GM Imperius' Skull & Shackles

Game Master bluedove

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 13 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 13 + 2 = 20

"So, huh, anyone else get the feeling the spider thing doesn't really like her 'mistress'? It kinda felt like she was hoping we would refuse and kill her."

"Hmmm, interesting. She's supposedly still here, watching us. Might be worthwhile to have another talk with her, then, without her mistress present.

As they get to the cellar, Veronica inspects the room for magical auras. "Yeah, cool, and magical too. The walls and floor are all glowing with some kind of magical aura, which seems to come from them. As well as something in the middle pillar, too."

Sorry, I guess you were waiting on me

As Veronica studies the pillar she realizes the magical aura is conjuration and the stones seem to have some sort of enchantment.

"Can you figure out more specifically what the stones do? Are they a trap?"

The priest has little training in this area and so does not normally prepare Detect Magic.

As high as Veronica's spellcraft is, I'm happy to give information on the stones.

Double checking the pillar using his invisibility purge, mac finds nothing out of the ordinary. Though the pillar gives no more useful information Veronica is able to 'sort out' the purpose of the stone.

The quartz crystals on the walls and floor contain recorded memories of sojourns into the Dimension of Dreams. Many of the stones shook loose from the walls, ruining the meticulous cataloging of each experience. Anyone casting detect thoughts or similar magic can read the memories contained in them, but they are a disordered, confusing jumble of images and impressions, mostly meaningless to anyone who did not experience the events directly.

Tucci is fascinated by what Veronica discovers. "That's so cool! I hadn't thought such magics were possible. Think of the magical prowess of these people. I wonder what might lie in the vault?" He licks his lips, not so much at the raw wealth, but at the oddities they might find too.

When the others are done investigating, he'll head down to the vault with Kasin in the lead. He'll have a light spell going on the tip of his pike to help illuminate his investigation once he gets there.

Perception: 1d20 + 24 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 24 + 2 = 45 (hope)
Survival, tracking: 1d20 + 25 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 25 + 2 = 35 (hope)

As Tucci leads the way down the narrow corridor, at the end of which he finds a door. As he opens the door he finds a narrow long room, with a shallow ceiling 6 ft with a door on the other end.

B 31 Vault
A variety of small chests, crates, and sacks fill this small room. A corpse lies on the floor among the containers.

Once again, please keep your actions to about one round.

"It's pretty interesting, I'll admit, even though I'm not as familiar with all this dream and thought stuff. You do raise a good point about the magical prowess of whomever did this. Something to keep in mind, assuming it was Bikendi, since there's a good chance we'll be going against him in the future."

When they reach the vault, she narrows her eyes at the corpse on the floor, and then scans the rest of the room carefully, with her Blackblade in hand.

"I don't think someone just decided to stash this body here for no reason. If I had to guess, I probably say it's someone who found the vault, and got out careless as they reached for the treasure. Be careful, see if you can spot some trap or the like in the room."

Perception: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (1) + 17 = 18

Tucci enters carefully, following Kasin. It looks like a nice haul - depending on what’s in the packages. But there’s a dead body too, and that makes things uneasy for everyone.

He’ll see if he can help diagnose the cause of death.
Heal: 1d20 + 8 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 8 + 2 = 22 (hope)

Kasin will sniff at the body to see if it’s undead and about to rise up and greet us.

I had rolls for this chamber in my last post. Let me know first you want fresh rolls.

As Tucci turns the body over to see if he can tell how long the Garundi man has been dead, a ghost rises from the floor beneath. "Most would fear to manhandle the body of Bikendi Otongu."

He turns towards Veronica, "Well done deciphering the magics in the crystals and my presence in the pillar. I hoped I would find a better practitioner than my student Ederleigh."

Gesturing towards the door, "Having no doubt you would find this place, I followed you here away from the prying eyes of the blasted phase spider. Does the hag still lurk about?"

His single eye twinkles in the dark, "May I assume you are pirates like myself?"

Brother MacLaren is wary of the undead.
Does he know anything about ghosts?

Knowledge (Religion), Good Hope: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 4 + 2 = 7
No, he does not.

He waits and listens.

Knowledge Religion: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 4 + 2 = 13 (hope)

Tucci too knows nothing much. Seems a friendly sort though - more friendly then the hag anyway. But he should be freed from his undeath!

He turns to Veronica and passes her a hidden message, "He's undead, but friendly. We should learn what we can before sending him off to Pharasma's boneyard where he should be!"

He waits to see how Veronica enjoins this pirate.

Knowledge (religion)(good hope): 1d20 + 5 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 5 + 2 = 9

Veronica gives Tucci a subtle nod.

"Yeah, let's see where this conversation leads before deciding how to handle him. Seems friendlier than the hag, at least."

She then turns to face the ghostly pirate with a grin. "Heh, I guess I was wrong about the body not having been purposely stashed here, then. So, from your comment about your student and those crystals back there... Can I assume you're the man himself?" She casually gestures to the body on the floor. "If so, that was faster than I thought it would take." She says with a chuckle. "As for your questions... If you've been watching us, I'm pretty sure you know the answers to them, already." She shrugs as she continues. "Don't see much of a reason to deny us being pirates - I mean, it should be pretty obvious by now. And about the hag, can't tell you for sure - she did say she was leaving after we had a little talk upstairs, and trusted the spider to watch over us. Up to you to decide how trustworthy her words are."

"Now, I have some questions of my own. The most pressing one being what you expect to get from us. You wouldn't have revealed yourself if you didn't need something, and you did say you were hoping to find someone more skilled than your student."

The ghost nods at Veronica, "Of course Captain, you are right." Not sure what you know or don't know, he starts from the beginning. "I am both pirate and wizard, using the wealth I'd gained to learn how to extend my life into immortality. Not having a taste for necromancy I found that I could obtain a different sort using immortality using a stone similar to that of a night hag. I began searching for such a stone and learned the ancient Ghol-Gan had used such stones. That is what brought me to this place. The modern cyclops are descendants of that race and they still guard the ancient city, Sumitha." He smiles. "I was able to sneak invisibly into the city and steal their most valued gems."

"Having acquired the gem I needed, I knew I would need the help of a night hag to finish the stones transformation int a vessel for my soul." He gestures the general direction of the ceiling. "I hired a hag named Lodhotha to help me." shaking his head. "After working with her I determined she would double cross me for the stone. So, when the spell was ready, I killed her." He shrugs, again gesturing towards the ceiling. "Her sister Haetanga, has sent minions to find me. She claims it's to get revenge for her sister, but more important, she desires the stone."

He looks back toward the captain and his officers. "Which brings me to my present problem. While I was doing the spell to transfer my soul to the stone, the barbaric cyclops' attacked; throwing off my spell, Killing my crew, ruining my dream crystals and taking the 'Dream Stone.' In the aftermath I remain a disembodied soul, a ghost if you will. My incompetent assistant has abandoned me and become victim to the hags minions. I need someone to retrieve the 'Dream Stone' and aid me in finishing the spell."

He begins to move through the boxes, gesturing towards the boxes, crates and chests."Now, any pirate worth their salt should asks, ''What's in it for me?' You would have already assumed that all the wealth here in our hidden chamber is yours. And you would be right." He turns, smiling at the officers. "But I have a second chamber, that you will not be able to find without my directions, with even more wealth which I will reveal if you help me."

Something I forgot, Tucci as you looked at the body there are no marks or maladies. You've no idea why the person is dead. It's as if the soul left and couldn't return. Yep all that from a quick heal check, honest.

"How did you die?"

Tucci is interested in this man's story and plan for immortality... though why someone would put off heaven is anyone's guess. Still, he can't help but wonder at the body while the captain considers her response.

Turning his head the 'ghost' looks towards the halfling, "I did not die, I failed to place my soul in the 'Dream Stone.' Once the spell failed, I was not able to return to my body."

Sense Motive, Good Hope: 1d20 + 8 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 8 + 2 = 21

"You seem more honest than the hag, at any rate.
If you finish the spell, do you believe you will be returned to your body and return to the land of the living?"

The ghost smiles, "No, if I finish the spell, my soul will slip into the dreamlands and I will dwell there forever." He spreads his hands, assuming you are greedy pirates as he was. "And all this and more will be yours."

Oh. He's even crazier than I thought. Not even here, but dreamland? That fuzzy stuff? No thank you.

Tucci opens his mouth to speak a couple of times, but manages to say nothing.

"Heh, it's definitely a more interesting offer than we got from the hag upstairs." Veronica replies with a grin "I do have some extra questions, though. The hag's pet spider mentioned the fort is haunted. Which, well, it obviously is." She gestures to Bikendi's ghostly form. "But she also said the ghosts of your crew linger here as well. We were wanting to claim this island for ourselves, and you can imagine how having a ghost crew haunting one of the most obvious base of operations on the island is... Less than ideal. Any idea on how we might put them to rest?"

"And I'm curious about this Dreamstone of yours. I can see why you need it, and with it being one of their more precious stones, I can understand the cyclops trying to recover it. But I don't get the hags' interest on it. You said Lodhotha was about to betray you for it, and Haetanga wants it as well."

Raising an eyebrow as Veronica explains they'd communicated with the hag, Bikendi offers, "Sadly, the phase spider is not wrong. Those who died fighting while the spell was being cast are caught in the same cycle every night. When the spell is completed they shall dissipate."

He lifts his hands in a shrug, "As I said I patterned the dream stone partially after the Night Hags Heartstone. While similar it is more powerful. It would allow the hag who possessed it to walk the dreams of all, not just the chaotic or evil. It would make that hag more powerful than her sisters."

He smiles, "Once I finish the spell and move to the Dimension of Dreams the dreamstone will lose its power and become inert. Haetanga desperately wants to prevent that."

Do you think the hag and the phase spider can still see or hear us? I think we must either break Veronica's agreement with the hag, or else fulfill it in only the most technical of ways, such as handing over a powerless stone and a lifeless corpse. I swore no oaths so I do not have a problem with that.

"Can the spider 'watch' us through the ether? Creepy." Tucci shares via their hidden communication.

"I like the pirate much more than the hag. Just didn't think we'd be the ones to break the truce. Figured she'd do it. Should we tell her we're not helping her? I figure next time we see her. She'll probably fly into a rage and attack, and I'm OK with that as well." He grins.

"So, where's your dreamstone?" he asks the ghost, hoping he hasn't already answered...

He looks back toward the captain and his officers. "Which brings me to my present problem... the barbaric cyclops' attacked...taking the 'Dream Stone.'..."

The ghost turns and looks at the halfling. "I would assume it is in Sumitha."

"Yeah, I think backing out of our agreement with the hag works best. Helping Bikendi solves the haunted fort issue, gets us some more treasure, and we don't give the hag the ability to just go and invade people's dreams. Seems like a win all around. And if Eric's hunch about the spider is right, she might even help us get rid of her mistress, too. I do like Mac's suggestion with the body and the stone, though. Maybe we can try that. Mostly to see how she reacts."

She looks to the ghost and nods with a smile. "Well, Captain, I have to say your offer is quite interesting, on several levels. I won't say no to more treasure, and there's definitely some overlap in our goals. Plus, I didn't really feel like doing that hag's dirty work for her. So I say you've got yourself a deal."

"Seems like we're going to Sumitha next, then. Aside from sneaking in invisibly being a viable option, is there anything else you could share from your previous trip there, that might help us? And, well, knowing where it is would be nice, too."

Tucci tries to lend some context to the location of the city of Sumitha.
Knowledge Geography: 1d20 + 12 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 12 + 2 = 19 (hope)

Tucci, the information you would have gotten about the island before you left is it.

As the Captain agrees to Bikendi's requests, he gestures towards the items in the room, "Feel free to consider all of this as a downpayment of our arrangement."

"What can you tell us about cyclops?"

Would that be Knowledge (Local) since giants are usually Humanoids?
Knowledge (Local), Good Hope: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 4 + 2 = 22

Mac himself may know a fair amount about cyclops. Probably not as much as a wizard, though.

Shrugging, the ghost tells the cleric, "Compared to the ancient Ghol-Gan they are feral and consider this Island theirs. They are the ones responsible for the damage done to the fort. I would think that as soon as they learn you are here, they will attack."

"Any idea how many they are?" Tucci asks, though he feels ready to take them on! You know, as long as there aren't too many...

The ghost blinks a couple of times, wondering what they are hoping for. Sighing he shakes his head. "No idea we went at night and I sent my assistant Ederleigh in, he has some skills as a thief. If you find him, he may be able to give you more details."

Veronica sighs. "I'm thinking we've met him already. If I'm right... His mind... Is not really in any state to enable him to tell us anything useful. Although... He did seem somewhat fixated on dreams, so maybe you'd know what might be going on with him and how to heal him."

"If not, then I guess there's not really much more we can learn about the place and its inhabitants. Guess we should finish our explorations of the fort for today, and then prepare to set out to look for Sumitha tomorrow."

"When we get the stone, what do you want us to do with it? Just bring it back here to this vault?"

Cocking his head, Bikendi seems to be thinking for a moment. Eventually shaking his head. "No, when he went running from the chambers, he seemed of sound mind and body." He gestures towards the entrance, asking, "I know the spider lurks about, have you met any other creatures that may have affected his dreams?"

Nodding in agreement with Veronica's assessment, "Yes, when you find the stone bring it here." he gestures the other direction, "If you use the other door, you'll find yourself in the basement of the garrison and avoiding the prying eyes of the hags servant."

"Animate dreams, I think they were. Dangerous creatures. They must have affected Ederleigh. I can possibly find a way to cure him."

Teleport to Port Peril, pick up a scroll of Heal, and Teleport back the next day. If it were really urgent I'd do it, but probably better to just move on to Sumitha and heal Ederleigh later.

"Yeah, we should definitely remove the insanity from his mind. No one should live like that. But let's wait until after we're sure the dreams/hag/phase spiders won't return to trouble him." Tucci grins at the sheer power Brother MacLaren brings to bear.

He'll move to the next door (after the loot is collected) and prepare to go through when the party is ready. "Let's check out the basement!"

Veronica nods. "Let's go, then. I think that only leaves the battlements to explore afterwards, before we're done with the fort, right?"

As the officers of the 'Charm' move through the obvious door, they realize the other side is quite well hidden. Stepping through the find:

B28. GARRISON BASEMENT
This basement was dug beneath the garrison as a small prison to house troublemakers. The keys to the adjoining cells (area B29) hang
on the eastern wall.

B29. PRISON CELLS
The fort's prison holds three cells, each with a door of iron bars inside a wooden frame (hardness 10, hp 30, Break DC 20).

If you decide to investigate the towers and platforms
B3. GUARD TOwERS
This large tower has an unfinished ground floor of damp earth with piles of flagstones shoring up each corner. A single ladder leads to a wooden floor above, supported by irregularly shaped wooden beams.

B4 OBSERVATION PLATFORMS
The battlements open onto a wooden platform here, providing a clear view of the jungle to the west. Three barrels stand on the plank floor next to the far wall, alongside the skeletal remains of several figures, each skewered by spear-sized bolts.

Thought I posted this earlier, but apparently not.
Tucci will take the scroll of control water and, if no one is opposed, the gloves of swimming and climbing - though he might return those later. For him they’re just +5 climb since they don’t stack with other bonuses he has. ”Great bag! We can carry the parties loot in there between towns. That’s genius!” He’ll stuff the loot in the bag of holding - being careful with the pointy bits so they don’t tear the bag in any way.

Later…
While they’re on the top of the tallest tower, and they’ve searched everything that can be searched, Tucci will look outward with his spyglass. He’s not looking for anything in particular, just getting the view from here and maybe the lay of the nearby land.
Perception: 1d20 + 24 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 24 + 2 = 28 (hope)

When he’s had his fill, he suggests, ”Captain, it’s not even lunch yet and I have plenty of spells. I’m itching to search the island if we can yet today. We’ve checked out the beach area, and the fort area. I suggest we head inland and spend the afternoon searching about. I suspect I can find a trail or two for us to follow, if there are any. We might find something of interest, and at least we need to see what we own now huh?”

Tucci imagines a thriving, if small, community here. A handful of farming families, a herder or two, and a fort full of pirates. He grins and blurts out, "What kind of food should we grow here - by which I mean fauna. Goats do you think?"

As Tucci views the island from the tower he is able to see many things.

the far western bay, in which appears to be some sort of docks or possibly a vessle K.

The southeastern peninsula covered in jungle surrounding a hill with unusually tall palm trees M.

In the southwestern peninsula there is a tall rocky plateau that he cannot see the top of C North of which there is a lake and open grazing area D

The great plateau to the north is too high to see over, but two things stand out. He can see the top of a tower perched on the far western cliffs F. But of more interest are the giant stairs just north of the open pasture lands.

E. GIANT STAIRS
Huge stone steps rise along this five-hundred-foot high plateau, each one carved to accommodate giant sized strides.

Edit: The yellow/green area's like J are mangrove swamps

"That elven chain would be ideal for Eric, would it not?"
Unlike regular mithral chain, it counts as light armor for all purposes, including proficiency and bard casting ability.

"I'd be happy to explore more. See what grows here that would be useful for brewing, for example. I intend to spend a fair amount of my time at Tidewater Rock, but if I study this land in detail I should be able to Teleport with good accuracy."

”Boy, oh boy! This place is huge!” Tucci exclaims excitedly. Lots of work though, to clear and subdue it before the party. And less time than it seems really. They’re going to have to get busy.

He listens to Brother MacLaren's future plans, and wonders himself if he'll stay here on the island or move about. The future is unclear to him, he tends to be more focused on the present and immediate future.

He suggests heading up the ridge (near ‘C’), looping around the river, or fording it if possible, then descending toward ‘E’, more or less passing ‘D’. Mostly he wants to get a higher view and then head toward the roadway - assuming that’s where they’ll find the locals.

If folks don’t want to climb, they can take the ships boat over the river-y bit and head more directly toward ‘E’. He's not to worried about the climb between the captain's flight and his own Rope of Climbing (link).

D. DINOSAUR CORRAL
A giant-sized corral sits on the eastern shore of a large lake. Several of the corral's beams, each one the size of an entire tree, lie broken and smashed on the ground. Massive footprints from some heavy beast have long since dried in the muddy pasture.

As you move past the grazing area you notice two large reptiles on the far side of what seems to be a dilapidated corral. These beast’s armored heads have three sharp horns decorating their faces and a large round crest angling back over their necks from their skulls.

Climb checks are not required to scale the giant steps, but any Medium creature climbing the steps must succeed at a DC 15 Fortitude save or be fatigued when it reaches the top.

Knowledge Nature: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19 vs DC 18

"Holy cow - those are triceratops! Very ancient, very tough, and very short-tempered. Maybe we avoid them for now? If we're going to keep goats, we'll have to deal with them eventually of course."

Assuming they're ignored for now...
Tucci climbs, using the rope when he can for ease, but otherwise doing the best he can.

Tucci Fort: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (14) + 10 = 24 vs DC 15 for no fatigue
Kasin Fort: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (14) + 9 = 23 vs DC 15 for no fatigue

At the top, he looks out over the plain, "That was bracing!" He looks to see if the others are OK and checks the position of the sun.

"Are they plant-eaters? Like larger ill-tempered cattle? Or would they see us as prey?
Do you think the Cyclops have trained them as beasts of war?"

"Uh, Tucci... do you think the giant stairs head to the Cyclops city of Sumitha? I thought we were going to do that tomorrow. I prepared today to battle ghosts and spirits, not giants."

Not sure we want to press on up the stairs.

I was thinking we do the stairs now and then camp so if we are fatigued it's no big deal. But Tucci's zeal doesn't have to push us if you're worried about a battle at the summit.

"They eat plants I think, but they're ornery so they might charge just to shift us from their grazing lands. So not prey exactly, but still dangerous. Oh! I dunno if they could be trained as beasts of war! Maybe?"

"Don't see much of a reason to fight those things now, especially if there's a chance they're combat trained. And I agree with Mac, those steps could easily lead to the cyclopean city, and it's probably best if we come prepared for that. Eric, can you make me invisible for a bit? I'll fly up there, see what's at the top, and come back, and we'll decide what to do then."

How much much time would going up the steps take, assuming a 60ft fly speed? I should be able to fly for 7 minutes, I think, would that be enough?

As Veronica flies aloft, she sees an ancient road running from the stairs, ending at another ancient road which moves east and west. On the far west side is a Giant Tower. To the east the road seems to go down to the sea, after crossing a great stone bridge. The road itself passes through a mountain plateau, obscuring it from view for a mile or so. To the north of the bridge, another plateau rises.

F. LOOKOUT POINT
A tall stone tower topped with battlements rises along the cliffs here. Two eyeless cyclops statues rise above these defenses, gazing sightlessly over the western sea. Above them, the spire continues upward, tapering into a giant crystal shard of pink quartz. At ground level, immense double doors, decorated in ancient glyphs, form the tower's only entrance.

H. GREAT STONE BRIDGE
Ancient carvings decorate this large stone bridge, which crosses a swift river flowing from the mountain to the north. A pair of statues of cyclops warriors stands at each end, with massive, fiery gemstones representing their singular, unblinking eyes. The statues to the east hold giant swords above their heads in a guardian pose, while those to the west point their blades toward the ground, heads bowed in reverence.

I. MOUNTAIN AERIE
Progressively higher hills lead into this mountain, which provides a commanding view of the island's northeast coastline. Gullies from the runoff of tropical rainstorms form navigable pathways up the sides of the peak.

Veronica moves back to the group and tells them what she saw.

"So, no city atop the stairs. But the stairs do lead to an ancient road, that might be connected to Sumitha. There's a fork, though, and the path west seems to lead to another tower like the one at the fork. The road east goes through a bridge and seems to go down to the sea, but it through another plateau on the way, so I couldn't see everything. What do you think? Try to explore the tower, or keep following the road east, trying get a good sense of the island?"

"If that is a lookout tower, it might be manned. Bridges are also often guarded. We can try stealth, relying on distance and cover to explore some more without being spotted. If we do get spotted... well, my Dimension Door spell cannot transport all of us. Not yet."
He can get himself and three others. Tucci, Eric, Veronica, and Kasin make four.

"I still say we climb up and camp. But we can do it in the morning if we're worried about raiders overnight. As for dimension door, I can make Kasin inert if we need to." I have scrolls of carry companion for the purpose - as long as we have a round or two to prep. :)

He thinks a moment, "I say we start with the tower though, when we do go topside."