GM Harrow’s Curse of the Crimson Throne - AE

Game Master GM Harrow

Fort DC 13: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 = 23 Yay! No paralysis for Audria!

Audria Smash! (Greatclub, Power Attack): 1d20 + 6 - 1 ⇒ (15) + 6 - 1 = 20
Damage: 1d10 + 4 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 4 + 3 = 11

Audria hisses in pain and shrugs off the effects of the poison the construct injected into her veins. She raises her club up and brings it down on the necrophidius' head.

Tally, meanwhile, holds on for dear life and tries not to get too jostled by Audria's movements.

Between the three of them, Elric, Shrike and Audria smash the second necrophidius into bone shards as Pava's paralysis finally wears off.

Combat over.

Pava stretches out then squats down on their haunches to examine the shattered serpents. "Don't want one of those sneaking up on me again."

They stand and look around at the crew. "Thanks."

"Are you feeling alright," Audria asks as Pava regains control of their body.

Shane snaps out of it saying "Yes, in theory it SHOULD work!" then he looks around as if realizing he's not at a desk

At Shane's exclamation, Audria jumps almost cracking Pava in the chin.

"What theory?! No one was talking about theories!"

"Don't want one of those sneaking up on me again."... "Thanks."

Shrike nods slightly in agreement or acknowledgement. "Welcome." The bird mask twists slightly as she tries to inspect the two large puncture wounds at the join of her neck and shoulder. With a little grunt of annoyance — perhaps at the pain, or perhaps at the fact of being injured at all — she turns to Abella. "Need the wand. The girl too."

Cure light wounds from wand, 46/50 charges remaining: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9

The twin marks scab, close over and heal, leaving pale unmarked skin beneath only slight rents in her dark clothing to say she was ever injured. Shrike rolls her shoulder slightly. "Thanks."

Assuming here that Abella won't say no, that puts Shrike back at full and ready to continue on. I'm starting to track the charges on the wand each time I use it and in the sheet. It was previously unused, but we've used four charges counting this one since entering the Dead Warrens: one for Audria, one for Pava's derro, one for Pava, now one for Shrike.

She hooks the light mace back to her belt by its leather loop, slings the bow over her shoulder, and takes up her curious elf-spear in both hands again. "Ready."

At Shane's exclamation, Audria jumps almost cracking Pava in the chin.

"What theory?! No one was talking about theories!"

Slowly it sinks in that he was..dazed, oh inspired in a weird way, but dazed, "Arcane calculations but they're not germane to the now. Wouldn't want to bore you." He assures trying to look confident and NOT like he was weak willed no sir.

Bluff 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (2) + 9 = 11

Shane snaps out of it saying "Yes, in theory it SHOULD work!" Then he looks around as if realizing he's not at a desk.

The mask turns toward Shane with a sharpness. "Work quietly."

Shane Driscoll wrote:

Shane snaps out of it saying "Yes, in theory it SHOULD work!" then he looks around as if realizing he's not at a desk

The mask turns toward Shane with a sharpness. "Work quietly."

The normally wordy wizard gives a wordless thumbsup

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7 I ROLLED A 4 1!!

Audria sighs and misses that Shane's lying through his teeth. She figures wizards are just weird.

"Could you focus on something that is germane to the current situation before Shrike decides her sap needs to say good day to your skull," she asks before turning to the lady in question.

"Sorry for pinning you in the corner like that I didn't think it was a good idea to get between them," she says before looking down at the twin punctures in her arm straddling the nearly invisible scar left by Embercat's arrow. She turns and looks at the alcove, and realizes there's a door there.

"Should I take point since they probably heard us," she asks.

Charge from the wand (45/50 left): 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6 That gets me to 28/32.

Pava finishes limbering up, at least as far as their jagged nerves will allow. "If we expect them to charge as soon as the door's open, long pointy objects to the fore seems like just the ticket."

Take 10 Sense Motive for 14.

The normally wordy wizard gives a wordless thumbsup.

The impassive black eye holes rest on Shane for a moment. Then Shrike simply nods.

"Sorry for pinning you in the corner like that I didn't think it was a good idea to get between them," she says before looking down at the twin punctures in her arm straddling the nearly invisible scar left by Embercat's arrow. She turns and looks at the alcove, and realizes there's a door there.

"Should I take point since they probably heard us," she asks.

"If we expect them to charge as soon as the door's open, long pointy objects to the fore seems like just the ticket."

"You're fine. Circle when you can." She nods at Pava. "If they're waiting let them meet Elric and me first." Shrike listens at the door for several seconds to see if she can hear any sounds of life on the other side, and gestures an invitation for the others to do so too.

While the injured heals up, Elric recovers and stows his bow. Better to stick with the hammer for now, since there is likely more close quarter fighting ahead.

He moves to take position besides Shrike at the door and signals the vigilante to open it once everyone are ready.

Ear pressed to the splintery wood, Shrike hears muffles thudding somewhere on the other side. It does not seem very close, rather as if loud noises somewhat farther away are reverberating through the floor and walls of the space beyond the door.

Once the door is opened

Shrike eases open the door. The sharp smell of chemicals floods her nostrils, leaving an acrid taste in her mouth. The room beyond seems to be an alchemy lab, two wooden tables stacked with vials, beakers and alembics - although the southern one is heaped with broken glassware and leaning precariously on a broken leg propped up with a piece of wood like a splint. Three large cauldrons sit against the east wall, one of them upended and the stone beneath it stained dark by its rancid contents.

Most importantly, two derros are crouching behind each table, their pale eyes fixed on the door apprehensively. They seem to hesitate between fighting and fleeing, finally settling on fighting as one of them begins to mutter an arcane incantation and the other aims his crossbow at Shrike.

Round 1. Everyone can act before the derros.

Figuring the spellcasting derro to present the greatest threat, Elric quickly strides into the room and swings his hammer, intent on disrupting the spell.

Normal move past Shirke and in between the two tables where he threatens both derro. Attack the one casting the spell.

Lucerne hammer power attack + flanking vs spellcaster: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (2) + 6 = 8
Damage: 1d12 + 7 ⇒ (5) + 7 = 12

Boo - cold dice

Shane takes a deep breath, hearing chanting. He'll need to get closer anyway. Darting past Shrike he pivots to get into a corner and tries to identify the spell to warn others of it.

Spellcraft 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (16) + 10 = 26

And a shimmering ray erupts from his palm, streaking towards the spell caster

Blinding Ray (Sp)

As a standard action you can fire a shimmering ray at any foe within 30 feet as a ranged touch attack. The ray causes creatures to be blinded for 1 round. Creatures with more Hit Dice than your wizard level are dazzled for 1 round instead. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Intelligence modifier.
Ranged Touch attack 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

The dice want me to know, but they don't want me to hit ;)

Audria drops her club and pulls out her halberd as it's the weapon she's more familiar with as she rushes in after Shrike, Shane, and Elric. Before she can close with the Derro she can reach, Tally sings and gives Audria a shard of divine favor.

Tally casts Guidance on Audria.
Audria double moves to get in Green's face. (Darn you 20 foot speed while in medium armor! Darn you into itchy wool socks!)

When the door opens on two derros who do not immediately charge but still are obviously beginning to attack, Shrike darts across the room like lightning to flank one with Elric. She is in no mood to take prisoners, and Thorn stabs out at the one raising his crossbow to her with both vicious force and deadly precision.

Thorn v. Pink, Power Attack: 1d20 + 8 - 1 ⇒ (8) + 8 - 1 = 15 Vs. flat-footed, so lesser Hidden Strike if it hits.
Piercing damage, lesser hidden strike, Power Attack: 1d8 + 3 + 2d4 + 3 ⇒ (8) + 3 + (4, 4) + 3 = 22

Pava flings themself along the table, klar flashing out before the derro can react.

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (8) + 8 = 16
Cut-Down Klar: 1d20 + 8 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 8 + 1 = 19
B/P: 1d4 + 4 + 2d6 ⇒ (3) + 4 + (3, 3) = 13

Shrike and Elric move first, striding into the room and striking at the derros. It seems that even with foreknowledge of intruders, the two are too flustered to react with speed, and the pummeling they receive does nothing to improve their state of mind.

Shrike and Pava take out the first derro before it can finish the spell it was casting - which Shane identifies as a powerful sonic burst that could have hurt and possibly stunned himself and his companions.

The second derro pulls the trigger of his crossbow, then legs it through the eastern exit.

Derro vs. Shrike: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19 Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 5
DC 14 Fortitude saving throw, or be poisoned.

The thumping sounds that Shrike had heard earlier start again, and this time she can pinpoint their source - a boarded-over door to the south that shakes and creaks as whoever - or whatever - is on the other side bangs on it.

Everyone can act, Abella can act twice.

Audria runs after the derro, not wanting to let it get away or summon something that could make life very difficult for all of them.

I wish I was faster, she thinks as she just catches up with it.

When the derro raises the crossbow and takes aim, it clearly underestimates the extended reach of Elric’s hammer. The veteran ranger is quick to punish that mistake with brutal force.

Unless the derro moves before firing, it should trigger an AoO from Elric.

That was the last shot the derro would ever take, as Elric's hammer caves his skull in.

Combat over.

Audria skips to a halt as Elric's blow cracks open the derro's skull.

"Did they have a prisoner or something," she asks when she notices the banging.

Shane doesn't know but instead casts detect magic on the downed foes, and yes the door

The derros are not in possession of anything magical, nor is the door (or whoever is behind it). However, there are some faint magical auras in the laboratory, amidst the scattered and broken equipment.

Those who were at the old fishery recognize in particular the smell of three vials on a shelf to the side.

Loot: 3 doses of vermin repellent (same smell as the ones in the old fishery), 2 tanglefoot bags, 4 doses of black adder venom, a hybridization funnel, 2 doses of silversheen, a handy haversack containing 3 potions of cure moderate wounds, a potion of lesser restoration, a potion of invisibility, two scrolls of false life, a scroll of dispel magic, alchemist's lab.

"Some weak magical auras in the laboratory" He says cautiously at first, then brightens at their find.

Shrike sees that the derro is still starting to pull the trigger, oblivious to its danger, and swiftly brings her spear around. But Elric gets there first with a decisive blow that smashes the creature to the ground. She checks her movement and watches narrow-eyed for any sign of life from either derro. When nothing happens, she proceeds to the boarded-up door that is shaking with the force of whatever is pounding on the opposite side, and sets her spear to intercept anything that comes through the door for them. She notes Shane finding useful items out of the corner of her eye.

Shrike would also get an attack of opportunity since she threatened both derros. But Elric made it a moot point. Nice crit, Elric.

"Did they have a prisoner or something," she asks when she notices the banging.

"It's strong. Failed experiment maybe." Shrike knows she couldn't make a boarded-up door shake and creak like that, even kicking at it with all her strength. Most people couldn't. And the steadiness of the bashing seems fairly mindless, as the skeletons and the bonesnakes were. Shrike approaches the door even more closely and says in her normal croak, "Not the necromancer. If you understand me, stop banging."

There is a brief pause as Shrike speaks, then the banging resumes.

”Could be a prisoner, could be some unholy experiment. Either way, we had better deal with it.” Elric says, lining up to cover the door.

Pava nods and grabs the door, tapping three fingers against their forearm.
Two fingers.
One...

”Someone grab one of those tanglefoot bags. If something big and angry is behind the door, chug it at them. That should slow it down a bit. Better scoop the rest of the stuff into the haversack so it won’t break if there’s a scuffle.” Elric remarks, then nods to Pava to open the door once the items are cleared away.

Shrike cocks her head dubiously. "Need a crowbar. Unless your spear can pry things open. If it charges let it come out and be surrounded." The mask turns to examine the long, curved reverse spike on Elric's lucerne hammer. She gets out of the way. The tanglefoot bag is a good suggestion, so she scoops one up in one hand and readies it, still holding the bloodied elf-spear in the other.

Maybe I misunderstood the description. Is the door not boarded-up? We'd need to apply tools or damage of some kind to rip off the boards. Shrike does own a crowbar, but didn't bring it this time because of its weight and the fact that she was taking extra weapons to deal with various possible DRs we might encounter. But maybe Elric's lucerne hammer can be applied as though he were making a Sunder attempt, since the lucerne hammer is extra good at that.

The door is indeed boarded up with planks hastily hammered into the frame. The lucerne hammer can be used as an improvised crowbar, so whoever employs that can roll a Strength check.

Audria looks to her halberd then to the others.

"Let me be the one in front of the door when we pry it open," she says.

GM, I'd like to set myself up to brace for a charge just in front of the door. Sorry for the short post, it's been that kind of weekend for me.

”Get ready - I’ll attempt to pry the boards loose. Tally, give me a bit of that divine guidance.”

Elric jams the hook on his lucerne hammer under one of the boards and pulls back, using the long haft as a lever.

STR check w/guidance: 1d20 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 3 + 1 = 15 plus whatever bonus he might get for using the hammer as an improvised crowbar.

Tally flits over to Elric to cast guidance on him before doing the same to everyone else before coming back to him to do it again.

Everyone should have a Guidance now for their first attack.

1d20 ⇒ 13

Elric easily pries out the boards nailed over the door. As he starts on the last one, it bursts into splinters as whoever is on the other side of the door makes a determined push, flinging the door open. Out comes barreling a hideous, reeking jumble of putrefying flesh and bits of bone; by the looks of it, assembled from the decaying parts of at least six different corpses. Most of the remains seem human, but here and there the odd size disparity, coloration or texture hints at different races, perhaps different species altogether. It's swinging a dismembered arm that Shrike and Pava recognize as Gaekhen's.

As it bursts out of the small room it was in, a wave of nauseating stench spreads outwards from it.
Everyone: DC 12 Fortitude save or be nauseated for 1 round.

Party is up, bunching up Abella's initiative with the rest to speed things up.

Fort save w/guidance: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 6 + 1 = 18

Unprepared for the hideous stench, Elric feels the content of his stomach rise through his throat. But he manages to choke it back down and slam his hammer into the revolting creature.

Lucerne hammer power attack - Pushing Assault: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11

He almost misses, but at the last moment he feels the inspiration of Zellara's mystiours fortunetelling guide his strike. The power of the impact pushes the abomination back into the cell. Spending a Harrow point to reroll the attack

Lucerne hammer power attack - Pushing Assault: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23
Damage: 1d12 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11 plus 5 ft pushback on hit

"What in the name of all unholy gods is that thing?" he growls spitting a glob of sour spittle on the stone floor.

Fortitude DC 12, antitoxin: 1d20 + 2 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 2 + 5 = 24 Stench is usually a poison effect, but if it's not in this case, then 5 less. Should be fine either way.

Shrike's gorge rises at the foulness emanating from the putrefying abomination. But the awful trophy it holds is far worse. "His arm. Drop it," she grates.

Fury overrides the nausea and carries her sliding smoothly past the wild swings of the stitched-together mockery of life while it is still flailing backward from Elric's blow, before it can properly react. Once behind it, in a single motion she spins on her heel and throws the bag she is still holding in one hand. The echo of Talanaliel's hopeful song rings faintly in her ears. Her hand falls back to Thorn, held in readiness to lash out if the abomination should still try to move anywhere. The tanglefoot bag bursts on impact into a mass of tarry strands that harden instantly on contact with the air.

Tanglefoot bag v. Reeking Jumble, ranged touch, guidance, into melee: 1d20 + 6 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (7) + 6 + 1 - 4 = 10 Vs. flat-footed touch AC, so touch AC minus any Dexterity modifier.

Move action to move around and flank the creature from the back, not risking an AoO due to flat-footed; standard to throw tanglefoot bag. I am assuming here that Elric's reroll will hit and its pushback effect will happen, even though Shrike is certainly granting soft cover due to how we started out arranged here. Shrike otherwise can't move into the room without an Acrobatics check to move through the monster's space, because you can't move diagonally past a hard corner. She wouldn't risk that, so would just throw the bag and back up into the closest clear space. If the tanglefoot bag hits, the Reeking Jumble is entangled, with a -2 penalty to all attacks and a -4 penalty to Dexterity (so, effectively -2 to AC and Reflex saves), and must make a DC 15 Reflex save to move at all. If it makes the save it can still only move at half speed. If it is glued to the floor it can break free with a DC 17 Strength check or by dealing 15 points of damage to the hardened goo with a slashing weapon.

The push-back sends the golem out of Elric’s threatened area, so it is not in melee when Shrike throws the tanglefoot bag

Reflex save: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8

The corpse mash-up is slow to react, first to Shrike darting past it, then to avoiding the bag of sticky substance that hits it in the lower back and roots it to the floor. It bellows, helpless.

Golem is entangled, -2 to all attacks and to AC. Shane, Audria, Pava and Abella are up.[/ooc]

Knowledge Arcana 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (4) + 10 = 14

Fort: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21

"What in the name of all unholy gods is that thing?" he growls spitting a glob of sour spittle on the stone floor.

Shane withdraws a step back, covering his mouth with part of his cloak and scarf and calls through answering "Carrion golem, like most constructs immune to a lot of things, most magics, they carry diseases. Don't use piercing attacks if you have options. That's all I remember from constructs for beginners."

Fort: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Wind and Sky, is that Gaekhen's- "Heeuuuuurrrggghhhh!"

Pava doesn't have good fort saves, but also, even if these were all reflex saves I'd be failing -_-

Audria Fort: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10
Talanaliel Fort: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 1 = 11

Tally failing would've been alright, but Audria failing kinda stings.

No one had ever accused Audria of having a weak stomach, but as the wall of rot and decay assaults her nose, she nearly falls over. It's only thanks to her polearm that she's able to stand as she empties the contents of her stomach onto the floor. Tally only just manages to keep from doing the same in the paladin's hood.

Shane had hoped to reserve some magics but as he isn't sure which magics work best against these constructs ,and those options he knows are slim, he instead starts to chant in strange arcane words that seem to tickle the mind then fade before they even leave the ears.

"Quis puer bonus est?
Non, puer es OPTIMUM"

And stepping out of the glowing mist behind the foe is a white terrier that almost seems to shine with decency, fidelity, and all around canine good cheer. It promptly attacks the construct with slashing fangs!

Summon Monster I. Celestial Dog!
TO hit with bite: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
Dmg with pearly fangs 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Edit, forgot fort save for it. If needed. 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 17

Forgot something on the tanglefoot bag: The goo becomes brittle and fragile after 2d4 ⇒ (3, 4) = 7 rounds, cracking apart and losing its effectiveness. So, the entangled condition doesn't last forever, but will last a long time in combat terms, even if the golem breaks free from being glued to the floor.

Shrike has just gotten lucky, though it didn't feel like it in the necrophidius combat. Lots of these monsters seem to have disables that target her weakest save.

Fortitude Save: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 17

Abella, used to the stench of the dead, is unperturbed. She pats Audria on the shoulder to give her a little guidance for to help her catch her runaway stomach.

Guidance on Audria, if she still has one from Tally, she will put the guidance on Tally instead

She still has Tally's.

Audria looks up at Abella and tries to thank the mage when the next wave of heaves hits her.

Tally just peaks out from Audria's hood and nods. It's rather interesting seeing a bird that looks like it wants to vomit.