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Rounding the corner you head further into the Worm's Lair. The rounded walls of this lofty chamber meet at a vaulted ceiling thirty feet high. Three statues of robed scholars stand at three ends of the room; one is toppled and broken into pieces. Several unusual images swim on the walls: market squares and city plazas throughout Galt, each with a sinister guillotine at its center. Tendrils of shimmering energy connect the images to each other.
The images show the several dozen final blades across Galt. The images are all psychic projections from the conqueror worm’s mind, as are the ephemeral psychic connections linking them together.
The massive worm’s telepathic voice rolls in overpowering waves. “Ah, too late. See here. Witness Galt’s first death throes.” One of the scenes shows a plaza packed with people despite a steady downpour. The worm makes a tugging motion on a shimmering tendril, and the guillotine in the plaza shudders. A huge spectral form begins clawing its way free of the guillotine as the townspeople scream and turn to flee before falling dead on the rain-soaked cobblestones. “I have an offer to make you, and I make it only once: name me one city in Galt to be spared and leave this place at once. The city you name shall be the sole survivor among all the settlements in this tiresome land.”
You realize that the town under attack is Halvon, more than a hundred miles away.
You realize that the worm expended a significant amount of the network’s psychic energy to make its ghastly demonstration and that it can’t trigger another attack until it completes its ritual. Second, the conqueror worm has no intention whatsoever of sparing any city in Galt.
"That town is Halvon, more than 100 miles from here."
“I have an offer to make you, and I make it only once: name me one city in Galt to be spared and leave this place at once. The city you name shall be the sole survivor among all the settlements in this tiresome land.”
Nah.
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Enraged the Conqueror Worm rises up to its full height as it initiats the assault.
The Conqueror Worm rages as twelve magical missile arc our from each of its small legs. The missiles spin through the air with the sound of ripping paper as they smash into Martius' side.
──────────
BOLD: GO!:
──────────
Conqueror Worm
➤ Amour
➤ Shard
➤ Miloban │
➤ Martius │
Shard will delay fro any buffage such as Haste.
Shard flies 10 feet up, and strikes at the worm from reach.
Frightened 2 on crit
Shadow Blending: Increase the DC of the flat check by 2.
2. If a creature attempts to Strike Shard, and he cannot use Shadow Blending:
Dodge Away: Shard gets +1 AC and Steps 10 feet if the attack misses (Feather Step). He will move back in a logical way in order to bait the creature into triggering an AOO if possible.
3. If a creature attempts to move through Shard's threatened range, and he hasn't used an AOO yet:
4. If a creature reaches him after he takes the AOO
Shard will use reactions 1 or 2 following the same logical order.
5. Else:
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Amour takes out that Aligned Oil (good) he purchased and applies it to Shard's Fauchard.
He then takes out a second Aligned Oil (good) that he also purchased.
Martius grunts as the missiles strike, he rushes into the room and sees plenty of space for a large spell. He beseeches Sheyln to unleash a burst of her power:
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Aour begins to pull out his collection of essential oils as he pours a particularly good smelling one onto a blade. Shard's fauchard slits through the air as it misses the worm and nearly flings from his open hands and into the shadows as he barely keeps his grip.
Miloban manages to hold his own composure in the presence of such a terrifying creature. Seems humans scare him more. Moving into the doorway he crushes powerful magic into the worm to try and implode it within itself.
The worm sustains some minor injuries as a small portion of its body crumples in on the side. Martius rushes in and sends a mighty sunburst into the body of the Conqueror Worm.
The flames burn away at the base of the worm as it melts a portion of its flesh to the rubble strewn ground. Martius feels something strong enter his mind as Shard strikes again as the spell goes off. "You will obey me." he oil on Shards fauchard seems to bee quite potent as it sears through the worm much easier.
──────────
BOLD: GO!:
──────────
Conqueror Worm
➤ Amour
➤ Shard
➤ Miloban │
➤ Martius │
Amour applies the aligned oil to his own weapon.
He then looks for an opening against this vile worm.
Instead, he moves into a flanking position and inspires his allies with his Heroic Presence with his final action.
"Attack the worm! Bring it down!"
My question is how this would interact with Dominate?
Frightened 2 on crit
Shard then casts Guidance on himself in case needs to make a save.
Shadow Blending: Increase the DC of the flat check by 2.
2. If a creature attempts to Strike Shard, and he cannot use Shadow Blending:
Dodge Away: Shard gets +1 AC and Steps 10 feet if the attack misses (Feather Step). He will move back in a logical way in order to bait the creature into triggering an AOO if possible.
3. If a creature attempts to move through Shard's threatened range, and he hasn't used an AOO yet:
[ooc]Frightened 2 on crit
4. If a creature reaches him after he takes the AOO
Shard will use reactions 1 or 2 following the same logical order.
5. Else:
Martius succumbs instantly....
Bolstered by his victory, he lays into the creature.
"Our path has led us here to usher your demise. Despair and behold our righteousness!"
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Amour gives the group a bit of unshakeable conviction as Shard's guisarme does some devastating damage to the Worm.
Martius battle prayer seeps into the open wounds as it has lingering effects on the Worm's mind.
──────────
BOLD: GO!:
──────────
Conqueror Worm │
Amour │
Shard │
➤ Miloban │
Martius │
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The fireball hits dead center as it burns across the large surface area of the worm. Gravely injured the Worm rears back and bites down over Shard, completely engulfing the warrior.
+ Improved Grab
The worm's mouth comes up for air and Shard is nowhere in sight as the Conqueror Worm swallows him whole.
──────────
BOLD: GO!:
──────────
Conqueror Worm │
➤ Amour │
➤ Shard │
➤ Miloban │
➤ Martius │
Shard desperately tries to escape by cutting his way out.
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"It's ok! We have a man on the inside!"
Amour tries to help his odds by Feinting against the creature.
He then slashes the creature.
Attack=12+31=43 possibly vs flat footed if feint succeeded.
Plus weakness to good and 1d6 bleed.
With his final action, Amour casts Shield and prepares to block the next attack against him.
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Amour shields himself as he fails to deceive the massive worm nor hit it with his blade. Shard draws his starknife and tries to slice his way free from the creature's acidic belly mucus as the muscles all around him begin to tighten. Shard doesn't have much room to move as he cant quite get his starknife into position enough to rupture the belly.
A large ball of electricity sparks and arcs to the side as it misses the Conqueror Worm. Some of the stray bolts manages to still burn the side.
Martius points his hand at the Worm and issues forth a word of slaying. The worm's heart inside begins to cramp and feel immense pain as it shudders.
"You feel you can slay me wyrmling?" The Conqueror Worm speaks within Martius mind, though it is beginning to sound quite strained. "Witness as I kill all of your companions first."
+ Improved Grab
The worm slams down into Amour. The creature's mouth wrapping around the top half of his body as it slurps him down to join SHard in the large belly.
──────────
BOLD: GO!:
──────────
Conqueror Worm │
➤ Amour │
➤ Shard │
➤ Miloban │
➤ Martius │
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Shard isn't able to get free as Miloban's lightning storm keeps sparking on the fringes of the Worm's space as small jolts shimmer across the top of its body. Shard's skin begins to burn as the stomach acid seeps into his armor.
──────────
BOLD: GO!:
──────────
Conqueror Worm │
➤ Amour │
Shard │
Miloban │
➤ Martius │
Amour tries to pull out a potion of Healing (Greater).
And feeds it to Shard
"Hear me worm and DESPAIR!" Martius moves away from Milo, then gives a blood curdling scream that bends and twists the air.
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Amour feeds a potion to Shard the fighter slowly begins to slip towards an opening.
Martius' scream puts the Conqueror Worm over the edge as it shudders in pain. The scream jumbles its mind and turns it to mush instantly breaking any mental connections it had with Keznin and others in life. The muscles in its body relax instantly upon death as Shard, having been turned all around inside the Worm, finds that he was crawling towards the wrong end and pulls himself free from the Conqueror Worm's tail end as Amour still struggles within.
The group surrounds the dead Worm and start slitting it open until a sticky Amour rolls out onto the ground breathing heavily.
Getting a moment to look around and make sure you are all still alive you take a look around the room. The base of the toppled statue has a niche that contains an ornte magical gemstone known as a third eye.
To the south stands a smaller room. Several large wooden tables stand against the walls of this room. Underneath each table are several flat sheets of sharpened metal: guillotine blades.
In this room, the conqueror worm and the worm prophets enchant the sharpened metal used in the creation of the final blades. Enchanting a blade takes months of laborious effort and expensive reagents. The process isn’t finished until the worm prophets deliver the new blade to a director general, who oversees placing it into a wooden frame to create a new final blade. The specifics of the ritual are hinted at in notes on the table, but new final blades can’t be made without the conqueror worm’s specific knowledge. Fortunately, the notes hint at a way to undo the enchantment.
"Oh gods, some of it got in my mouth! Let me have a look at these notes..."
"Ah I see what we have to do..."
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Miloban has to turn away, gagging, as Shard wiggles out of the worm's... tail end.
"That's exactly how I will always remember you."
When Amour rolls out of the worm's belly, Miloban says,
"Please tell me someone can cast prestidigitation. Heightened, no doubt."
He takes a look at the notes, but can't immediately understand them unfortunately.
Martius rushes forward to rescue his two friends, "Come on! Be alive! Be alive!"
Once everyone is free and the stomach acid is scraped off, Martius heals the party. "Come now, let us see if we can undo this insanity.... permanently."
Upon uncovering the ritual, Martius is hopeful but baffled, "YES! I have NO idea how to do it, but I think we've done it. I think we really can end this."
Miloban has to turn away, gagging, as Shard wiggles out of the worm's... tail end.
"That's exactly how I will always remember you."
Shard smiles at Miloban. Oh. You were here and not running away?
He's relieved to have bested the worm, whether with or without dignity, and grateful for whatever heightened prestidigitations he can get.
Do we have powdered Mithral and grave dirt?
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The reagents here include 25,000 gp of rare oils and onyx gems. Although these reagents were set aside to create the final blades, they serve equally well to meet the cost of the blunt the final blade ritual.
With the defeat of the Conqueror Worm this renders the Gray Gardeners not only leaderless, but without the network of psychic manipulation that allowed their order to thrive. The survivors scatter and look to their own fates, leaving Galt behind for good.
Your victory isn’t without cost as the town of Halvon no longer exists. Many dignitaries from across Galt were slain during the masquerade, and the resulting confusion and power vacuums continue to prompt cutthroat intrigue as the nation stabilizes again. Camilia Drannoch leads this stabilization, and she makes no secret of the fact that each of you are the ones responsible for saving Galt. Public holidays and events honoring the your service spring up across the nation for quite some time, or at least until the next major revolution.
The greater service to Galt was finding and making use of the blunt the final blade ritual. While you yourselves may not be able to complete the ritual it is passed and shared across the vast network. Many people believe that souls of the beheaded are trapped within the final blades, but once they see the ritual in action, they realize the malign truth of the rumor. Every final blade destroyed is one step closer to safety and peace of mind for the people of Galt.