The tengu gives an involuntary shiver, feeling a bit of nerves at wading into melee again with another fell foe, having been mashed about a few times now.
"Here we go. CRAWWWWWWWW!"
The tengu advances where he can as to avoid the greasy section of the battlefield.
Aggro-Wan, with a fiery swing of his khakkara, connects with absolutely nothing.
Zin's and Akkaboo's spells cause the clay golem's body to begin to harden and crack. Falxi slashes at the fallen construct, scoring a hit, but Wan's attack goes wide.
The golems movements suddenly quicken as it hauls itself to its feet once more. It attacks, swinging its fists at Falxi and scoring two critical hits!
Falxi reels from the heavy blows of the creature. He continues his performance and darts back after making two strikes.
for
for
The dragon had already taken so much out of Zin but he needed to keep Falxi up as much as possible. "Hang in there a little longer. I got you."
◆ Sustain Interstallar Void
◆◆ Heal (Falxi)
AC 26 (27 w/ shield); Curse Stage: Minor | Enfeebled 2 | Drained 1
HP 96/96 | Resistance Physical 6; Harm 5 |
Hero Points 0/3
Focus Points 2/3
Spells (1) 3/3 | (2) 3/3 | (3) 1/3 | (4) 0/3 | (5) 0/3
Healing Well 0/5 remaining
Wand of Heal (1st) 1/1 | (2nd) 1/1
Ring of the Ram 1/1
Curse Benefit: Resistance: All Physical 6
Minor - (Enfeebled 1; -2 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Moderate- (Enfeebled 2; -3 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Akkaboo likewise continues throwing ice with one hand and spinning her bubble with the other.
"SQUAWRK! I'm the one who normally gets crushed!!"
With that odd battlecry, the tengu makes a quick strike and follows it with a sweep to knock the golem prone again!
To follow it all up, the tengu bashes the golem once more, again trying to stay out of the grease effect.
The golem's clay body continues to crack as Zin and Akkaboo blast it with cold. Wan delivers a powerful blow that knocks it to the ground, but Falxi can't manage to get past its defenses. The golem gets back to its feet and shifts its focus to Wan, punching the tengu twice!
Falxi darts in and slices at the creature again.
for
for
Zin's healing wanes as he becomes weaker throughout the day. But he continues to channel both the coldness of space and the healing properties of the stars into Falxi.
AC 26 (27 w/ shield); Curse Stage: Minor | Enfeebled 2 | Drained 1
HP 96/96 | Resistance Physical 6; Harm 5 |
Hero Points 0/3
Focus Points 2/3
Spells (1) 3/3 | (2) 3/3 | (3) 0/3 | (4) 0/3 | (5) 0/3
Healing Well 0/5 remaining
Wand of Heal (1st) 1/1 | (2nd) 1/1
Ring of the Ram 1/1
Curse Benefit: Resistance: All Physical 6
Minor - (Enfeebled 1; -2 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Moderate- (Enfeebled 2; -3 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Akkaboo likewise continues hurling icicles and swirling her bubble.
Akkaboo and Zin blast the golem with cold. Wan delivers a powerful blow to knock it down again, then Falxi scores a critical hit to destroy the construct!
You don't have time to rest on your laurels, however, as the door across the room opens to reveal an armored undead knight! He glares at you, hateful pinpricks of light burning in his empty eye sockets. "You will not take Belcorra's treasures!" he declares, leveling his icy greatsword at you and blasting you with cold!
Akkaboo is too startled to shriek as she ducks the icy blast. Quickly she retaliates, fingers locked in splayed position to sketch hordes of glowing arrows.
Zin feels the coldness seep right into his bones, but he stays focused on keeping the others up as long as possible.
AC 26 (27 w/ shield); Curse Stage: Minor | Enfeebled 2 | Drained 1
HP 64/96 | Resistance Physical 6; Harm 5 |
Hero Points 0/3
Focus Points 2/3
Spells (1) 3/3 | (2) 2/3 | (3) 0/3 | (4) 0/3 | (5) 0/3
Healing Well 0/5 remaining
Wand of Heal (1st) 1/1 | (2nd) 1/1
Ring of the Ram 1/1
Curse Benefit: Resistance: All Physical 6
Minor - (Enfeebled 1; -2 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Moderate- (Enfeebled 2; -3 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
The icy blast chills Falxi to the bone, but he still charges the undead creature and slices away at it.
for
for
Wan watches one guardian go down and another take its place.
”They don’t quit, do they?” Wan squawks, weathering the worst of the icy blast and creaking forward to the undead thing.
The tengu swings mightily!
Unfortunately, Zin's cold spell has no effect on the undead knight! The knight parries Falxi's attacks, but Wan manages a powerful blow, and Akkaboo batters the undead with magic missiles. As Zin casts his healing spell, an aura of sacrilege around the knight interferes!
The magic falters and has no effect! The knight lets out a dark chuckle and brings his icy greatsword to bear against Wan. He cuts the inventor down with two mighty swings, then whirls on Falxi, delivering a critical hit!
Zin curses in elven as his healing is counteracted. "Come on!" He pushes some more healing towards Wan to try and keep him conscious.
AC 26 (27 w/ shield); Curse Stage: Minor | Enfeebled 2 | Drained 1
HP 64/96 | Resistance Physical 6; Harm 5 |
Hero Points 0/3
Focus Points 2/3
Spells (1) 3/3 | (2) 1/3 | (3) 0/3 | (4) 0/3 | (5) 0/3
Healing Well 0/5 remaining
Wand of Heal (1st) 1/1 | (2nd) 1/1
Ring of the Ram 1/1
Curse Benefit: Resistance: All Physical 6
Minor - (Enfeebled 1; -2 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Moderate- (Enfeebled 2; -3 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Falxi continues his performance and slices at the knight, then steps away to put some distance between himself and the enemy.
for
for
“The cold isn’t working!” Akkaboo shouts desperately at Zin as she begins swirling her arms to make a circle around the skeletal figure and then another around Falxi. “Try something else!”
”squawwwwwww….”
Wan crumples within his armoured suit, but soon gets buoyed by Zin’s healing.
”Something else, you say?” the tengu says from the ground. ”Let’s try this!”
Wan slams his khakkara into the graveknight from the ground, aiming to trip him. He then stands up.
Falxi is unable to land any hits. Akkaboo traps the undead within a sphere of force! This blocks its sacrilegious aura, allowing Zin to heal Wan. The tengu gets to his feet and readies to strike the undead.
The graveknight brings its sword down on the sphere of force, once, twice, three times. The sphere shatters! Wan takes the opportunity to pummel the knight but is unable to trip him.
Falxi steps up and attacks the undead knight again.
for
for
Akkaboo hurls fire in the aftermath of Falxi's flashing swords, then hastily remembers to keep her protective bubble spinning.
Wan repositions himself to flank the undead tank with the dark-skinned elf.
Zin keeps it up as he sees his healing begin working once more. "Nearly out!"
AC 26 (27 w/ shield); Curse Stage: Minor | Enfeebled 2 | Drained 1
HP 64/96 | Resistance Physical 6; Harm 5 |
Hero Points 0/3
Focus Points 2/3
Spells (1) 3/3 | (2) 0/3 | (3) 0/3 | (4) 0/3 | (5) 0/3
Healing Well 0/5 remaining
Wand of Heal (1st) 1/1 | (2nd) 1/1
Ring of the Ram 1/1
Curse Benefit: Resistance: All Physical 6
Minor - (Enfeebled 1; -2 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Moderate- (Enfeebled 2; -3 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
You continue your focused assault on the graveknight. Falxi hits with both of his attacks, while Akkaboo burns the undead. Finally, Wan manages to connect with a powerful backswing that shatters the skeletal knight's body! Its bones crumble to dust, leaving behind its weapons and armor which clatter to the floor!
The next few rooms in this complex prove to be a series of vaults full of valuables. The first vault contains three iron chests containing a total of 8,000 sp, 500 gp, and 100 pp. All these coins were minted centuries ago.
The second vault contains a derelict armory. Ancient weapon racks have collapsed over time, leaving many swords, spears, and axes jumbled on the floor. While most of the weapons are mundane, among them you find a standard-grade adamantine warhammer and a +2 striking battleaxe. A fallen armor stand is tangled up with a +2 resilient chain shirt that was once displayed on it.
The shelves of the third room contain several old books and various odds and ends. In the center of the room is a dusty mechanism of copper and silver. It’s missing its lenses, but otherwise looks like the framework of a lantern that belongs in the top of a lighthouse. The dust in this room has been recently disturbed.
The books that have been most recently shelved here—as evidenced by the trails in the dust—are research journals Belcorra penned when she was alive. They are centuries old, but careful magical preservation has kept them from falling apart. These journals describe four fulcrum lenses (in crimson, ebon, emerald, and ochre) that focus Nhimbaloth’s soul-extinguishing gaze across space and time. Belcorra’s journal details how she built Gauntlight and created a special framework called the Fulcrum Lattice to fit the four lenses and harness their power. A diagram of the Fulcrum Lattice makes it clear that the device is the very one sitting here. Belcorra expresses some trepidation at using the fulcrum lenses; they each contain a sliver of Nhimbaloth’s essence, and bringing them in close proximity can be dangerous. More specifically, the lenses impart Nhimbaloth’s essence into those who use or are touched by them. Having all four essences imbued at once is sure to bring Nhimbaloth’s dreadful scrutiny. Belcorra had her talented apprentice, Volluk Azrinae, fashion mundane lenses that would allow Gauntlight to function at a diminished capacity until the Fulcrum Lattice and the fulcrum lenses could be installed, on the eve of Belcorra’s assault on Absalom. The Fulcrum Lattice allows all four of the large, heavy lenses to be carried with ease.
Belcorra’s journals explain that she used only the Ebon Fulcrum Lens in the Empty Vault at Gauntlight’s base, deeming the essence within one fulcrum lens a minimal risk. She gave the other lenses to trusted groups in the lower vaults: the emerald lens to the urdefhans, the ochre lens to the drow, and the crimson lens hidden where her undead gnome minions could protect it. She trusts that the groups won’t work together, much less learn that bringing the lenses together to imbue a single creature with all four splinters of Nhimbaloth’s essence would impart total annihilation.
The other books are aging tomes full of occult knowledge; they’ve been in the Haruvex family for generations. They hold a wealth of occult lore about ghosts, Nhimbaloth, and the Haruvexes.
In addition to the books, there are many other valuables here, including a skull-shaped key worth 30 gp that might unlocks the large ornate doors you discovere dearlier. There are als two signet rings that each bear the symbol of a tentacle wrapped around a skull with a moss-filled mouth. One is a ring of lies and the other functions as a greater pendant of the occult. The Fulcrum Lattice is also here, and it’s surprisingly lightweight for its size.
A secret door in this room leads into a circular portal chamber. You can use the ritual to awaken the teleportation circle here to make it easier to come and go from this dungeon level.
Falxi looks up from pursuing the research journals, "Well, this answers many questions. It seems that even that destructive scourge feared to bring the power of all four lenses together."
The tengu looks up from where he is happily ensconced, removing runes from suits of armour for use for his colleagues.
"Does it match what Quara told us earlier----SQUAWK!" Wan pulls his wing away from a sudden shocking blast from the suit of armour on which he is working, shaking it painfully.
Wan clucks and speaks again, peering with a frown at the troublesome suit of mail.
"If what the drow told us is true, then the urdefhans has TWO of the lenses, right - the emerald and the ochre?" He grimaces as he tries again to unhouse the pesky armour rune.
Wan takes a deep breath as the rune comes away from the suit of plate mail.
"Probably for the best Falxi. Seems our luck holds out for now. If she brought them together any sooner we would all be dead." Zin looks around. "We should use the ritual on this teleportation circle, head to the surface and come up with a plan to find the last two. This will give Wan time to separate all of his runes, and me a chance to rest."
You teleport to the surface level of Gauntlight and make your way back to Otari, to rest, recover, and prepare for your next expedition! You feel stronger from you recent experiences...
"That was a good opportunity to rest. We'll need all of our strength to take on those monsters and win back the lens." Falxi feels comfortable enough with his companions to let a hint of misgivings creep into his voice.
Wrin slowly approaches Wan at his beloved workbench as he tinkers with a strange circular bauble that glows with a softly pulsing light.
"Sweetling?" the normally-composed nephilim asks nervously. Wan looks up, annoyance quickly muted on his face.
"Yes?" he coos.
Wrin nods. Wan makes a curious purring note in his gullet and stands up.
"Really?"
Wrin nods again, a slow smile spreading hesitantly across her face.
"Sweetheart...." He rushes to embrace her.
The camera pans down to the pulsing bauble on the workbench....and the scene fades up on it as well, this time with the bauble firmly implanted in the trimmed feathers on the tengu's chest, the pulsing thrumming with energy as Wan walks the well-trod path leading back to the Gauntlight with his colleagues. The tengu thinks back on Wrin's parting words.
"Go. But do come back, sweetest Tu Wan Clang. You've got more than one of us to care for now."
Zin paces back and forth as he awaits the others. "This may be our last leg down beow. We know where to go but where do we go first?"
Akkaboo finishes drawing her wards around herself and thinks for a moment. "There's the lens we know of, and the one we don't," she ponders aloud. "If we get the one we know about first, then we can worry less about finding the one we don't. And it gives those not-undead chain folks less time to recover from the last time we went there, right Mister Legs?" The pink-and-blue slime under her hat bobs up and down affirmatively, though the weight of a spellbook inside it makes the movement somewhat precarious.
Wrin's star reading is quite effective, as she sees the omens in the cosmos. "The war chief's blood visions will be fulfilled. The green lens is yours once the chief is killed," the tiefling intones.
You return to the Abomination Vaults and teleport down to the fungal caverns. As you approach the urdefhan war camp, you can see that they are on high alert after your last infiltration. Guards stand at the ready at the entrance to the cave. How will you proceed?
Zin looks to the others. "Maybe we can just speak to the warchief again. Come to an agreement?"
"In my experience, they are not very reasonable, but perhaps they will acknowledge that we are a superior force and give us what we need." Falxi is unaccustomed to the peaceful ways of his still-new companions.
”Better back up our diplomatic entreaties with some mettle,” Wan gives a throaty warble as he rotates his head around his bulky shoulders before snapping Aggro’s helm in place. ”Or metal.”
As you approach the entrance to the caverns, you spot four burly urdefhans with polearms keeping a wary watch. They snarl and raise their weapons as you draw near...
Falxi calls out to the guards in Aklo.
"No need to snarl. We are here for a simple reason: Give us the lens that you have in your possession."
Wan attempts to add his diplomatic panache to Falxi’s demand.
The urdefhans glance at each other. "You will come with us to speak to the war champion," they say, gesturing for you to follow.
The guards lead you into the massive cavern filled with the horde of urdefhans. A jumble of low-lying tents made of stitched-together pelts and blood-streaked leather. Most of the tents surround a natural stone pillar decorated with strange symbols in brown and red paint, amid skulls tied or spiked to the pillar.
At this cavern’s center sits a single fur-and-skin hovel. A path to the hovel is flanked with skull-topped spears. A dozen or more urdefhans glare at you as the guards escort you into the hovel.
Waiting within is a hulking urdefhan in chainmail armor. With his back to you, you can see the Emerald Fulcrum Lens strapped across his back. He turns when you enter, and he looks pleased, his face contorting in a terrifying grin. "It is you! We meet on a good day to kill," he calls in Undercommon, drawing his bladed rhoka sword. "I am Khurfel."
”Have we met this guy?” Wan clucks in Common to his team. He hefts his khakkara in a similar flourish to Khurfel, unsure if he’s trying to impress or preparing for melee.
Spotting the Fulcrm Lens strapped to the hulking urdefhan's back gives Zin an opportunity and only a moment. He doesn't even think as he makes a fluid motion from the shadows in an attempt to steal the Fulcrum without being caught.
On high alert, Khurfel notices Zin trying to creep towards him. The urdefhan snarls and quickly steps away. "Ha! The visions in blood revealed to me your intentions! You have come for the lens! You have come to kill me! This confrontation was always fated to happen. But I will be the one who will emerge victorious today! You must die!"
Before you can react, Khurfel moves up to Zin and attacks with his sword and teeth!
Well, that was probably bound to happen.
Falxi slides into his battle dance and slices at Khurfel.
for
for
Akkaboo winces, shrieks, and starts drawing squiggly lines in the air - except this time, she adds a pointy stick in the middle of them and adds a couple squiggles curled around it. The magic erupts in familiar splashes of pink-and-blue slickness, but rather than splattering on the floor, they wrap themselves around the urdefhan‘s sword.
Wan clucks and makes a noise in his gullet akin to a laugh.
"Yup. That makes sense now. It's good to know that there are some things you can rely upon - like unremitting aggression."
Wan's gears wind up, but this time they accelerate faster than before.
Zin steps back as his hand releases the coldness of space around the urdefhan. "Sorry, tried to take it peacefully."
AC 27 (28 w/ shield); Curse Stage: Minor
HP 77/116 | Resistance Physical 7; Harm 5 |
Hero Points 0/3
Focus Points 2/3
Spells (1) 3/3 | (2) 3/3 | (3) 3/3 | (4) 3/3 | (5) 3/3
Healing Well 0/5 remaining
Wand of Heal (1st) 1/1 | (2nd) 1/1
Ring of the Ram 1/1
Curse Benefit: Resistance: All Physical 7
Minor - (Enfeebled 1; -2 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Moderate- (Enfeebled 2; -3 to saves, Grapple, Shoved and Forced Movement)
Zin drains Khurfel with the touch of the void before stepping away. Wan delivers a brutal blow to the urdefhan warchief, then Falxi lands a hit, momentarily stunning him! Akkaboo is unable to discern any secrets about Khurfel. He barely manages to retain his footing on the grease.
Shaking off the stun, Khurfel attacks Wan in a fury! He scores a critical strike with his jagged sword and a regular hit with his sharp teeth!