Elena moves to be a bit closer, and with a quick series of gestures releases arcing lightning at the two foes.
Peldur connects but once, and that's all it takes. He drops the wight. In its death throes though, it takes a swing powered by pure hatred: MISS!
Elena's spell strikes the remaining wight. It focuses solely on Noroc. It starts a dirge to weaken all your hearts.
It then swipes at Noroc]
MISS
ROUND 2:
Peldur (53/83): Kill Will
Elena: Arc Will
Undead: ATK
Noroc: Will + Go
Bibi (28/52): Will + Go
Augrael: Will + Go
Tal: Will + Go
Carrufikus: Will + Go
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Red: 45
Carrufikus remains focused and casts Disrupt Undead on the wight.
Basic Fort DC 21
Carrufikus disrupts the remaining wight a bit, fighting through the fear.
ROUND 2:
Peldur (53/83, Frightened 2): Kill
Elena (48/48, Frightened 2: Arc
Undead: ATK
Noroc: Will + Go
Bibi (28/52): Will + Go
Augrael: Will + Go
Tal: Will + Go
Carrufikus (Frightened 1): DU
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Red: 51
Tall pushes down the fear and nocks another arrow.
for .
Miss, yes?
Tal focuses on the nearby sarcophaguses to see if there are any more cairn wights shifting or readying.
So the third action is SEEK, Perception is +11.
Tal, despite the fear, strikes a solid blow!
ROUND 2:
Peldur (53/83, Frightened 2): Kill
Elena (48/48, Frightened 2: Arc
Undead: ATK
Noroc: Will + Go
Bibi (28/52): Will + Go
Augrael: Will + Go
Tal (Frightened 2): Hit
Carrufikus (Frightened 1): DU
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Red: 64
Tal, despite the fear, strikes a solid blow!
ROUND 2:
Peldur (53/83, Frightened 2): Kill
Elena (48/48, Frightened 2: Arc
Undead: ATK
Noroc: Will + Go
Bibi (28/52): Will + Go
Augrael: Will + Go
Tal (Frightened 2): Hit
Carrufikus (Frightened 1): DULocation: Belcorra's Retreat
** spoiler omitted **
My mistake. I did subtract 1 already.
Not a fan, Noroc says, his voice uncharacteristically shaky.
Swallowing hard, Noroc takes a step in front of Bibi to protect her a little and takes a couple of whacks with his walking stick.
Noroc's blade work is still on point. He cuts the head of the remaining wight, but as the other one did, so too does this wight take a final swipe:
for
Two severed heads reflect the strange light from the north...
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Status
Peldur (53/83)
Elena (48/48)
Noroc (55/58)
Bibi (28/52)
Tal (39/39)
Carrufikus (68/68)
"Well done. Now, let us see to some healing!"
The company witnesses an expert medic as Carrufikus moves around wrapping bandages, applying salves, and wrapping his patients up in slings.
To follow up his work, he casts a level 1 Heal on Peldur.
"Now, be sure to rest this arm. Watch this shoulder and be sure to keep it clean. There is nothing worse than getting an infection from a wight wound!"
Peldur (83/83)
Elena (48/48)
Noroc (55/58)
Bibi (51/52)
Tal (39/39)
Carrufikus (68/68)
Carrufikus tends to the party's wounds, leaving everyone ready to check out this room properly.
This vast octagonal chamber is mostly empty. The walls are carved and painted to resemble a sprawling graveyard half-sunken into a swampy morass, yet all the graves in the mural are open and empty. Carved images of shrieking ghosts parade upward and into the hungry pupil of a malevolent eye at the apex of this room, thirty feet above. A circular fifteen-foot-diameter platform sits in the middle of the room, raised three feet off the surrounding floor. The platform supports an altar stone made of an irregular slab of rock marked by seven deep indentations, almost as if a huge, seven-fingered hand had gripped the stone with enough force to leave grooves behind. Now and then, a faint blue light flickers and pulses inside one of these indentations. Small objects lie heaped atop the altar.
Carrufikus looks at the altar and tries to figure out who is worshipped here.
Bibi also looks specifically for traps in the immediate area of the entrance.
In these situations, is it worth asking about Occultism instead or are the skill checks a hard yes or no?
"I don't like this. And I don't believe we're done fighting wights."
"I don't like this. And I don't believe we're done fighting wights."
Bibi shivers, and draws her rapier & short sword, eyes everywhere. Papa, please be wrong, OK?
The party puts their heads together and concludes something altogether worrisome. This chamber as a shrine dedicated to Nhimbaloth, the Outer God of despair, ghosts, and swamps. Her shrines are often empty of additional furnishings such as statues or benches, symbolizing the emptiness of death itself. Worshipers typically kneel or prostrate themselves on the stone floor while priests lead sermons and sacrifices at the altar.
The objects upon the alter are actually severed hands.... and they're moving.
Tal narrows his eyes and approaches by a few feet. Are they a threat or just cosmetically nasty?
Bibi crinkles her nose in disgust. Ewwww!! Kill them with fire???
Carrufikus lifts his hands cautiously preparing to cast a disrupt undead spell in case the hands continue to move.
"Eww! These hands do not look kind."
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Carrufikus casts Disrupt Undead as he notices the hands continue to move.
[b] "Perturbare Immortui!"
Carrufikus, hold off one second, will you?
She gives the excitable gnome a gentle hand back while she takes a close look at the entire opening, checking carefully for traps at the entrance.
Carrufikus casts Disrupt Undead as he notices the hands continue to move.
"Perturbare Immortui!"
As soon as he sees the crawling hand Carrufikus destroys it, leaving only dust!
Unfortunately, four more creatures emerge from the indentations on the alter's sides. Each seems to be nothing more than a 3-foot-long length of hair-like fibers which flashes and pulses with ribbons and points of eerie yellow light.
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 (Init ties to Tal)
ROUND 1:
Tal (39/39): Go
Peldur(83/83): Go
Bibi (51/52): Go
Augrael: Go
Noroc (55/58): Go
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Red: 64
Bibi (51/52):
Point of order: being Drained 1 lowers max HP by 1/level. Current HP is 47/47
Bibi's forehead crinkles in disgust at these weird creatures. She bobs on the balls of her feet, glancing at Peldur.
Let them come to us?
Tal Hunts Prey. Then... Recall Knowledge. Occultism is +11 for Prey.
Then... Shoot.
Vs. Closest Target, Light Blue. Just within my PB Shot range.
Noroc moves up behind Bibi and nods. Let them come to us, he agrees, getting his walking stick ready.
+1 horsechopper (goblin, reach, trip, versatile P. magical)
Tal thinks these are flickerwisps, a less powerful but no less malevolent type of will-o'-wisp. Like their more dangerous kin, flickerwisps prefer to haunt lonely swamps or stretches of lonely rivers or creeks. The most important thing to know is that they can addle a person's mind if the will isn't strong enough to resist!
Tal's arrow seems to hurt it all the same though!
ROUND 1:
Tal (39/39): Hit
Peldur(83/83): Go
Bibi (47/47): Go
Augrael: Go
Noroc (55/58): Ready
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Teal: 8
Peldur heeds the tactics of the others. He enters his familiar stance and gets ready to wallop one if it gets close.
Bibi steps behind Peldur, and hides behind his left leg.
"I'll get them!" Augrael charges forth:
for
MISS
Peldur, Bibi, and Augrael all opt for their preferred approach!
Suddenly, ALL of fl
MISS
for
MISS
for
MISS
for
MISS
for
for
for
MISS
for
The remaining hand rushes forward and stops at the edge of the room.
ROUND 1:
Tal (39/39): Hit
Peldur(83/83): Ready
Bibi (47/47): Sneak
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Ready
Hands: ATK
Hair: ATK
Carrufikus (68/68): Go
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Teal: 16
Carrufikus immediately counterattacks: wounding one of the crawling hands!
ROUND 2:
Tal (39/39): Go
Peldur(83/83): Go
Bibi (47/47): Go
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Go
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Blue: 8
Teal: 16
POINT OF ORDER: Peldur's readied action should go off; I'll wait until that's adjudicated before my own actions.
[oocc]I skipped the prose, but he did hit it twice. Tracker now matches.[/ooc]
Carrufikus immediately counterattacks: wounding one of the crawling hands!
ROUND 2:
Tal (39/39): Go
Peldur(83/83): Hit
Bibi (47/47): Go
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Go
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Blue: 8
Teal: 16
Noroc steps forward and takes a whack at Black.
Noroc steps up, but the wisp languidly dodges both of his swings!
ROUND 2:
Tal (39/39): Go
Peldur(83/83): Go
Bibi (47/47): Go
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Miss
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Blue: 8
Teal: 16
Stride.
"Augrael. It was likely a dream in any case. But 'twas a good dream."
Shoot Blue.
,
,
Bibi steps out from her hiding place, and stabs at Blue.
First to acknowledge the fallen Augrael, Tal shoots and destroys one of the flickerwisps.
Bibi steps out and misses the opening thrust, but redoubles to strike!
ROUND 2:
Tal (39/39): Kill
Peldur(83/83): Go
Bibi (47/47): Hit
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Miss
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Teal: 16
Black: 5
Peldur steps forward to stand with Bibi and goes to town on a hand.
Suddenly all of the flickerwisps descend upon Augrael. They swarm his head and start lashing out. Augrael screams in rage, "Not my friends! Do not harm my friends!"
For a moment he holds his own. The morlock-ghoul dodges and parries with his arms. He keeps his jaw tight as he focuses on the attacks. Unfortunately, Augrael doesn't notice when the undead hands grab him by the ankles and start to tear.
Time slows down as the party tries to react fast enough, but the enemies are too many. The wounds pile up just so fast, so very fast.
Augrael drops to a knee, and then to both. As the flickerwisps start in on his face and neck he speaks his last words. With bulbous eyes wide, he gives the party a simple exhortation, "win friends."
Then a flickerwisp silences him...
Bibi's eyes widen in shock and horror. Stunned at the ferocity and speed that their strange, but TRUE, friend, suffers, she can't react before he's brought down.
NNNOOOOOO!!! DAMMIT!!!
her throat constricts, but she admonishes herself internally.
NO! Fight and win now. Tears come later.
Peldur is the next to respond. His flurry tears the hand apart as severed fingers fly.
The swarm of creatures move to attack Bibi and Peldur, leaving Augrael's corpse behind:
but the brawler shakes off all comers.
MISS
for
MISS
MISS
ROUND 2:
Tal (39/39): Kill
Peldur(83/83): Kill
Bibi (43/47): Hit
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Miss
Hands: ATK
Hair: ATK
Carrufikus (68/68): Go
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Teal: 16
Black: 5
Noroc's mouth hangs agape as Augrael succumbs. For a heartbeat, this all processes...
And then, his face sets. Hard. A fury flickers in his eyes, and his knuckles whiten as he grips his weapon.
"Win friends," indeed, he thinks to himself. It will not bring Augrael back, but these things will die.
"Augrael dead?! This cannot be possible. He was the kindest undead I had ever met!"
He proceeds to cast aa ray of frost on the purple flickerwisp!
Carrufikus tries to understand the foe they are facing and if it has any immunities or weaknesses.
Carrufikus fires off a spell, but it simply fizzles on impact. In his state he can't remember a thing about these creatures!
ROUND 3:
Tal (39/39): Go
Peldur(83/83): Go
Bibi (43/47): Go
Augrael: DEAD
Noroc (55/58): Go
Hands: TBD
Hair: TBD
Carrufikus (68/68): TBD
Location: Belcorra's Retreat
Teal: 16
Black: 5