Age of Ashes (Team Alseta)

Game Master Delta Arena

Having completed the search of the desk and with Resa unlocking the lockers, Cerrus continues his search of the room, along with Ellaeaanda.

He quietly speaks to her and Ardoinel. "Any idea what's inside these cells? And how long its been here?"

"Seems like there's a bundle of rags in each...could be discarded trash, could be a forgotten prisoner's dead body. Going to have to take a closer look," Ardoinel replies.

He tries the first door to see if it's locked or rusted shut.

Ellaeaanda

You feel the remnants of necromancy in the holding cells.

Resa

The lockers remain locked through your attempt to open them.

Cerrus

Now that Ardoinel mentions it, they do look like bodies to you. Highly decomposed bodies, almost down to their bones.

Ardoinel

The door is unlocked and easy to move. The rust has not reached the hinges of any of them.

Ardoinel slowly approaches the cluster of rags in the first cell, shield raised, and cautiously pokes at it with his sword, half-expecting something like a swarm of insects or rats to boil out of it at the slightest provocation.

“Necromancy I see,” Ellaeaanda responds to Cerrus in a faraway voice. “Beware death to undeath,” she warns, arming herself with her whip as a precaution.

"I suspect these bodies have been here quite awhile. Hopefully, the dead stay dead this time."

Cerrus readies himself near Ardoinel as he pokes at the rags in one of the cells.

Is it possible to retry the locks?

Resa

You may, but before you do...

Everyone

As soon as Ardoinel pokes the bundle of rags, it, and the rest of them, start moving. They move in slow, deliberate moves, pulling themselves together. They are corpses, covered in rags. Highly decomposed, barely any flesh left in their bones.

Ardoinel’s Initiative: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (8) + 3 = 11
Cerrus’ Initiative: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (15) + 5 = 20
Ellaeaanda’s Initiative: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15
Netkin’s Initiative: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9
Resa’s Initiative: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21

Ardoinel, Cerrus, Ellaeaanda and Resa, you can all take your turns. I guess that works out with Netkin coming back on the 4th.

“Undead rise, and undead fall. Ever the wheel turns,” Ellaeaanda proclaims in a singsong voice as she advances to aid Ardoinel. With a graceful crack of her whip, she lashes out at the nearest skeleton.

Devise a Stratagem: 1d20 ⇒ 17

Attack = 17+7=24 damage (nonlethal slashing + strategic strike: 1d4 ⇒ 41d6 ⇒ 6

Devise a Stratagem*, Stride*, Strike*

Ellaeaanda

Striking before the skeleton can rise, you reach for it with your weapon in between the cell bars. You sever the skul from the spin. The bones tremble a little and cease to move.

I'm back!

Netkin barely has the time to take a step back and yelp before Ellaeaanda puts a swift end to the moving corpse. "Oh my!" he stammers, dabbing his forehead with an embroidered handkerchief. "You've got lightning reflexes!"

"What was that? Where I come from, corpses usually stay... well, dead."

Knowledge (Occultism?): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (10) + 6 = 16 Or Arcana, if that fits better; it's the same bonus

As Ellaeaanda moves to the left of the room, Cerrus moves to the right to engage one of the skeletons surrounding Ardoinel. While moving up, he rummages around in his bag of trinkets and baubles for something extra potent against a piles of bones. Then, he strikes with his sword.

◆ Stride
◆ Exploit Vulnerability
◆ Strike

EV w/ Tome: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9
Strike: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7
Piercing dmg: 1d8 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 3 + 2 = 10

Ardoinel gives a small sigh as the undead creature rises up.

"I hate it when I'm right," he says matter-of-factly.

He begins a droning chant and his blade ignites, then he thrusts at the skeleton, hoping the fire would do what the blade could not, keeping his shield ready for the inevitable counterattack.

◆ Raise A Shield
◆◆ Ignition

Ignition: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 92d6 ⇒ (6, 1) = 7

Cerrus

Assuming that the skeleton once belonged to a bandit, you pull out an old, battered badge of knightly-hood you picked up in your travels. Then, you try to strike against the un-dead, but your weapon clashes against the bars of the holding cell.

Ardoinel

Flames jump towards the skeleton, burning the rags covering it, but they quickly die out, not being hot enough to burn through bone.

Netkin

What’s your question for the recall knowledge check?

Resa, it is still your turn, I’ll wait until either tomorrow or the day after to take my turn.

"Ardoinel gives a small sigh as the undead creature rises up.

"I hate it when I'm right," he says matter-of-factly.

"It can be very annoying," Netkin nods compassionately. He knows the feeling.

What’s your question for the recall knowledge check?

Any weaknesses?

resa will step close by her companions, but having never fought the undead she is not exactly sure what she can and can not due. But she did know stabbing things was a generally good idea. " Little help here guys, I have not fought undead previously!" She seems a bit panicked by this new situation they found themselves in.

to hit dagger: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
to damage: 1d4 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7

Netkin

Skeletons have several resistances and immunities but they don’t have any weaknesses.

Resa

In spite of your inexperience, you are able to pierce through the undead’s spine with your dagger, falling it.

Blue skeleton

The skeleton pulls itself together to raise on its feet. It holds a scimitar on its hands, which it brings down against Ardoinel.

Ardoinel blocks the scimitar with his shield, but the Skeleton launches forward with its hand to claw at his arm.

It reaches past the shield and leaves some cuts on Ardoinel's arm.

AB: Stand*, Strike*x2

Brown skeleton

The other skeleton also pulls itself together and leaves the cell to stand right in front of Ardoinel before it too swings its sword against Ardoinel.

Fighting past the pain in his arm, Ardoinel brings the shield into position to protect himself from the next scimitar attack as well.

AB: Stand*, Step*, Strike*

You can all take your turns now

Devise a Stratagem: 1d20 ⇒ 1

“Foresight, not reflexes,” Ellaeaanda calmly corrects Netkin as she gazes ahead to glimpse the future. She foresees that a similar attempt to decapitate a skeleton will simply crash uselessly against the cell bars, so instead she snakes her whip low into the cell, trying to drag the undead off its feet.

Athletics (Trip w/whip): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10

Athletics (Trip w/whip): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
Unfortunately she doesn’t have enough strength to topple it; indeed, the whip is yanked out of her hand.

Devise a Stratagem*, Trip*, Trip* (drop whip to negate critical failure)

Cerrus reconsiders the battered knightly badge he tried against the first skeleton and tries a different piece of esoterica on the skeleton directly in front of Ardoinel. "A knightly skeleton, likely not!"

◆ Stride
◆ Exploit Vulnerability
◆ Strike

EV w/ Tome: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (19) + 8 = 27
Strike: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17
Piercing dmg: 1d8 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 3 + 2 = 13

"Few undead have the capacity for martial honor, and even those that do have it tainted by the hunger of the Void," Ardoinel comments as he keeps his shield up and tries again.

◆ Raise a Sheild
◆◆ Cast Ignition

Ignition: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 112d6 ⇒ (1, 4) = 5

"“Foresight, not reflexes,”

"Ah, I see. I stand corrected." Netkin winces as he hears the clangs of steel against shield, and the distinct sound of something dropping on the ground. Not bones - this one seemed almost... leathery? Almost like a whip.

It was definitely a whip. "Yes, foresight seems more accurate," he repeats to himself distractedly.

He glances at Alak. "... Aren't you going to go help them?... No?... Oh, well."

He rushes into the room (this fight was starting to take a while, after all), and finds his allies crowding around the undead. Leaving almost no window to chuck a bomb in.

With a resigned sign, he takes out his sling. He suspects his bread knife won't be enough to slice through calcium on legs.

Stride, Stride, Interact

Ellaeaanda

Due to their physiognomy and lack of flesh, they are resistant to fire, cold, electricity, piercing and slashing damage.

Cerrus

I am moving you on the map slightly, as you’d have to tumble through the skeleton to get to the cell to the right of it. It won’t change the rest of your turn.

You spread a little bit of sulfur on your sword, assuming that the reminder of Hell would affect the Skeleton. You thrust your sword had, breaking through its ribs and making it collapse.

Ardoinel

Once again the flames burn through the old rags on the skeleton only to quickly fizzle out when it comes to burning the bones.

Netkin

Alak does in fact follow you into the room. ”Seems a little crowded, I don’t think my bulky armour is going through make it in such a tight space. We might have to trust your companions to take care of this.”

I’ll take my turn tomorrow for Resa to take hers

Alak does in fact follow you into the room. ”Seems a little crowded, I don’t think my bulky armour is going through make it in such a tight space. We might have to trust your companions to take care of this.”

"Yes, I think so," Netkin sighs. A few seconds pass. Eventually, he clears his throat. Since there's nothing else to do...

"So, is there anything you like to do besides fighting? Crochet? Card games? Scrapbooking? I find reading most suitable. At least a book doesn't take much space in an adventurer's backpack..."

Netkin

I enjoy painting the landscapes of Varisia. I take after my mother on that, she used to be a painter.” He says as the two of you watch the others fight.

Skeleton

The last remaining skeleton moves out of its cell and stands in front of Ardoinel, blocking the way. It raises it sword and swings it.

The scimitar clings against Ardoinel's shield, and the skeleton lounges with its claw towards Ardoinel’s face.

But Ardoinel swiftly ducks behind his shield.

AB: Stride*, Strike*x2

You can all take your turns

“Flame fades and ice melts against undead bones,” Ellaeaanda warns Ardoinel, as his blasts of fire continue to have no effect. “Blades too are weak, unless one strikes hard and true,” she glances over at Cerrus, as if acknowledging his deadly thrust. “Against skeletons, blunt force is best.”

Her eyes briefly cloud over as she glimpses the future. Spurred by confidence in her vision, the elf calmly walks into the cell, waits for the preordained opening, then thrusts her fist with pinpoint accuracy into the skeleton’s sternum. “Like so.”

Devise a Stratagem: 1d20 ⇒ 12

Attack = 12 + 7 = 19
Fist Damage (B nonlethal) & Strategic Strike: 1d4 ⇒ 31d6 ⇒ 2

Devise a Stratagem*, Stride*, Strike*

"Blades usually aren't best against bone, but can do the job if you hit hard enough." Cerrus maneuvers past Ardoinel, attempts to determine if this skeleton is subject to the same weakness, and strikes again.

◆ Stride
◆ Exploit Vulnerability
◆ Strike

EV w/ Tome: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11
Strike: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20
Piercing dmg: 1d8 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 3 + 2 = 8 weakness 2 if EV isn't a crit fail

Ellaeaanda

Seizing your opportunity you punch through the cell bars, hitting and cracking the skeletons skull.

Cerrus

Quickly moving in besides the damaged skeleton, you thrust your long sword into the cracks and throw a handful of salt on the skull, to prevent magic from sealing the cracks and keeping the skeleton going.

The skull breaks and the skeleton collapses underneath it.

You each get 80xp for the skeletons.

Alak

”Formidable work. Those things barely had a chance to move.”

"I enjoy painting the landscapes of Varisia. I take after my mother on that, she used to be a painter.”

"Really? I can't say I've seen many paintings. O-or a lot of Varisia. I never left my grandma's house, you see," Netkin looks down at his feet, a bit embarrassed. "So are you from Varisia originally? I have to say, you don't have much of an accent!"

"Formidable work. Those things barely had a chance to move.”

Netkin startles. "Oh, it's over? Oh, yes. Absolutely! Er. Congratulations everyone!"

He takes a bit of a wary glance inside the cells. "So, er, Alak. Any idea what these people were doing here? Or why they were - awake? I thought the Hellknights had left with - everyone..." His voice falters. "Oh no. They were left behind in the cells, weren't they?" He looks genuinely horrified by the idea.

Ardoinel breathes a sigh of relief, sheathing his sword. He makes the sign of the hammer with one hand while holding his other over their remains.

"May they find peace and purpose beneath Magrim's hammer, remade into something better."

He turns back to the group, hearing the tail-end of Netkin's suggestion.

"That is...one unfortunate possibility. Another is that they were scavengers who ventured in here seeking whatever the Hellknights left behind and were...unlucky."

GM, when we opened the cells, were they actually LOCKED necessitating us to pick their locks to open them?

”There might be some of my Mother’s paintings left behind. I hope you get to see them. And yes, my parents had already moved to Varisia with the Order when they had me.”

He glances at the destroyed skeletons for a few moments. ”The records say that there were no prisoners when the Order moved. Four scavengers in four different cells? Unlikely. Maybe a gang took advantage of the abandoned Citadel at some point.”

The doors were open but there are shackles hanging from the walls in each cell.

"Or they didn't think it worth to include them in the records," Netkin suggests. "It wouldn't be completely unheard of. Especially when some, ah, uncomfortable truths are involved..."

Perhaps the old bones and rags had some kind of hint about what happened? It was worth checking.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17

" Hellknights and truth do not mix often I have found. They tend to kill first and never question why, or even ask questions later. For any reason." Resa seems a bit miffed she had dallied to long to take care of the skeletons, but it seems her help was not needed in the first place, with the rest of the group managing to take them out. She was still very curious about the chest, and tries her hand again at opening them. She however seems to break something on it, given how old these locks are.

Lock retry: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (1) + 7 = 8

Ardoinel joins Resa by the locked door, pursing his lips. He waits a bit and when she struggles with the lock, he scratches his head.

"Want me to try? Maybe I can brute force it."

It's a shame Reverse Engineer is an Inventor-exclusive feat. Using Crafting in place of Thievery to pick locks (or apply leverage to door hinges) would fit Ardoinel's handyman image very well! :P

Resa sighs, but turns over her tools defeated clear on her face, though it seems she was used to that. " I have no issue with it, I just wish I was better at this. The locks are old see, not maintained. That will either help you where it hindered me, or its just stuck."

Netkin

”That would go against the measure and the chain, but yes, I suppose that it is possible.”

There is not much left from the skeletons, but based on the rags they seem like bandits. The rags seem rather worn, and there are rotten bundles of rope that are knotted on the ground, as if they had slid out. There is no sign that the shackles on the walls were used.

Resa and Ardoinel

Ardoinel, do you want to try to break the doors open? Or should we assume that Resa keeps on trying until she eventually succeeds?

As is his norm, Cerrus is curious about these skeletons and why they were here - left behind by the Hellknights, detained by bandits, or otherwise.

"Very likely too much time has past to be absolutely certain what fate these people suffered. But it certainly doesn't hurt to look, respectfully of course." Cerrus closely inspects the remains of the skeletons and the cells for clues about their history, being careful to avoid disturbing their remains especially after Ardoinel's words.

Ardoinel grabs onto the door and tries to force it open.

Athletics?: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12

Cerrus

You do notice some poorly healed combat wounds on some of the bones, and you other signs of a rough life. Some of these wounds were not even fully healed when they died. Looking they do seem to be the clothing of highwaymen, with some padding or other slightly protective patters sown throughout. The fact that they were tied with ropes to the bars of the cells, which slid once the flesh was gone from the bones, and the fact that the cell doors where open, gives away that whoever was keeping them there didn’t have the proper keys. They couldn’t open the shackles to hold them, and they couldn’t lock the cells to bar them. Whoever it was, they were just taking advantage of the space.

Ardoinel

You pull the door. It doesn’t open. You hit the door. It doesn’t break. The lock rattles, but it remains in place.

Resa goes back to picking the locks. It takes a quarter hour, perhaps even more, but eventually, the locks click. Inside the lockers you find a Jade Cat, a lesser Cheetah’s Elixir, a Potency Crystal, a Scroll of Force Barrage and a vial of Giant Centipede Venom.

Netkin's eyes go wide. "Oh my! That's quite the treasure!" He delicately turns the elixir over in his hands, inspecting the small vial up close. "Mmmm. I've never tried to make one of those," he murmurs, seemingly to himself.

He reaches for the jade cat. "And this one is very cute! I hid a kitten in my room once, when I was, oh, about seven? I was hoping Grandma wouldn't find it. I wasn't really allowed to have any pets, you know. Of course, it only took her a day to find out about it... At least it had a good life. She took it to Mr. and Mrs. Tuskhall, I believe, lovely people. Of course, it was before they moved back to Varisia and the bakery went to Mr. Vindai... He wasn't as nice. A pity. And his brioches just weren't as good..."

Cerrus shares with the party what he gathered about these unfortunate individuals. "Based on my observations, I believe whoever confined these people were not the Hellknights. The doors were left open which means they didn't have the keys. And the shackles weren't used to bind them; they used rope. Likely just opportunistic individuals."

Turning his attention to the newly acquired loot, Cerrus asks the group an important question. "How should we divide the lot? Is there anything we'd rather sell than use?"

"If I may, I will take the scroll," Ardoinel says. "And even if I don't use it, I can copy it into my grimoire for future use."

Resa beams slightly as she gets the locks open, feeling proud she managed to get them after all, even with her unfamiliarity to the locking system. However, the items inside did not seem like things she was able to use really, and says " I... I have no use or knowledge for any of these items, so I can not say. I never got really to study magic, and this all looks like magic stuff. So I don't think I can use any of it."

But I added an extra item so that eveyone could have something :Sad:

"Of course you can!" Netkin puts back the jade cat so he can grab the venom. "This is quite potent stuff, you know, once you anoint a blade with it. It'd take it myself, but, ah, I'm not quite the best at fighting anything."

"Or there's always the elixir," he suggests. "Gives you quite a boost to speed, I reckon. And the kitty is so cute!"

Poison or a Potion of Speed are always good for a rogue to have!

And only someone trained in Acrobatics will make good use of the Jade Cat. Which excludes Netkin, unfortunately.

"Yes, Netkin is quite right. Even if you don't have talent for magic, you can still make use of many items that are powered or enhanced by magic."

Cerrus considers the items for a moment. "Copying a scroll so one can use again and again is a great use. Netkin, it sounds like you might be most interested in the jade cat. Anyone else feel a strong tie to an item? The Potency Crystal calls to me, but I'm not tied to it."

Ardoinel nods.

"Aye, as Netkin and Cerrus say. Magic is a gift to all, by the grace of Yuelral. And it is never too late to learn, as my mother would say."

Resa turns a bit pink, a little ashamed of her lack of knowledge on magic, despite her parentage being magic users. Everyone knew elves had magics, didn't they? " Well, maybe I just never looked into it to hard, since I had no teacher. Who knows, maybe my place in life is a magic user, not a thei.. not a locksmith."

Ardoinel chuckles.

"If you'd prefer, you can say 'expert treasure hunter.'"

" I do hope my toes are not hairy enough for that. I might be short for an elf..."

By the way, can any of you affix talismans?