Kka stares at Lough and Fuìn and when neither shows any interest in the Haste spell, she shrugs and turns to Kvit. "I guess I get to be the speedy one then."
She then turns to the worm. "Okay then. Looks like we get to test out your friend in there." She then faces the glass wall. "Everyone ready? Here we go." Kka speaks the incantation to make the glass wall disappear and hops down the five feet to the floor of the arena.
"Alrighty big boy. Show us whaat you've got."
Everyone hops down the small balcony and gets into position. Once everyone is where they want to be, the researcher makes a motion and raises the glass, then starts the countdown. "We've got more of these brewing in the labs, so don't hold back on my account. This thing won't hold back, either."
Cherry Berry
Fuìn
Kvit
Kka, hasted
Destrachan
Lough
Cherry Berry, Fuìn, Kvit, and Kka may act!
Kvit grips the staff of evocation and points it at the creature. A bolt of green energy, dripping with a sinister-looking slime streaks towards the creature.
Then ducks around the corner out of sight.
Wasting no time, Kka takes the advantage presented to her and runs at the creature, takes two slices at it and runs back.
Lough tries to jump into action, but the electricity doesn't play nice with his mechanical arm and has a small seizure.
Kvit aims a glob of acid at the monster, but it barely misses.
Kka runs forward and unleashes a flurry of slashes at the creature. Both attacks connect, and then she runs back to her original position.
Cherry Berry
Fuìn
Kvit
Kka, hasted
Destrachan, 32 damage
Lough
Cherry Berry and Fuìn are up!
Cherry quickly shields themselves and Fuin as the fight rages.
◆Shield
◆Guardian Staff on Fuin
◆Guidance on Fuin
Feeling the cleric's magic bolstering him, Fuin dashes forward, meteor hammer already whirling dangerously in his hands, and tries to knock the beast on its tuchus.
♦ Stride 25ft.
♦♦
◇
Kvit's acid arrow threatens to go low under the creature's legs, but Fuìn runs up and knocks the beast over, causing the arrow to connect!
Afterwards, Cherry Berry shields themselves and protects Fuìn.
The destrachan crawls back on its feet, provoking from Fuìn, then unleashes a terrible screech that rattles bones and pops eardrums. Everyone except Kvit (he's positioned himself so the wall blocks the cone) may make a basic DC 26 Reflex save or take sonic damage.
The shockwave hits the glass in front of the worm-researcher, but runes flare up on the glass and it seems protected from the effect.
The acid continues to bite into the beast's skin, but then it manages to shake it off.
Cherry Berry
Fuìn
Kvit
Kka, hasted
Destrachan, 59 damage
Lough
Everyone is up! Please make a basic DC 26 Reflex save against the damage.
Double Slice only allows one instance of sneak attack. I'll take the first one.
Kka looks as everyone's blows hit home and then sees the creature take a deep breath. "Uh oh. I don't like the look of thaat..."
But Kka manages to jam the pommel of her swords into her ears which blocks the sound out quite effectively.
Kka decides that a reprise of her previous attack is needed.
Kvit hears the screech echo around the hallway and still has to cover his ears. He is very glad he had taken cover. He peeks out and tries to make life difficult for the creature while the heavy hitters attack.
He points his staff and conjures a wide slick of grease under the creature.
Kka manages to somehow evade the destructive effects of the screech. She then runs up and slashes twice, scoring a big hit on her first attack, but sadly missing the second. She then runs away.
The destrachan looks pretty heavily injured after Kka's attack.
Kvit conjures an area of slippery mucus under the destrachan's feet. It wobbles, but manages to stay upright.
Cherry Berry
Fuìn
Kvit
Kka, hasted
Destrachan, 99 damage
Lough
Lough, Fuìn, and Cherry Berry are up! Don't forget the Reflex saves against damage.
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Meanwhile, the worm-scientist is furiously scribbling notes on their slate, nodding appreciatively, and you catch snatches of internal monologue it's accidentally sending to you. "Their teamwork is great... Knocking down the creature is something the other teams hadn't thought of.... The feathered one is a menace and a half, might need to study her further... The metal-limbed one is acting unpredictably, must be some feinting maneuvre..."
"Ouch." cries out the small plant as it puts a frond to the side of their head.
Gesturing with their other hand, Cherry heals all of those injured by the sound.
◆◆◆
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↺
Fuin was too surprised that the tactic had worked to mount an effective attack when the creature stands up, and then the world vanishes in a wall of horrid ear-rending noise.
The force of the blast nearly sends Fuin sprawling, but he plants his back foot and brings his hands up to his ears to cover them--too late. Sharp, stabbing pain rolls through his eardrums, and sound gets muffled as the sides of his hood become damp and sticky with blood. An obnoxious, tinny drone drowns out nearly all sound for several seconds.
"Mawp," he says. "Mawp. Maaawp."
It doesn't help much.
"Fine," he grumbles, setting his meteor hammer swinging again, "Let's make sure you don't do that again."
He lets the hammer fly again at the creature's legs, then throws up a shadowy disc of force.
♦♦
◇
♦ Cast shield.
Cherry Berry and Fuìn both take the full brunt of the sonic assault, but Cherry Berry manages to heal away most of the damage. Fuìn then hits the creature once more and again sweeps it off its feet.
Cherry Berry, 12 damage
Fuìn, 12 damage
Kvit
Kka, hasted
Destrachan, 111 damage, prone
Lough
Lough is up! Still potentially 28 damage incoming, but also 16 healing from Cherry Berry.
Lough runs up to the prone beast and punches it with his metal arm. It is looking very close to going down now, but there's still some energy left.
The destrachan, now with an enemy up close to it, does not have to move. From the ground, it lashes out three times at Lough in blind fury.
It bites Lough, and as it does so, releases a shrill shriek that rattles bones.
and sonic.
Cherry Berry, 12 damage
Fuìn, 12 damage
Kvit
Kka, hasted
Destrachan, 125 damage, prone
Lough, 54 damage
Everyone is up! It needs one more good wallop and it's down!
Lough's power-arm punches the beast into unconsciousness, after which his eyebrows start squeezing off blood flow to the limbs until there's nothing left of it.
"...Yes, the legs are a weak point, must suggest adding more for stability.... Huh, oh, the fight is already over, how wonderful." The worm-scientist slaps two tendrils together to imitate applause. It then lowers the glass again and motions you over.
"This has given me so much data to work with, I can't wait to get to work. But a deal's a deal, and I promised to answer any questions you have. So, what do you want to know?"
Fuin shrugs. "Well, I guess first things first. Who or what else can we expect to run into on this level? Minus the hydras and drowning devil back that way." He jerks a thumb northward.
"Well, that one's easy. Pretty much directly east from here's the tavern. Big neutral zone. Doesn't mean it's safe there, though. They're a rowdy bunch, but not keen on bar brawls. Be sure to show you mean well. You're a weird bunch, I'll grant you that, but you stink of outsiders. Make a wrong move and they'll think you've come to stir up trouble, and then you'll have to fight an entire tavern's worth of people.
"There are several rooms around the tavern that have to do with running the tavern itself. I've never been there, but from what I can guess there's the food storage, office, kitchen, and a backstage and dressing room areas.
"To the south is the arena - you must've seen it as you came down here, there's a big giant flesh heap down there that my colleagues are studying.
"To the southwest is the spa and sauna. I wouldn't go there, someone has locked some incredibly pungent undead in there that are ruining the experience.
"And to the southeast is Jafaki, the head researcher. We're all trying to make the perfect monster to pit against gladiators in the arena, but Jafaki's done some extreme stuff. Mutagens and fleshwarping pales compared to what they know. I wouldn't bother them if I were you; you might end up as their next subject for experimentation.
"Those are the highlights, I suppose. Just us scientists and a bunch of weirdos in a bar. Not the most glamorous work environment, but we manage."
Kka pokes her head around the corner and watches as Lough finishes the creature off. "Nice work there, big maan!" She glances in the direction of the worm. "I hope our new friend isn't too disappointed by how faast we finished off his pet."
She listens as the worm summarizes what they'll run into in the rest of level. Kka then looks over at the large double doors in the southeast corner of the room. "That Jaafaaki guy sounds like some seriously baad news. We should probaably visit him laast. The taavern on the other haand sounds interesting." She points south to the area at the end of the viewing gallery. "Maybe there's a way through down there." She then goes down to that end for a look around. She's wondering where the passage west leads and what might be behind the door to the east.
Kka takes a look at the passage to the west and finds the stairs up to the previous level. She then moves up to the door to the east, but just manages to see something suspicious in the wall. She takes a closer look and finds a secret door, operated by pressing a brick in the wall.
When Kka spots the secret door, she says wryly, "Ho ho! What do we haave here? Why I do believe it's a secret door leading west. Shaall we see where it leads? I do believe we shaall"
And without further ado, she gets to work checking the door for traps and figuring out how to get it open.
Kka presses the brick like a button, and the secret door swings open. A short hallway later, you find yourselves at the entrance to the arena.
This long chamber is rounded on both ends with a door to the north and a curved wall of transparent stone to the south. A faint stink wafts from an exit in the west wall.
Three creatures are currently making notes here. One more research-worm, and two morlocks who seem to have their entire skeleton replaced with metal, and have horrific metal spider-legs sticking out of their backs.
"Ah, thought I heard my colleague startle a while back," the researcher beams into your heads (in Undercommon, which Kvit can translate), "I was wondering what that was about."
"Intruderssss," the two mecha-morlocks click in Undercommon, moving to observe you a little bit better, clearly more hostile than the worm.
---
To the south, you see the arena and the giant flesh-heap slumbering in it.
Kka sees the new researcher worm. "Awww, shoot! Not another one. And this one haas friends." Kka glances at the monstrosity in the arena and blanches slightly. "If this worm even thinks about trying to blaackmail us into fighting thaat thing, I'm going to shove one of my blades down its throat."
Directing her words at the worm, Kka says, "Hey bub! We've got no beef with you. Just point us towards the taavern and we'll be on our way."
"Oh, I wouldn't think of challenging you. If you got past the experiment up north, I don't want to get in your way," the worm says.
"But thesssse could be useful to the bossss," one of the morlocks hisses, slowly circling Kka. "You ssssure we can't feed them to the arena monssssster?"
The worm looks lost in thought, the morlock's words slowly convincing it into acting.
Kka keeps her eyes warily on the morlocks as they circle around her. She directs her thoughts at the worm. "Good choice. You're clearly one of the smaart ones down here. Your morlock friends seem a little slower though. I'd call them off before we send you all to join that lump of flesh in the arena. To be honest, I'm not keen on morlocks, so I'd like nothing more thaan to paack these two laackeys of yours off to Phaaraasma. You better decide quickly how you want to play this, or I'll decide for you." She gives the worm a look suggesting that it would not be happy with Kka's decision.
"Please don't feed us to the monsters." Cherry says. "If we had to fight it, it wouldn't do us or you any good."
Kka tries to make the worm and morlocks back off, but despite her stern words, the worm isn't swayed. Cherry Berry tries to be the good cop to Kka's intimidating cop, but it seems the scientist's mind is made up.
"I'm sorry, but I don't care much for such language. Despite my reservations, I think my colleagues are right and you'd make wonderful test subjects."
"Yesssssss," the two morlocks hiss as they adopt a combat-ready pose.
Kka
Lough
Kvit
Worm
Cherry Berry
Fuìn
Blue
Red
Kka, Lough, and Kvit are up!
When the worm decides to attack with his morlock minions, Kka smiles. "I guess you're not as smaart as I thought you were." She looks over at Kvit. "I don't suppose you haave another one of those Haste spells ready, do you?"
She then darts into the room after Lough, sneaks behind the worm and slices it twice.
Kvit sighs as the morlocks move to attack. He was sure they were done with them, though he couldn't say why. He nods to Kka, "Absolutely."
He grips his staff tightly and a surge of raw magic flows from it back into Kvit. He points the end at Kka and time begins to slow down for the rogue.
Lough prepares his shield and steps forward, slashing at the worm.
Kvit protects himself and gives Kka more Haste. She then jumps into action and stabs the worm in the behind. Her second attack misses, however.
Kka
Lough
Kvit
Worm, 19 damage, maybe 8 more
Cherry Berry
Fuìn
Blue
Red
Kka gives Kvit the thumbs up and uses her extra speed to slip back into the hallway and away from the worm. As she passes Lough again, she says, "Good luck with the worm, big maan. I'll send Fuìn out to help you with the other two."
Kka runs away from danger using Kvit's spell.
The worm scans the battlefield and seems to decide on something. It focuses for a moment, then everyone feels their mind growing blank.
Everyone within 20 feet of the worm, please make me a DC 21 Will save. If you fail, you're Confused for 1 round. If you succeed, you're immune for 1 minute.
Right now, the people who need to save are Lough, Kka, and Fuìn. The first person to fail the save, please open the spoiler.
If you move forwards into the aura the worm just activated (20 feet around him), please also make this save.
If Kka happens to be confused, attack Lough.
The worm then tries to bite Lough twice.
Lough absorbs some of the blow with his shield, but some of the worm's teeth sink into his flesh, and you feel something being injected into your bloodstream.
Lough, please make me a DC 21 Fortitude save versus poison!
Kka, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Lough 9 damage, shield 9 damage, DC 21 Fortitude save versus poison, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Kvit
Worm, 19 damage, 20 ft aura
Cherry Berry
Fuìn, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Blue
Red
Cherry Berry and Fuìn are up!
20 foot confusion aura around Worm is active.
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Being more or less in the camp of "no thoughts, head empty" pretty much all the time, Fuin barely even registers something tried to derp his brain.
Chain in hands, he cracks his knuckles and sets the heavy iron ball spinning as he strides around the corner, slowly working his way toward flanking territory. "I wonder what you look like on the inside, worm?" he croons as he sends the ball flying center-mass toward the creature.
♦ Stride 20 ft.
♦
♦ Cast shield.
If Yellow Strides/Casts a Spell:
If Yellow Attacks An Ally: Cast protector’s sacrifice.
If Fuìn Is Attacked: Shield Block (Hardness 10).
Lough fails to resist the worm's poison and it starts to affect him, clouding his mind as well as injuring him.
Lough is Stupefied 1, and takes poison damage.
Fuìn slams the meteor hammer into the worm's spongy flesh, but it seems to absorb part of the blow.
Kka, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Lough 15 damage, shield 9 damage, poisoned (stage 1, round 1), Stupefied 1
Kvit
Worm, 27 damage, 20 ft aura
Cherry Berry
Fuìn, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Blue
Red
Cherry Berry is up!
Cherry is going shock the worm and blue with Electric Arc, then Guidance KKa to hope they avoid the confusion.
♦♦
♦Guidance on Kka
The worm looks big and fat, but is surprisingly fast for its size. It dodges out of the way of most of Cherry Berry's attack, but still gets zapped. Cherry Berry then gives Kka some divine help.
Both morlocks aren't affected by the confusion aura the worm emits. They both move up close and personal to Lough and start clawing at the paranoid party member. Blue is completely ineffectual, but Red gets a good hit in.
Kka, DC 21 Will save versus confusion, Guidance
Lough 26 damage, shield 9 damage, poisoned (stage 1, round 1), Stupefied 1
Kvit
Worm, 34 damage, 20 ft aura
Cherry Berry
Fuìn, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Blue
Red
Kka, Lough, and Kvit are up!
Kka needs to make a save versus Confusion, and has Guidance afterwards.
If Kvit moves forward, he'll have to save as well.
Lough needs to make a DC 21 Fortitude save at the end of his turn for poison.
Knowing something about constructs, Kvit looks to remove one of the morlocks from the fight. Those cobbled arms are probably barely controlled. Let's see how it handled this...
He whispers to Kka nearby, "That one should be an easy target in a moment..." Then shield himself again, staying well out of the fighting directly.
Kvit raises a flimsy barrier of earth in front of him to provide temporary cover.
As Kvit is apparently hit by the devastating blow, a wooden double roughly the same shape and size as Kvit takes the brunt of it while Kvit ducks and steps out of the way.
Kvit casts a spell to hold Blue in place. As the spell tries to affect Blue, sparks start jumping around Blue form his metal frame and seem to interfere with the spell...
It seems to be enough interference that it stops the spell from working effectively.
Lough manages to score a big hit on the worm, and manages to revitalise himself through magic. He's still suffering from poison, though. The fog spreads through his mind and suddenly he can't hear anymore - he's deaf!
The worm is looking heavily damaged right now.
Kka, DC 21 Will save versus confusion, Guidance
Lough 31 damage, shield 9 damage, poisoned (stage 2, round 1), Stupefied 2, Deafened
Kvit
Worm, 60 damage, 20 ft aura
Cherry Berry
Fuìn, DC 21 Will save versus confusion
Blue, Stunned 1
Red
Kka is up!
Kka feels her mind beginning to blank out and...
...shakes her head to bring the scene back into focus. "Thaat was odd. You guys feel thaat too? I bet it's the worm playing tricks with our minds. Oh! Thanks for the boost Cherry."
When Kvit suggests that Kka attack one of the morlocks and then casts his spell to little apparent effect, she looks at him quizzically. "You sure about thaat?" But thinking that the wizard must know something she doesn't, she darts out and targets the same morlock for her strikes before returning.