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Since I don't have guidance on how the money total is determined for the chronicle, I am not deducting any cash from the rewards. I am crossing off the items that were on the shae, since you did not defeat them. The primary way this will affect you is in the two partially charged wands you won't be able to buy. Please let me know once you have the chronicle and have checked it to make sure it looks good. Once I hear from everyone I'll archive the campaign.
Just realized that I didn't get your details from you. Please give me the following: Player Name
Well, I'm sorry that things ended how they did, but the dice really were against you. Nino going down in round one left you with much reduced power output, Laiashi and Patros couldn't catch a break. Nicasor is rough even without bad dice luck, and his "amorphous" trait took out a noticeable portion of Laiashi's and Patros' damage even when they could hit through the blur effect. I realize this took far longer than any of you expected; I honestly can't imagine how the original GM thought he was going to do this in the space of a game day, especially with the introduction he was doing that wasn't in the module. I hope that despite these issues, you got some enjoyment out of the module. It's a fascinating story, though one I probably will not attempt to do in PbP again. :-) I will try to get your chronicles written up this evening.
Nicasor nods and lowers his swords, keeping on guard, but not immediately threatening. He allows you to lift Nino's unconscious form and drag him away from the mirror chamber. As you do, you see the mirror itself begin to crack and shatter as the dimension it once held collapses. Once out of the basement, you are able to heal Nino up sufficiently for him to move on his own. You retrieve your mounts and leave the beleaguered town of Karpad. Reports coming out of the area later indicate that the destruction of the demiplane has lifted the "tallowthroat" curse; while those already afflicted all died, no new cases have happened. Oddly, there are no reports of the death of the baron. What exactly that means will be seen in the months and years to come. =======================================
OK, go ahead and respond in character and we'll come to a conclusion.
I'll be straight up with you guys ... with Nino down, this is going very quickly to a TPK. Nicasor is very hard to hit, and you're not doing nearly as much damage to him as he is doing to you. Based on the way Nicasor is written in the module, I am offering you a way to get out without having to spend prestige on Raise Dead. Also, remember, there are no success conditions for prestige in a module like there are in a PFS scenario. You would not lose any rewards other than Nicasor's gear. I'm not going to tell you how to play your characters, but this might be a time to accept a partial loss.
Ushi uses a wand and heals Patros so that he can keep fighting. Nicasor continues his assault on Patros:
"Even with your healing wand, I am going to defeat you. Accept that you have lost today, withdraw with your companion, and leave the Baron to his fate. You do not have to die today."
Patros and Laiashi continue to have difficulty landing blows on the shadowy form of the shae.
"Oh no, he dies - he broke our contract. But you don't have to die with him."
Despite fending off Nicasor's attack, Patros is unable to land another shot of his own. The Shae continues his assault, concentrating on Patros.
"You are skilled at the art of not being hit, I will give you that. But you will tire long before I will. Perhaps this is the point at which you admit defeat, take your fallen comrade, and depart?"
Laiashi manages to sink one of her daggers into the Shae, and she smells the satisfying scorch of flesh.
Ushi guides Patros' hand, but even with mystical help no one is able to land a blow on Nicasor. The Shae, clearly pleased with this demonstration of his prowess, continues to press his attack on Patros.
Combat Card:
Atamin {delay} =========
=========
Ushi casts a spell to help Patros as the swashbuckler attacks along with Laiashi. Both discover that fighting a Shae is even harder than expected, as its form is indistinct and blurry.
Patros' sword appears to pass through Nicasor, though Laiashi's dagger strikes true.
Combat Card:
Atamin {delay} =========
=========
This is another case where the CR of the encounter seems high for the module level. That said, I rolled 18+ on three out of four attacks on Nino, which is not likely to happen again. However, you did succeed in making Atamin non-hostile to you, so at least you don't also have to fight him ... :-| (And before you ask, he's not going to help you kill his brother, but he's not going to stop you from doing it, either.)
Ushi moves in carefully, stepping away from the action. Atamin nods at him as he goes past, not attempting to stop or attack him. Nicasor turns to face the others, ignoring the cringing baron. "Well, I had hoped that the Heart would take care of you for me, but no mind. My swords are more than a match for any three of you." He then attacks Nino.
With a flurry of blades, Nicasor takes down Nino and turns to face Patros and Laiashi. Combat Card:
Atamin {delay} =========
=========
Laiashi steps into the room and stabs at Nicasor, but like Patros is unable to connect. Combat Card:
Atamin {delay} =========
=========
Patros darts in and stabs at Nicasor, but the Shae easily dodges the attack.
Nino casts a spell and steps into the room, positioning himself in the corner by Nicasor. Atamin says quietly, "That's my brother, making friend and influencing people wherever he goes." He has a hand on his sword, but otherwise does nothing,
Combat Card: ========= Round 1 ========= Atamin {delay} Laiashi {delay} Patros {delay} Nino =========
Initiative:
Combat Card:
========= Round 1 ========= Atamin {delay} Ushi {delay} Laiashi {delay} Patros {delay} Nino =========
You begin running around the building, making a quick check for any living people left behind. It seems everyone is out, though you choose not to check on the animated furniture in the west side. As you round the corner into the northern hallway, you are overcome by vertigo briefly as gravity ceases to function. Kicking off of the walls, you swim down the hall to the basement stairs. Back in the basement, gravity reasserts itself, and you are able to run to the mirror room. You see that while you were running around the manor, Atamin seems to have evacuated everyone to the real world. As you approach the mirror, you look through to see a small crowd of fetchlings huddled together around Atamin's daughter, Manar. You see Atamin off to one side, watching as Nicasor stands over Baron Stepan, sword raised to strike.
With some effort, you get out of the Heart's chamber, leaving its strange corpse behind. As you cross the short distance across the "dining room", things become even more disconcerting. The walls and floor of the dining room buckle and warp, and become sharp, as if covered in caltrops. You are forced to move slowly to avoid tripping and cutting yourselves, and you hear Atamin shouting instructions to the family to go down the stairs. Reaching the door into the hallway, Nino looks out and sees Atamin ushering fetchlings to the stairs. Suddenly, the hallway between you and him winks out of existence ... an empty void filling the fifteen feet between you. Your only way out now is to go around the long way.
Out in the hallway, you hear shouts of concern, and the distinct sound of a child screaming in fear. Atamin steps out into the hallway and says, "To the mirror, then? I will make sure the family is making their way."
As the creature slumps down, Nino slams it again, while Patros and Ushi make more deliberate attacks on its exposed innards. Laiashi then pushes the mirror shard deep into its wound. Everyone waits for a few seconds, and sees that where the wounds had previously been closing up, they now lie still. Atamin says to Laiashi, "Well, I suppose trust is earned, after all. Thank you for telling me." Suddenly, your vision blurs. You quickly realize the walls and floor are trembling. As you pick yourselves up to move, your feet slide in the floor, as if it were made of mud.
Patros and Laiashi continue to scratch ineffectively against the creature's tough hide. Nino seems to be the only one who can consistently wound it with physical weapons. Thankfully, when Nino hits, he hits hard, and with a mighty blow, he tears a huge gash in its side, and the thing falls limp. Immediately the gash begins to close again, and you can see that your victory will be short lived without the final piece of the puzzle. "Quickly, administer the poison!" Atamin shouts, holding his hands ready for another blast of shadow-fire.
Ushi tries to force more light into the chamber, but his mind is still reeling from the effort the first one took. While Laiashi can't quite penetrate the Heart's tough hide, Nino and Patros fare better, each scoring a solid hit.
As its new wounds start to bind up, the Heart lashes out blindly, trying to stop the attack.
Combat Card:
========= Round 3 ========= Laiashi Nino Ushi Patros ---------- Atamin (red) ---------- The Heart {Heavily damaged but regenerating} {Apparently still blind}
The Heart attempts to lash at Patros's position, but is unable to find him!
As Laiashi moves in to position, Atamin steps next to Ushi. He moves his hands, and a beam of shadowy fire springs out toward the Heart.
The Heart reacts as if burned severely, even though the scorch marks begin healing immediately.
The Heart snaps its strange maw at Laiashi, who dodges nimbly. It then lashes out a tentacle at Patros, stinging him and wrapping him tightly!
Combat Card:
========= Round 2 ========= Ushi Nino Patros {grappled} Laiashi ---------- Atamin (red) ---------- The Heart {damaged but regenerating} {grappling Patros} =========
Patros runs in and swings his falcata, but despite the advantages he just isn't able to penetrate its tough exterior.
Secret roll for duration of blindness:
Ushi prays hard, and with a force of will manages to get light to burst around the Heart. It clearly does not like this imposition into its dark domain. While it recoils from the light, Nino rushes in, swinging his sword down hard. He barely manages to cut its tough hide, though he can tell the gash is already trying to pull itself together.
Initiative:
Combat Card:
========= Round 1 ========= Ushi Patros Nino Laiashi ---------- Atamin (red) ---------- The Heart ----------
"Well, nothing like a plan to take action with an unknown result! I guess if you kill us all, you go down with us. Lead on!"
As you collect your weapons back, Manar steps over to Atamin and has a whispered conversation. Atamin nods, and says to you, "Manar will gather the family together. Is there somewhere they should wait? Will we be exiting through the mirror in the basement, or some other means?"
"I believe you are going to have to handle that part yourself. I am willing to help defend you while you engage the creature, but I suspect Nicasor has chosen to leave you to it - if you succeed, he benefits, but if you fail, he is not harmed." He picks up his sword and nods to your weapons. "You came here to break the prison, so let us be to it."
Sorry about the slow pace. I'm liking the conversation you are having with Atamin and want to let it play out. Sadly, I've been nonstop at work every day until close to the end of the day, so I haven't been able to post as frequently as I used to.
"So you intend to simply attack it with brute force? What about this potion, or poison, or whatever it is? How do you administer it? While I want to get out of here, I do still value my life over my freedom."
"Which returns us to the question of 'what is it you need to do?' Exactly what sort of help do you need to make this work?"
"A thousand years is a significant punishment. I believe we should all be allowed to return home to our plane, and take our family and servants with us."
"By going down I mean or he will day or we will arrest him." he adds. Atamin looks at Nino quizzically. "He is already in prison ... if you want him "arrested", why bother coming here in the first place?"
"Indeed. So, how do we go about this?"
Atamin raises an eyebrow. "And what would convince you? We have only met, after all, and neither has much reason to trust the other."
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