Neither Bibi nor Talborel can connect with the creature!
Round 2:
???: ATK
Talborel: Miss
Elena: Go
Carrufikus: Go
Bibi: Miss
Peldur: Go
Noroc: Go
scalathrax: 26
Carrufikus casts a two action heal on Talborel!
"Reinvigormend!"
Next, he moves over to get into position to help Peldur.
◈◈ Heal
◈ Stride
Action 1-3: Magic Missile
Seeing the crab-like creature as a threat akin to the worm, Elena weaves an evocation spell. Three glowing white darts manifest before her, hovering in place. With a flick of her wrist they fly out, slamming into the beast!
Peldur unleashes a rapid succession of blows onto the crab's shell.
Elena opts for the sure thing, pelting the abomination with a trio of magic missiles.
Meanwhile Carrufikus keeps Peldur in the fight. The added strength is critical, giving Peldur the oompf needed, only one of his strikes lands true, but it's a devastating one.
Round 2:
???: ATK
Talborel: Miss
Elena: MM
Carrufikus: Heal
Bibi: Miss
Peldur: Crit
Noroc: Go
scalathrax: 49
Noroc sees an opening. Just as Peldur's blow spins the creature a bit, Noroc brings the chopper down and severs its head! The creature collapses.
A moment later the beam shuts off, and only a faint light can be seen from the Gauntlight. The onlookers and guards alike give a massive cheer at the party's victory, though none step foot in the cemetery to offer congratulations.
Bibi sheathes her dagger & bustles to retrieve her rapier. Ladies and gentlemen, we DEFINITELY need a name for our little troupe, and pronto!! This incident will make us celebrities in Otari, and if we want to take advantage of that, the folken need to know what to call us.
Any suggestions?
she eyes Peldur & Noroc. Very impressive hits, by the way! Good setup & follow-through!
Pell-mell Peldur and the Otari Irregulars!
"A name? I hardly think that should be our focus right now," Elena says. Her tone isn't one of reproach, but of concern. "The lighthouse seems to be the trigger, and if we don't want more fiendish creatures and walking dead roaming about then... we best hurry to Gauntlight."
I think you're right, Elena. The beam's off, but it looks like the lantern is still lit? And we want to catch whoever lit it before they can escape. I'm eager to smash that thing.
Noroc tests his hands, quite happy to find them normal strength, and nods. Quite agree, the Gauntlight needs to be our focus at the moment. He grabs Bibi's arm as the group heads out. Besides, I'm of the mind these things are sometimes best left to grow organically. Perhaps we come up with a clever name, or perhaps someone else does and we adopt it. Maybe we should ask Wrin, when next we see her.
Image and fame shouldn't be left on the back-burner. Let's get to Gauntlight and see what we see. But now that I've planted the seeds, you all will also be thinking about a name. I'm satisfied. Let's boogie.
Skipping offers of free beer in town, the party hustles past the onlookers and rushes to the Gauntlight. Puffing, but not truly winded, it's a quick trip.
Whelp, it was the lantern that seemed to..."shoot ghosts," wasn't it? Shall we head up there post-haste?
Talborel picks up his bow and his blade and takes a long look at the dead creatre...
Recall Knowledge. Arcana and Occultism at +6. Elven Lore at +6. Nature 5. Religion 1. If my bonus from Outwit still applies, it's +2.
After one last attempt to remember the name and basic information about the creature, Tal quickly picks up his bow and his blade and bolts for The Gauntlight.
Come Friends. We hunt. Let's make for The Gauntlight!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
At the Gauntlight...
Talborel looks for tracks or signs of recent passage... Survival:
Yes. Let us make for the beacon first.
Carrufikus quietly gives thanks in prayer to Desna for their victory against the undead.
"Desna, thank you for the blessings you have brought us and for helping us protect Otari against these awful undead!"
"Shall we head up there post-haste?"
Listening to Beerswizzler's suggestion, Carrufikus replies.
"Let's head up, Bibi. If we are all set here, then let's go. We want to stop this evil before it comes and threatens these good people."
Carrufikus joins the others in heading back to the Gauntlight.
Elena and Noroc both bring some light to the darkened Gauntlight. At night the place is especially creepy, and the week light atop the tower doesn't help.
Thankfully it's a short trip to the tower proper, so the party hustles in. Bibi opens the door and steps aside. The pool of everfresh blood is still there, roiling.
It's bubbling.
It's moving.
A translucent, bloody image of a woman arises from the pool of blood. She looks familiar to you. Her eyes emit a soul draining light. She opens her mouth as if to scream, but then begins a sharp inhale.
You feel the pressure first in your eyes and ears. It grows into pain. Your faces feel wet. Your mouths taste like copper. The first you see of it is the blood which comes from your tear ducts. You look around at the others, the ghostly Lady of the Light is inhaling your very blood!
You think you can likely stop her with an exorcism or disrupt the pool itself
Round 1:
Haunt: Begin
Talborel: Go
Carrufikus: Go
Peldur: Go
Bibi: Go
Elena: Go
Noroc: Go
Initiative assumes Talborel is Scouting
Avoid Notice (T)
Detect Magic (A: +1 (U), N: +8 (T), O: +1 (U) , R: +8 (T))
Investigate (A: +8 (T), C: +8 (T) M: +1 (U) N: +5 (T), O: +7 (T) , R: +5 (T), S: +8 (T))
Search (E)
Avoid Notice (E)
Scout
Bibi wipes frantically at the blood in her eyes, trying--and failing--to clear them properly. She tries to make her way to the pool
and she's able to make her way there. She tries arranging some flotsam loose in the room on the pool to disrupt it
well, frick
Peldur ignores the pain in his face and follows after Bibi. Seeing what she's failing to do, Peldur grabs some detritus and works to disrupt the pool as well.
Uhm, no. Hero point.
FFS!
Elena screams in pain, the outflow of blood thoroughly obscuring her vision!
Action 1-3: Religion (assuming she can)
Elena speaks several ancient words, their meaning obscured by time but supposedly powerful and deeply religious.
Fortitude Save:
Tal grits his teeth. Some kind of bloodphage. He knows this villainy of old. What does he recall?
Recall Knowledge
He approaches the pool alongside Bibi and thinks Maybe we can disrupt it...
Thievery:
Depending on how init shakes out, can we use our check(s) to aid someone ahead of them? Tal goes before everyone and he'd definitely head right up and tries to disrupt the pool by... Cleaning p the blood! He's got soap.
Carrufikus calls upon Desna to try and exorcise the pool.
"Desna, let you goodness come down here and cleanse this place!"
The horror of the vision is completely awful, nearly felling the party outright. Peldur flies into the room and executes a perfectly placed sweeping kick at the pool. Immediately the ghostly haunt is completely disrupted.
The woman bursts into a fountain of blood and flies up to the ceiling, oozing into the lighthouse proper above!
Upstairs. Now.
Talborel races above.
Peldur is right on Talborel's heels.
Elena coughs, wiping at the blood and furiously blinking to regain some semblance of sight. She waves the others on as Talborel urges for haste. "I'll be right behind you guys."
She is slow to follow the others, her weakened state keeping her at the back of the group.
At least let me check the door at the top first!!! bibi hustles to catch up, still wiping blood out of her eyes
Tal stops short, at the weakened voice from Elena. He turns slowly and regards her.
She's fine. She's not hurt. Just tired and weakened from the spirit. You didn't do it. You didn't do it. You didn't...
Elena Solheim. Stay where you are until Carrifikus can see to you.
He turns and bolts upstairs.
Noroc turns away at the proper moment, inauspiciously leaving his companions to take the worst of it. He's torn between seeing to Elena and Carrufikus, and racing to the top of the steps.
Some of the party races to the top. Talborel bursts through the trap door into the room. The blood has slithered and flowed over Gauntlight’s lantern. As the heroes enter the chamber, it slides off the lantern and transforms into a ravenous blood-drinking vampiric mist which attacks at once! The cloud of crimson vapor reeking of fresh blood hangs in the air, reaching out with lashing claws.
Initiative assumes Talborel is Scouting
Avoid Notice (T)
Detect Magic (A: +1 (U), N: +8 (T), O: +1 (U) , R: +8 (T))
Investigate (A: +8 (T), C: +8 (T) M: +1 (U) N: +5 (T), O: +7 (T) , R: +5 (T), S: +8 (T))
Search (E)
Avoid Notice (E)
Scout
Tal slides to a stop and swaggers a little.
You've chosen a poor time and a poor place to manifest, Spirit. Who are you and from whence do you hail?
Hunt Prey
Recall Knowledge
Third action pending.
Noroc gives Elena a bit of healing before following the rest.
He looks at Carrufikus. Collect yourself and use some of Desna's grace before you follow, he says, turning and heading up the steps.
...what the Hell's THAT?!?
Before rushing upstairs, Noroc heals Elena.
Round 1
Bibi: Go
Carrufikus: Go
Red mist thing: TBD
Elena: TBD
Talborel: TBD
Noroc: TBD
Peldur: TBD
Bibi enters the lighthouse proper & hugs the wall, circling to the opposite side to prepare a flank. Rapier is out.
Bibi tries to skulk her way to a better position...
Round 1
Bibi: Skulk
Carrufikus: Go
Red mist thing: TBD
Elena: TBD
Talborel: TBD
Noroc: TBD
Peldur: TBD
Carrufikus will casts a three action heal to heal up the wounds of all his companions and then he would head up behind the others.
Carrufikus moves up to the lighthouse behind the others.
"Vile creature! You must leave this place at once. Desna is moving in!"
Carrufikus casts disrupt undead on the vile mist!
With his third action, he recalls knowledge about this mist!
Carrufikus closes in and levels a spell at the mist. The impact doesn't seem to affect it at all! .
The mist flies forward, standing directly before Peldur. It lashes out with tendrils, one towards Peldur, the other towards Talborel. The tendrils not only slash open wounds, they practically draw blood out of the wounds.
for
MISS
Talborel focuses on the mist. He knows this to be a vampiric mist, sometimes called "Agents of Empty Death" in places where worship of the Outer God Nhimbaloth has brushed close to the world. He knows that they're an aberration, resistant to physical weapons, but weak to fire.
Round 1
Bibi: Skulk
Carrufikus: DI
Red mist thing: ATK
Elena: Go
Talborel: 1 Action
Noroc: Go
Peldur: Save + Go + d6 Bleed + Flat
Peldur gasps as he feels, nay, sees his lifeblood flowing out to the mist.
The creature drains Peldur of his life force. the mist seems to grow strong, more opaque, with the collection of the brawler's blood.
Round 1
Bibi: Skulk
Carrufikus: DI
Red mist thing: ATK
Elena: Go
Talborel: 1 Action
Noroc: Go
Peldur: Go + d6 Bleed + Flat
BURN IT! FIRE, ELENA--FLAMES!
Tal draws the runed morningstar and looks to distract it from the casters.
That's all my actions.
Having no fire to bring to bear on the mist, Peldur falls back on the tried and true punching the hell out of it.
He crouches down and rakes at hit.
He then moves away from the stairs to allow the others room to enter.
PEldur's opening blow is off target, but he follows up with a hit. It's a wierd sensation. The mist isn't completely without substance, and his fist slows as it passes through. The hit nearly returns the mist to the state it was in before harming Peldur.
Round 1
Bibi: Skulk
Carrufikus: DI
Red mist thing: ATK
Elena: Go
Talborel: Ranger-fu
Noroc: Go
Peldur: Hit
Temp: 2
Action 1: Stride
Action 2-3: Produce Flame
Elena rushes up the stairs, hearing Talborel call for her magic. She quickly begins weaving an incantation, heedless of the identity of the thing before them. A ball of flame appears in her hand, which she hurls at the mist!
Elena's flame passes just over the mist!
Round 1
Bibi: Skulk
Carrufikus: DI
Red mist thing: ATK
Elena: Miss
Talborel: Ranger-fu
Noroc: Go
Peldur: Hit
Temp: 2
since I doubt Noroc would change what Bibi does...
ROUND 2
Bibi slides into a flanking position with Tal, and makes with the stabbity
Noroc makes it up to the top, maneuvering warily into a strategic spot for him and (hopefully) Peldur.
Noroc's blade strikes, and seems to wound the mist, but barely. Bibi lands a direct hit, though her guess at anatomy doesn't seem to help
Round 2
Bibi: Hit
Carrufikus: Go
Red mist thing: TBD
Elena: TBD
Talborel: TBD
Noroc: TBD
Peldur: TBD
Mist: 4