig, how about you and I move in together and check the cavern out? Make sure nothing is going to jump the group. If we run into trouble the others can cover us as we try an move back to the entrance."

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24

Rena shivers a little at the noise. It did seem to remind her of rats and she wasn't really keen on that one bit. She hated rats. Tugging on her bag, she searched through it, before coming out wit a vial of alchemists fire. "I have some fire that might help us against a rat swarm, but I think we should start climbing sooner rather than later. I can be one of the last ones to climb up if you like and try and hold off any threats as required" she offers.

”I will begin climbing then. As it will take me the longest, and should anything attack I have ranged capabilities.” Ardan said. He looked up at the wall and thought ”I WILL be a knight, regardless of the obstacles.”

Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 5 ⇒ (18) + 3 - 5 = 16

Sprig nods to Warren and moves into the cavern to see what dangers lurk ahead, hopefully before they notice Sir Ardan.

Stealth: 1d20 + 9 - 1 ⇒ (17) + 9 - 1 = 25

Perception: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13

will need at least one more successful climb check from Ardan

As Sir Ardan begins his slow climb and the others huddle together near the base of the wall the skittering and scratching grows louder. Suddenly, several small, six legged shapes with tails and translucent exo-skeletons burst from the small holes in the chamber. They sprint forward but hesitate at the light the group uses. As they hesitate the group can hear the sound of skittering continue to grow louder.

Initiative, for this combat, all of the players may act, then the enemies as the light gave them pause. There are 5 scorpions all about 50ft out from the group, 3 are blocking/coming from the tunnel you came in from, and 1 on either side. If you want a map I'll see about whipping one up.

Party may act

Kn. Nature: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23

"Well, now we know what made that sound. Those things are called ghost scorpions, derived fro their see-through carapace."

Hanging on as he was, Ardan took the time to form an ethereal spear in his hand and sent it arcing towards the nearest scorpion.

K Nature: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17

Standard Touch and FF without accounting for range penalties: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15
Cold: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

Move Action Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 5 ⇒ (14) + 3 - 5 = 12

"Okay, so they're bad news. I guess we fight," Sprig asks just before a spear of some magic stuff goes flying over her head.

"Yeah, we're fighting," she says before drawing her bow and letting fly.

Longbow vs. Closest of the nasties: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7

Unfortunately, the shot goes skipping off into the darkness.

Warren places himself between the largest group of scorpions and the rest of their group. He waits patiently for the scorpions to come to him and readies to attack them.

Two-Bladed Sword: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18 Damage: 1d8 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14

"Hope you're not offended by this," Terrel mutters as he positions himself between the scorpions and Rena, "But you've got the least armor."

"Ardan! Are you going to be ok, or do you need backup now?"
Readied action to hit the first scorpion that comes within striking distance
Estoc whack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10
Damage: 2d4 + 6 ⇒ (2, 4) + 6 = 12

Catherine lines up her gun, which is adorned with small, thin, ornamental gears.

Rt: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14 Dmg: 1d8 ⇒ 1

"This is no place for my people..." Ardan muttered, before calling down "Just don't stand beneath me!"

will give everyone until around 8:00 PM EST to post before I post enemy actions and round results.

One scorpion closes with Sir terrel, its uncanny movements cause him to misjudge his strike and the carapace provides just enough resistance to bounce to blade away from a killing blow. However the strike tears a large gash down the creature as it splits the carapace. It grabs at Terrel with its pincers despite the wound. Both finding purchase.

With both pincers in place it attempts to strike Terrel with its stinger. But the Knight is a strong one, and manages to wriggle free and jump back just at the last moment.

Warren slays one of the two that went for him, cutting the creature in twain, however the remaining one attempts to sink its pincers into its soon to be meal with an uncanny agility. Luckily, Warren dodges one pincer however the second shoots straight for his chest, his armor the only reason the blow is less deadly than it could have been. However it only manages to get one claw on its target, and so does not expose its tail.

The scorpion on the left side charges and attacks Sprig. Grabbing her left arm and right leg it sends its stinger hurtling towards her chest. However she manages to tear her arm free and duck just before it makes contact.

The final remaining scorpion goes for Valestar, however cannot land a blow on the cleric due to his defensive posture.

Round tally- all scorpions are at -2 AC
Scorpion 1 dead
Scorpion 2 engaged with Warren
Scorpion 3(-12) engaged with Terrel
Scorpion 4(-7) Engaged with Sprig
Scorpion 5 Engaged with Valestar.
Sir Terrel -3hp
Warren -2hp
Sprig -5hp

Party may Act

You all also hear the distinct scuttling tapping of claws on stone, however it seems to be steadily growing louder, as if scores of these scorpions were running a race around the lower area of the room.

Apologies GM - couldn't post yesterday due to not getting back from work until like 10PM.

Rena, seeing the melee realizes that she couldn't unleash her fire spell on the group without harming her friends. Instead, she reaches out, lightly touching Rhiannon, casting a defensive spell on her familiar.

Casting Mage Armor on Rhiannon

Rhiannon meanwhile, immediately enlarges in size, transforming into a medium sized wasp.

Standard Touch without accounting for range penalties: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13
Cold: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

Climb to just hang there? Can he take 20 to finish climbing when this is all done? Or alternatively can he get a bonus by doing a full round action to climb carefully?: 1d20 + 3 - 5 ⇒ (14) + 3 - 5 = 12

Still stuck halfway up, Ardan continued sending down blasts of ethereal spears at the scorpions.

Seeing that Rena now had another, most likely more effective meatshield , Terrel will charge at the scorpion that's next to Sprig, considering that archers should be protected almost as much as mages.Willing to provoke an AoO if that's what it takes, but hoping to avoid it.
Estoc Whack: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26
Estoc Crit: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (9) + 6 = 15
Estoc damage: 2d4 + 6 ⇒ (4, 4) + 6 = 14

its no worries Rena, life happens. I just try and keep combat moving, especially with this many players.

Sprig scampers away from the painful pincers of the scorpion after wrenching free of them. The rasp of steel being drawn and the heft of the longsword in her hand gives her an anchor against the rising tide of her fear. Seeing Terrel score a devastating hit on the one that attacked he, she instead goes for the scorpion that had attached him.

Attack (Bastard Sword, 1-handed): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12
damage: 1d10 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13

Catherine quickly reloads, and aims at the nearest clear target.

Rt: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14 Dmg: 1d8 ⇒ 5

Now fully engaged in the fight William uses both of his swords to attack the scorpion on him.

Two-Bladed Sword 1: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19 Damage: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12
Two-Bladed Sword 2: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7 Damage: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 = 8

Your group makes short work of the remaining scorpions, Catherine's shot downs the scorpion next to Terrel, leaving him free to run his blade through the one threatening Sprig. Sprig moves to aid Valestar, slicing the bugs stinger off before running the sword tip into its back. Sir ardan's blast hits the last scorpion in combat with Warren, causing a frost to cover some of its legs and allowing the warrior to dispatch the creature easily.

Just as you start to catch your breath, you see from the wall behind you swarms of tiny scorpions burst forth, hundreds, perhaps even thousands of the creatures begin to swarm towards you. They aren't as fast as their larger kin however and you have a small shred of time before they are upon you.

What are you doing now?

good job guys, its funny how, with penalties added up, several attacks just hit because of the -2 charge penalty. Please post only 1 round worth of actions, as we are still in semi-initiative.

William looks at the swarm coming and says "That looks like a good place for some alchemist's fire! If you don't have any, start climbing!"

just to note, there are swarm(s), The entire far wall up to about 10ft is covered.

Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 5 ⇒ (18) + 3 - 5 = 16

Ardan's eyes widened as he saw the swarm descending upon them. With sheer strength, he overcame the significant hardships faced given his form and forced his way up the wall, scrambling as if though his life depended on it. Which it probably did.

Should he reach the top

Once on all four hooves once more, Ardan quickly opened his pack to take out his rope. Once secured, it would mean that his comrades would have a much easier time than him on ascending.

Sprig wastes no time in putting her sword away and climbing.

Climb (ACP): 1d20 + 7 - 1 ⇒ (7) + 7 - 1 = 13

Sorry, I should have specified this earlier. One climb check gets you 10ft (for those who have a speed of 30ft) an accelerated climb checks gets you 15ft, you can double move with an additional climb check in one round. Ardan does not have enough time to take out his rope and secure it on himself. Right now he has it and has just finished securing it on the nearest thing he believes would hold. Himself. Next round he can drop the rope and provide a way for others to climb at a DC 5. However if more than two of you climb onto the rope at a time he would need to make Strength checks each round more than two are on the rope. If you can reach the top in one round you do not count as being on the rope when another person climbs it.

Vale is momentarily overcome by the waves of monstrous scorpions pouring at them, having hunkered down behind his shield to avoid the creature's stinger. As Sprig vanquishes the beast before him, he moves to thank him, then immediately sees the swarms pouring out. Following the moves of the others, Vale runs to the wall and attempts to scale it, but finds little purchase amidst the chaos. "This may not be the best time to reflect on the fact that I have not much skill in climbing..."

Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 2 ⇒ (4) + 3 - 2 = 5

Need to know a couple of things GM like how far away the swarm is and how fast it might be moving (ie when its expected to hit us, this round, next round?). Also how many people are going to be on the rope. I can have Rena try and clear the swarm with Burning Hands but thats going to depend how long we need to buy time for, how large the swarm is, how many people are climbing and how quickly people are moving. I might need to make a Climb check instead of a blast spell depending on some answers to the above.

the swarm is on the far wall atm. If you had to guess, the swarm would likely be upon you at the end of the next round or shortly after (you have two-three turns of actions before it reaches/engulfs you). I can't tell you how many will climb using the rope, but you could certainly try to buy time or even fend off the large swarm with a spell like burning hands. The swarm takes up several 10ft areas, covering the back wall but AoE damage may "buy space" as it was.

Hmm if its that large we might have a problem. Might chance a Climb check. Worst case scenario though I can have Rhiannon drop Alchemist Fire. We only need to be up about 10 feet right to be out of reach from the swarm?

Rena glances up the wall and vaults up the cliff, attempting to make ground ahead of the swarm.

Climb (Normal): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19
Climb (Accelerated): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22

Noticing that Warren is wearing heavier armor than most of the others, Terrel sets himself up to give Warren a boost, getting down on one knee, and cupping his hands in front of him. "Warren! Alley-oop!"

Do you want an aid another check for that?
Edit: I really hope you don't, oops
Alley-Oop!: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
Well that's unlucky. Hopefully it's not worse than nothing?

Warren looks back at Terrel and shakes his head, "I'll be the last one up. You get up and I'll follow. If anyone can thing the herd it would be appreciated if they get too close."

Catherine feels her pockets quickly.

"Ah!", and she pulls out a flask with an icon of a corrosive droplet.

"Acid. Do you want it, Warren?"

Warren shakes his head, "You hang on to it, you may need it to keep them off me. Go ahead and climb up."

"Alright.", Catherine puts it back into the pocket and attempts to start climbing.

Climb?: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2, but the initial grip for the rope was not good, and she almost toppled forward.

Climb attempt 2?: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 1 = 19

Ardan hurried to connect his role as quickly as possible. It felt odd to be the first one up, but that just meant that he had the most responsibility to help the others!

Not one to give up easily, Vale follows the others' lead and recommits to the effort of climbing up the wall. "Not much I can do against that many scorpions anyway." He mutters under his breath as he attempts to make his way up.

Two attempts, if the rope has been lowered, he will graciously use it

Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 2 ⇒ (10) + 3 - 2 = 11
Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 2 ⇒ (14) + 3 - 2 = 15

Climb: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
Climb: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14

if the swarm cannot climb, yes.

the swarm approaches, it almost seems to take on a singular mass as it nears Warren only seconds away from enveloping him.

Ardan- reached top, holding down rope.
Rena- 30ft up, climbing cliff
Valestar 30ft up, climbing rope.
Catherine- 15ft up, climbing rope.
Terrel- Either on ground floor, or 15ft up if climbing rope.
Sprig- on ground, climbing wall?
Warren- on ground, not climbing,

Ardan, make a strength check if Terrel is climbing the rope as well.

What are you doing now?

Str for round 1 climbing: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21
Str for round 2 climbing: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 3 = 18

Ardan held the rope steady. Luckily for him, being a centaur made him far better at holding the rope steady than it did for climbing. His weight and extra points of contact on the ground made the task easier. Still, his top half was human-like, and he couldn’t hold out forever. He resolved to have someone take over so he could begin blasting the swarm...before his arms fell off.

The muscles in his arms and back screaming, Vale digs in and tries to finish the climb.

Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 2 ⇒ (5) + 3 - 2 = 6
Climb: 1d20 + 3 - 2 ⇒ (9) + 3 - 2 = 10

As the rest start up Warren moves his back to the wall and looks to make sure everyone else is off he ground and then when he is sure all are moving up begins to climb.

Climb: 1d20 + 4 - 5 ⇒ (19) + 4 - 5 = 18

Not wanting to tax Ardan overly, Terrel unfortunately remains at the base of the cliff, looking for a foothold desperately.
Climb: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
Climb 2?: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
Oh this bodes poorly...

Climb 1: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 1 = 19
[dice=Climb 2?}1d20+1[/dice]