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The cultist only has a moment to shake his head and start a curse before Danduun and Sadaf finish the vile cultist.
Danduun (-11)
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Looking over the tunnels and the cultists, the group finds some coin pouches with a note tucked inside . The cultist certainly were very weak but the plan for them to fight amongst themselves had been brewing for quite some time. You may have slain the one that was expected to survive.
The cultist were likely starving and it was at least 3 days since they last ate.
Aside from that is a hole in the chamber you were fighting in, below is a darkness that a knotted rope disappears into.
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With the group all safely climbing down the rope, they begin to take account of their surroundings.
Those without specialized eyes or techniques find it hard to see in the darkness of the lower cavern, but their ears can at least pick up the sounds.
Water trickling from above create small streams slowly heading in the directions of the West and North-West tunnels, the echoes make it difficult to decide which tunnel the voices are coming from but the Northern tunnel seems most likely.
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Benson will light a torch after getting down, unless some spellcaster cares to cast a light spell for him.
"Can anyone do that thing some magical folk can do and place a light spell on my left palm? I can hide the light when necessary, but otherwise I can fight with my sword and keep my other hand free."
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Sadaf begins carefully moving into the first tunnel, wary of traps or other dangers. His keen eyes and ears taking in the stone work of the tunnel leading as it makes a sharp ninety-degree turn to the north before opening into a twenty-foot-high, thirty-five-foot-long cavern filled with a shallow lake that glitters in the faint greenish light from algae on the ceiling.
As he nears the water's edge he spots what appears to be a small metal rod and beyond that, some half-melted skeletons that appear to be dissolving in the water ahead. His nose also picks up a strong musky odor emanating from within the tunnel.
This rod appears to be some minor artifact that expended all of its energy. However, the exact cause isn't discernable, if not easy to guess from the surroundings.
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Benson thanks Uaine for offering to carry the torch. "Seems like there's some light the way we're going. Good thing too, since it's hard to climb a rock wall while holding a torch."
"I can probably climb along that wall, but it might be good if GAB! can climb just below in case of a slip."
"I expect there's a trap half way along, since that seems like what the designers of this place would do."
He uses an unlit torch to try to fish anything from the water that might be useful.
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Gru'gar is able to shimmy along the rocky edges as the others move into action as Armstrong opts to wade directly in. To the likely surprise as some, he takes little damage.
With their eyes around the corner and in the pool, an altar of Zyphus glints in the dim caverns. Atop it are various coins and offerings, which include entrails. More dissolving skeletons lie in the bath of acid. Aside from this the group is unable to find anything else of value or interest down this path.
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Gru'Gar shakes his head "Looks like this is a dead end. And I have never been fond of taking loot from a god, so lets just leave it here unless one of you magic types find something of greater value than a hand full of coins."
He says looking at the pitiful offerings.
Then a thought comes to mind and Gru'Gar takes a look for any secret chambers.
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The sharp eyes and magical senses show no signs of magical treasure atop the shrine or within hidden walls of the cave, so the group heads onwards to the next tunnel.
Sadaf leads the way past tunnel with rivulets of water gently rolling down the cracks in the floor, from the room above. Before taking one step into the tunnel he holds up a hand to stop the others. There is indeed a trap laid, a dangerous one. Examining the rock wall, there are slots inset with a pendulum rod attached to the ceiling. It appears to be a swinging axe trap triggered by pressure plates in the floor.
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Gru'gar and Benson quickly take apart the trap, disabling the axe before quietly lowering it to the ground. With the threat out of the way the party is able to move forward once again.
The keen eyes members of the group lead the way, winding through the tunnels till they see torchlight peering through an opening. However, at the opening there is an already triggered axe trap...evident by the bloodied corpse lodged into the wall.
Gru'gar peeks into the room, where a stone trench about three feet high runs the length of the west wall. Hanging above it are several human men, their chests flayed open, their blood dripping and pooling in the trench below. A thin stone tube then runs from the middle of the gory container, funneling blood down toward a large basin in the center of the room. Judging from the blood splashed around the outside of the basin, something recently crawled out of it.
It only takes a moment to spot and hear the creature that crawled forth, a blood covered wight is hanging more corpses along hooks above the trench. The party is given enough warning to make the initial move before the wight turns to face them.
Everyone can take a standard or move action.
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Bold
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Active Conditions:
Knowledge (Religion) to identify.
Everyone can take a standard or move action.
Sadaf orders Danduun to attack and he moves in!!
Danduun attacks the undead.
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Uaine moves into the room after his allies as the creature lurches into action.
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Finding itself quickly being surrounded, the creature picks a target to attack.
"You aren't any of the sacrificial fools...interesting!" the ghoul sputters out as chunks of fetid meat falls out between words.
His diseased claws tear through the exposed flesh of Gru'gar and he starts to feel his very vitality beginning to drain away.
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Bold
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Active Conditions:
Danduun is directed by Sadaf and attack the undead.
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The vicious strike from Gru'gar carves away a chunk of the wight's flesh as Danduun begins to tear more away.
Already appearing weakened, Sadaf's crocodile bursts forth from the aether before latching down and thrashing about. The misfortune emanating from the wight causes the reptile to nearly lose it's grip but with one more savage bite...the wight is torn to pieces.
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Combat Over
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With this creature dead, it leaves only the exploration of this chamber and the other tunnel.
Down the other tunnel is a grim scene of cultists frozen within an icy tomb that was one a communal bath. However, the culprit behind the spell did not fare well and is hanging from a trap above the scene. There is no treasure to be found within.
Having cleared out the hideout, the cultist threat to Oppara should be alleviated for the time being but there is always the mysterious writer of the note found earlier. This embarrassment may prove worthy of retaliation but for now you can head back to the lodge to collect your payment and deliver the relieved Hustavan.
"Thanks to my help, you were able to survive and get rid of these foul heathens! Now we can get out of here...and out of Oppara. I could do for new surroundings where they aren't gi9ving me dirty looks!"