DM Joseph Rauel's Price of Immortality

Game Master Dm Joseph Rauel

"Sure Miron, service for all" Joras cleans up Miron in the corner as well. At his comment Joras replies grimly, "Those undead are horrible yes, but they are just mindless tools. The windpipe I'd like to wrap my fingers around it that of who caused all this mayhem and blasphemy."

I'll assume Perri wants to better off and that leaves Brandark to say.

I cleaned up the majority of my gear the night before.

Brandark continues to shuffle along

Gawds, do I wish that I had some blunt objects for those walking dead.

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

As Conrad leads the group into this chamber it reveals a number of recesses carved into the walls and a fissure in the ceiling. Unable to see how deep it cuts into the mountain above, it does look recent.

Drawing his flail, Conrad hears a noise. Almost a nasally clicking coming from above in the fissure. Raising a light reveals thousands of bats that whirl into flight circling this chamber as they swarm in a circle. Their sound floods your ears as it echoes off the walls. Conrad has difficulty seeing as the diminutive creatures nearly blind his vision as he protects his face.

Initiative: Round 1
All of You
Bats

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR | Miron -2 Con

Miron shouts in surprise at the flurry of bats and raises his arms, casting a spell and sending a scintillating aurora into the air among the bats.

Color Spray DC 13

Having little time to think, Roya leans back into a defensive stance, then intones her cantrip creating water.
4 gallons(30 liters) come into existance, spread across the swarm, pouring down on the bats.
She hoped against hope that they would be convinced it started raining, and they had best head back to shelter.

Conrad does nothing useful save flailing to disperse the bats coming very close to scratching his face, and making great efforts not to scream so one doesn't fly into his mouth. Blinded, he retreats back into the last room.

What in the gods

Brandark squints so he can see, and makes his way back to the entrance.

Something else i have been ineffective with. what next

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

Conrad and Brandark see the flurry of bats coming towards them causes them to retreat. Seeing a hole, and having a plan, Miron steps up to the opening and conjures up a vivid cone of clashing colors from his hands. The bats continue to fly around swarming the chamber.

Roya uses her Create Water cantrip causing the chamber to become soaked and the bats begin to dodge the sputter shower.

Perri and Joras hold as they see what is happening in the chamber before them.

The bats flee the chamber that they started in and continue into the chamber that the group is in. Swarming around Roya, Joras, and Perri flapping and biting at any exposed flesh. (-6 HP) Perri becomes distracted by the swarm around him. (1 round)

Round 2

Initiative: Round 2
All of You
Bats

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -6 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -6 HP | Perri -6 HP

Roya Fort: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11
Brandark Fort: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Perri Fort: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

Conrad franctically looks around, and notices that the room that the swarm has entirely left the room it was kept in.

"EVERYONE... INSIDE!" he shouts as loud as he can. He retreats in the now empty room, ready to shut the door on the swarm as soon as everyone is safe. Move action

Following Conrad through the door, Brandark yells to give the others a frame of reference.

This way, move it. move it.

I knew that leaving posting to today would bite me.

Joras overwhelmed a bit by so many disasters hesitates as the bats swarm over. He screams as the bats start to tear him apart, breaking free, he follows wishing he had acted sooner but knowing he would have little hope at a desperate casting of a barely known spell. He yells, "Leave me at the front, if the closing the door doesn't work I can try to stop it with a spell." Joras, trailing alarming amounts of blood, stays beside Conrad as the large fellow tries to close the door.

Roya follows the commands, not feeling she can do much else against the Bats.
While stumbling forward, she grasps her holy symbol, releasing a wave of healing in Erastils name,
Channel to Heal: 1d6 ⇒ 1
, but the hectical situation does not lend itself to a strong showing of faith.

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

The group moves in and Conrad looks for a door, remembering that the only door is the iron portcullis that the group had to spin the wheel to open it. Following Branderk’s shouts, everyone enters the new chamber seeing the swarm of bats continue to fly away from this current chamber.

Channeling, Roya prevents the wounds from the bats to continue bleeding. (+1 HP)

Exploring this chamber reveals that none of the resting places have been disturbed like the previous chamber. But, there is a hall way that heads north with a sharp turn east that reveals a door at the end.

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -5 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -5 HP | Perri -5 HP

The group moves in and Conrad looks for a door, remembering that the only door is the iron portcullis that the group had to spin the wheel to open it.

Shows the same on the map :')

"Everyone ok-kay?" Conrad stammers, once the screeching of the bats has grown so dim as to be near inaudible. "R-Roya, do you have a few healing sp-pells left?"

Channel Energy: 1d6 ⇒ 4 Roya triggers another wave of positive energy from her holy symbol.
"I...I do have healing left. But those bats...that was scary. I mean, I like bats, but not like that, not when they, like, swarm up as they did."

Miron covers his head and rushes in after the others.

"Well, at least bats are.. normal." he pants, looking back through the doorway "They might leave us alone if we don't disturb them.. right?" he asks.

Those ones only attacked as they went past. so yes they should not be waiting

"They seem like normal b-bats," Conrad gives a slight shrug that doesn't seem to exclude the possibility they might be brutal monsters waiting to ambush the party outside of the crypt. Anything seemed possible in this place. "We should m-move on while they've forg-got about us."

Joras perks up a bit at the healing provided, "Thanks Roya, that feels much better. Wish I acted more quickly though it might not have worked anyway. I think the bats are like other animals they attack if threatened or hungry. We should keep up our guard as always." Turning to Brandark, he continues, "Brandark, do you have a sense of how much more there is to this oversized tomb? We can't keep running into one dangerous place to an ever worst one over and over. Only valor of our mighty warriors, a lot of arcane spelling, and our great blessing of having Roya's immense faith has kept us going so far. So how much more do we have to do, if you can give an estimate?"

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

Roya channels energy (+4 HP – updated status bar below)

As Joras ask Branderk how much further there could be to go, all of you would know that there are only two levels to this tomb. You’d also know that they are roughly the same size.

As you pass by the fissure you shine light up into it. You see that it rips and continues, but you are unsure how far. From the breaks in the stone, and the lack of weathering, you believe that this is a new fissure.

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -1 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -1 HP | Perri -1 HP

Guys, I think we're getting closer to the final boss room

Conrad looks up worriedly at the ceiling. "I h-hope this is not g-going to fall on us."

A couple days of getting lost in the dangerous crypt has taught the boy to be wary of life-like statues and risky architecture. "Miron, you should check for magic," he says, inspecting the bridge for traps. Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25

As Conrad takes the lead from a increasingly quiet Perri, Joras follows just behind him. He too looks about for any issues, relighting the pebble and tossing it down the bridge. "I can't remember was there a room above us with a fractured floor?"

Perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13 Just looking around.

Miron nods and casts his spell. He wraps his coat more tightly around himself as he looks over the bridge, statues and doors.

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

(DC was 25 exactly)
Just as other are about to move forward across the bridge Conrad stops them. The bridge is covered with mechanical pressure plates. Looking closer, Conrad also sees faint groove lines in the flooring leading to the two stone statues. You are 100% positive, but you believe that the pressure plates would trigger the statues to rush forward and either push someone back, or into the dark depths below the bridge.

Miron cast Detect Magic focusing on the bridge, the statues, and even the doors. Nothing within this chamber detects as magical.

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -1 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -1 HP | Perri -1 HP

"Even this is rig-ged," Conrad scoffs, and shakes his head.

"Anyone sees how d-deep this g-goes?" he brings his torch closer to the edge of the gap, careful to avoid setting even one foot on the bridge.

"Should we...like, attempt to trigger it with a pole or something? If it works as you say, they'll need to move back, right? If they can't trigger again during that time, it may give us a moment to run past safely...", Roya suggests, hopefully.
"Also good job spotting that. It does look weird but I wouldn't have figured it out..."

Joras, i am sure its not much more

At the bridge

This looks difficult. A chance to get pushed into an abyss.
Joras, if you were to drop your pack here, could you pull yourself over on the side of the bridge.
Of course we would tie a rope to you until youre across. Then you can see about breaking the trap

Brandark shrugs out of his pack then starts digging in it for the rope.

Joras nods at Brandark's reply, saying, "I hope you're right, it seems likely."

At his request, Joras says, "If you mean for me to climb along the side of the bridge, that would be very dangerous. Sadly I'm not good at climbing, so unless there is a ledge wide enough for me to walk, it could be a problem. Maybe there is another way, how deep is the depression on each side of the bridge? If, as we suspect, the challenge we were suppose to face was not meant to be really dangerous, lethally so anyway, then they may not be deep. On the other hand nothing has been reasonable since we came here. Worth a look I suppose."

Check out the deepness of the hole, shallow, deep, or endless. Toss a lighted pebble and see.

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

Tossing a lighted pebble down into the darkness, you count how long it takes before you hear it hit the bottom with a slight splash. Roughly 40-feet is what you believe it would be. Looking down, you can see that there is a shallow pool of water at the bottom that is only a few inches deep. The rest of the area is dry in this chamber so it is hard to tell where it might have come from.

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -1 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -1 HP | Perri -1 HP

"I can d-do it," Conrad answers Brandark. He puts down his backpack resolutely. "If you think it's b-better than going through the g-gap."

Unencumbered and in no rush, he can probably take 10 - or even 20- on a Climb check either to trigger the traps, or to go across the bottom of the gap and up the other side with ropes.

Well, we can lower you, and then provide an anchor point if you need to come back up.

He glances across.

How far is the other side you figure, if short enough we anchor on both ends and avoid the traps completely

"Why do we not try to trigger it from a safe distance and just watch? I mean, before someone attempts to climb all the way down and back up...maybe we could secure someone with rope and they could hang on to the side of the bridge and cross over that way?", Roya felt slightly ignored, but attempted to understand - if everybody felt that climbing down and back up was a good idea, hopefully that had merit. But she could't help but think of the skeletons in the murky water, and hoped these shallow pools held no surprise for whoever descended into the pit.

That also has merit, but I don't think we have anyone or anything that we can use to trigger it at a distance. And I for one, don't want to take the risk of getting thrown off the bridge and fall 40 ish feet.
In my own thoughts, climbing will be safer, but it is riskier

"I think we could use Perris stick, or one of the frogs. But if you think this will be safer, we do that."
Roya peaks down at Joras lighted pebble.
"There is some water down there. Water would help break any fall...as long as we have time..."
She then starts creating water, letting it splash down into the darkness, re-casting the orison like a Mantra.

10 feet times 15 feet(ground area) times 10 feet(height) would be a volume of about 42475 liters. Roya can do 16 liters per casting, so that would take around 2650 rounds, at 6 seconds per, that'd be 15924 seconds, or 4 and a half hour.
So worst case, I could fill up the side with sufficient water to break any fall (Falling into Water: Falls into water are handled somewhat differently. If the water is at least 10 feet deep, the first 20 feet of falling do no damage. The next 20 feet do nonlethal damage (1d3 per 10-foot increment). Beyond that, falling damage is lethal damage (1d6 per additional 10-foot increment). over the course of about 5 hours(assuming a 30-minute chanting break). :)
In other words, it is unlikely that her water creation will be of much benefit, but I believe she is not really great at volume calculations or math based on that. So she'd still give it a try.

Whoa, hold on, I don't think filling it with water will help.
We have spikes or pitons, and rope. We belay down, then using spikes, we can help whomever climb, they anchor a rope, and we climb up.

He pauses

Besides, if you fill it, I will sink like a rock

""I think we could use Perris stick, or one of the frogs. But if you think this will be safer, we do that."

Conrad shrugs. "Not a b-bad idea. I could c-carry a frog and throw it on the b-bridge. It might trig-ger the traps."

"We c-could at least try, before we take the r-riskier path," he adds, making eye contact with Brandark.

Joras mulls over the debate, saying, "I understand your point Brandark but time is becoming somewhat an issue, we don't have unlimited supplies. This, at best, takes time still if we have enough rope and Conrad is willing, I suppose we can try."

As Roya begins her water making, Joras observes the amount she is making versus the size of the hole. He tries to estimate how long it's going to take.

Bardic Knowledge:Engineering: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20

Roya, based on stories told to me by my Uncle, you are going to take most of the day to fill even a quarter of this. I think your voice will fade before that. Don't overstrain yourself we need you, we could not have come this far without you."

I agree conrad, lets try that first.

"Yes, let's trigger the traps and see exactly what they do - nothing's magical so if we know what's going to happen we can try to just avoid it."" Miron suggests.

Joras says, "Oh the giant frogs. I'm kinda losing track, but that's a bit tricky too. How are you going to do it? Are you trying to throw the body on the bridge or shove it with a pole?

Joras does seem a bit less sharp than usual. Nothing to do with the player of course.;)

From what i can understand, Conrad will loft one of thoe frogs onto the bridge.
This should trigger everything.

Conrad goes and fetches one of the dead frogs to put the party's plan to the test.

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

Conrad heads off and retrieves one of the frogs from the earlier chamber. It does take a little bit of time carrying (literal) dead weight across a tomb, but as soon as he gets back he tosses it onto the bridge. The first 5-feet cause nothing to happen. Trying again, in the second 5-feet area, there is a click.

With that the two statues angle causing a wedge and quickly rush forward. Without giving Conrad much time, the statues spring forward and hit the corpse of the frog off into the pit below. After a few seconds the statues slowly return to their starting point and rotate to where the shields are facing across the bridge.

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -1 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -1 HP | Perri -1 HP

Conrad checks to see if the traps have all been activated by the statues. They certainly can't trigger each trap with frogs. Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26

"After they reached the end, it took several seconds before they started going back, and they didn't do that fast. I think we could swiftly make our way past before they become ready to trigger again...", Roya shares her observation.

7th of Neth – 4709AR
Tomb Map

Conrad sees that the whole of the bridge beyond the first 5-ft portion is covered with pressure plates. With Roya’s observation, you think that it could be possible to quickly round the statues before they move back into place.

What does your character do?

Character Status: | Roya -2 STR -1 HP | Miron -2 Con | Joras -1 HP | Perri -1 HP

Joras chimes in, "We can't take forever. Hopefully that door leads to the lantern room and the end of this. It seems worth the risk to try to race to the other side. Still seems a bit sadistic though, what if we didn't have a large supply of dead enemies?" Joras lights up another pebble and is ready to run fast.

"After they reached the end, it took several seconds before they started going back, and they didn't do that fast. I think we could swiftly make our way past before they become ready to trigger again..."

"T-true," Conrad straightens up, blushing and ashamed he didn't think of that earlier on. "Let's try that."

He rushes to get another frog corpse. "R-ready?" he asks, double-checking to make sure his backpack is at arm length, before tossing the dead frog on another pressure plate. As soon as the statues start moving, he picks up his backpack, and makes a run for it alongside the party. He stays close to Joras or Roya in case they have trouble outrunning the statues, but they do fine on their own.

On the other side of the bridge, Conrad eyes the doors. In spite of the faint light that goes through the gap, he does not seem reassured. "D-do you think it's the lantern?" he says in a whisper, making sure the door isn't trapped. Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (2) + 6 = 8

"I think before we move on into that door, we should try and somehow...I dunno, disable the statues or something? I mean, we have no idea what is in there, and we would have no way to run. Does anybody have an idea of how to do that? Or do we, like, throw a Backpack and run after them when they trigger? It's just like to have some idea what we'll do if we need to make a quick exit...", Roya whispers once they made it safely to the other side. Looking at the large brass doors with light beyond, she tries to glance through the opening without getting close to the door."Those doors seem ominous, but there seems to be light...could we have reached our goal?"

Roya, if there was anyone who could hear in that room, they would have heard the statues crashing into the end of the track.
Any chance of us figuring a way to keep the trap triggered, so the statues stay down here, or stay at that end ?

Edit
As the party makes ready for the sprint, He gets his legs set under himself, and as soon as the trap is triggered, he sprints around the trap and onto the platform. where the statues are located.
He then gets ready to go in the room, when the door is checked.