Gheorix continues his battle chant, stabbing with the spear continually forward while the spirts of his ancestors continue their own assault. How many of them can we make die?...
Sigrid steps back 5 feet and opens on the Kobold leader from her rifle.
Maybe the yield once their leaders are taken out, Ran does not favor mass murder
Agripos leaps down easily and finishes off the kobold in the corner just after it rises from where it was cowering. Gheorix's ancestral attacks levels yet another kobold and Sigrid tags the chief with a shot from her gun. The Shaman bangs on something like a tambourine and points his staff at Agripos. In broken common he says, "Our chief has ordered retreat. You wish us to flee, let us. We go guard our females and whelps."
The Shaman cries out in kobold and opens a stone door hidden in the wall behind him. The other kobolds file up the east stairwell. They cautiously run past Alejandro and through the door.
Round 7
Agripos 72/73 atk
Alejandro 23/55 <<<
Sigrid 47/57 atk
Gheorix 51/62 atk
Kobolds blessed
Sigrid nods and not longer aims at a Kobold.
You have fought bravely and may retreat She says with some visible relief.
:(
Alejandro winces as the stones rain over him, but his attention is wrenched towards the shaman, and his assault halts.
"Go!" calls out Agripos. "No more fighting."
He's not sure how much the shaman understood, but he holds back on further attacks to make it clear that he was accepting the offer of retreat.
All of the kobolds follow their chief's directions and hustle up the steps, past Alejandro and through the revealed door. After a couple of minutes, the team is left alone in the large room.
Gheorix, breathing hard, looks around at the slain kobolds on the ground. Senseless, they should have just let us pass. Let's hope they don't come back with larger numbers against us again. he says with a sadness in his voice.
Praise Ran they saw reason, I hate slaughter.
Ran, vergib mir für die Leben die ich nahm,
vergib mir für die Türen die ich schloss,
und die Möglichkeiten die unmöglich geworden sind.
Ich bitte dich, gewähre denen deren Leben durch meine Hand genommen wurde Einlass in deine Hallen, so sie dies wünschen,
oder schmuggele Sie dorthin wohin sie wollen.
She kneels in prayer, saying something in Germanic.
Sigrid channels to heal the party. Should any Kobolds rise she motions them to the door through which their comrades retreated.
She then casts protection from evil communual on the party and makes ready to open the ddoor unless stopped.
You can almost sense that she takes the front as penance, in a way.
Amazingly, two kobolds recover enough to come to consciousness. They stand and run when directed. They leave the door open.
Condition
Agripos 73/73
Alejandro 32/55
Sigrid 56/57
Gheorix 60/62
Alejandro shakes his head to clear it, then returns down the stairs to join the others.
"We should press on. The dragon probably already knows we're coming, but if we hang around the kobolds may decide they want to fighting."
Beyond the door you can only hear the wailing and yipping of the kobolds.
"We need to get you healed up, Alejandro." He prays to Athena to deliver healing.
"The key is to make sure the dragon can't get airborne. Let's go!"
"Thanks" Alejandro says to Agripos, as his wounds heal.
"If we catch any more kobolds, someone ask them which way to go."
After the healing the team moves in past the secret door. Straight ahead they see a pair of kobold guards across a 'T' intersection in the hall. They are guarding what appears to be a very crowded room. One of them merely points down the perpendicular hall.
Updated the map
Agripos nods in acknowledgement of the kobolds and their guidance. Not entirely trusting them, he remains wary of possible traps along their path as he turns the corner.
Agripos turns the corner and finds himself at the end of a thirty foot hall with four doors equidistant from one another. The hall ends in a room with what looks like a hole in the floor with a raised lip.
Agripos waves the party forward to indicate the path is clear. Continuing onward, he decides to bypass the doors for now and see what's going on with the hole in the floor.
Alejandro follows, watching the kobolds warily. He also cautiously peers down the hole in the floor.
(+2 more vs traps)
Gheorix scans the perimeter while the others look at the hole in the floor. Half expecting things to jump out of the doors, but then he relaxes when he remembers they are hunting a dragon, who isn't likely to pop out of a door...
Condensation hangs on the walls of this room. Mold grows unfettered so that it covers most surfaces. A large well sits in the middle of the room but no means of drawing water is visible. Agripos and Lejandro can see another room below this one about twenty feet down. It has a pool of water centered below well opening. It's obvious they cannot see the whole room as the north and south parts of the lower room are lost to angles.
(map updated. South of your location I have opened the map to reveal a blue pool.
"Looks like we're going down." Alejandro says. He grabs a rope from his pack and looks around for something to fasten it to.
Alejandro looks around and he sees a few options; if he can find a grappling hook he could secure it to the lip of the hole, with a piton he could hammer it in between a couple of flagstones and secure it there, or he could run it down the hall and secure the rope to one of the doors.
Bit of luck for you! (roll twice within the next round)
Sigrid gently touches Alejandros shoulder.
Gheorix fishes around in his pack, withdrawing a piton and offering it to Alejandro. Might help us get down there.
Alejandro gets the piton anchored and ties off the rope. He then drops an end down to the pool below. The drop is about 20' and the rope hangs at the edge of the lower pool.
After testing the rope, Alejandro climbs down just below the lip of the room and looks around to check that the coast is clear.
He then skilfully shimmies further down the rope to the floor beneath.
Gheorix motions for Sigrid and Agripos to head down before him, knowing he's the loudest member of the party, he waits patiently, and once they have descended, he'll take his turn.
Alejandro determines the coast is clear. the four corners of the room are piled with treasure but no dragon. As soon as he steps foot on the floor, a black dragon the size of a pony comes surging up out of the water to bite Alejandro but it catches its back leg on the edge of the pool throwing its bite off.
"Ahhh!" Alejandro cries out as the dragon's teeth narrowly miss his leg. He hurriedly draws his sword and stabs wildly at the dragon.
Alejandro, Ar do ordú beidh mé soinneáin do sheasamh le pléasctha de radiance
She speaks in the language of the Kelts, and hopes to give her ally room to close his eyes before her blast strikes
On your command I will blast your position with a burst of radiance
Gheorix hears Sigrid's instructions, and instead of launching himself over the barrier and down, he yells For Atlantis! drawing his doru, and taking his position to jump down and beginning his warchant!
.
Agripos finds it hard to believe this rather small dragon is their true foe. Regardless, he heads down and attempts to dropkick the beast!
;
Alejandro hits the beast and then Agripos drops from above to smack it as well. When he hits the water he finds it is not shallow and he sinks about half as far as he fell (10' under water).
Round 1
Sigrid <<<
Round 2
Dragon -27
Agripos 73/73
Alejandro 32/55
Sigrid 56/57
Gheorix 60/62
[spoiler=DM ROLLS]
Sigrid aims the burst hoping to hit the dragon and not hit Alejandro, or any other ally
DC 16 reflex save or blinded for turns
The dragon roars, squeezing its eyes shut and shaking its head after the radiance hits. Then it plunges into the water behind Agripos. (AOO Alejandro) As it comes even of him it unleashes blast of its breath that churns the water and envelopes Agripos (REF DC 17 or take 25 acid dmg).
Round 2
Dragon -37, blinded 2 rds
Agripos 73/73
Alejandro 32/55
Sigrid 56/57
Gheorix 60/62
Agripos manages to avoid the worst of the acidic water.
Surprised to be fighting in aquatic terrain, he quickly swims into a good position for his spear, thankful that his foe was blinded.
;
;
Gheorix drops down from the balcony, landing next to Alejandro while continuing his battlesong!
Once landed, he lays a hand on Alejandro, and casts Heroism
+ 3 bleed + bewildered (-2AC, extra -2 vs me)
Alejandro raises his sword to shield his eyes as the blast hits, then quickly slashes the dragons side as it turns to flee.
Seeing Agripos in the water and with Gheorix's spell spurring him on, Alejandro takes a breath and dives into the water to attack it again.
+ 3 bleed + bewildered (-2AC, extra -2AC vs me)
Sigrid lays down covering fire, being out of burst of radiance she prefer to keep the parties retreat open.
Alejandro gives the dragon a nasty stab as it turns to dive into the water. Then after it uses its breath weapon Agripos jabs the dragon with his longspear filling the water with blood. Finally, Alejandro leaps in to attack the dragon and deftly stabs it yet again. With a massive whip of its tail, the dragon dives deeper and away from the two combatants. The dragon disappears from even their enhanced vision.
Round 3
Dragon -99, blinded 1 rds; swam away
Agripos 61/73
Alejandro 52/55 heroism
Sigrid 56/57
Gheorix 60/62
Alejandro looks around, but can't see it to follow. He swims back to the surface, ready to strike again if it returns.
Gheorix stops singing, conserving his quickly dwindling rage powers. We should get out of the water! he cries, trying to get the others back onto dry land where their combat will be more effective. He takes a fully defensive posture at the lip of the pool, waiting for the dragon to resurface.
Everyone forms up in the lower part of the well except Sigrid who maintains the anchor above. Treasures are piled in the corners, not a vast horde but the beginning collection of a very young dragon. Prepared for follow on combat, you wait but nothing comes. Apparently the dragon’s beating was sufficient to drive it away.
Knowing that pursuit would be hopeless, Agripos resurfaces, deciding after some time to give up the quest. [b]"Guess we can't claim the reward for defeating the dragon. But this horde is quite the consolation prize!"['/b]