Halali Skyseeker's page

6 dwarves, an ectoplasmic phantom, and a bird go to a library...

It'll be 6 or 7 hours, unless anyone has any tricks. But I can't see the resident monks and friends stopping us completing this task nor the rubbings in the crypt.

Can we call it here? There don't seem to be any potential complications as long as we all agree that we are cataloguing the library and then taking the crypt rubbings. Then we'll have completed the mission objectives.

"Let's just get on with the work we were assigned. These people have a lot of soul-searching to do. Leave them to it."

"May your god of forgiveness grant you peace" Halali tells the miserable guards.

"We have work to do."

"Library, then crypt. Maybe some of the lay-people here will be helpful. We might have a day's work ahead, but unless the library is full of poltergeists I think we're out of danger."

"Hey! Take a look around. Your 'Dakang' was a worm-demon, see?

Sorry we beat you up. We'd have preferred not to have to do it. But, well. "

Never one for polite chit-chat, Halali just points at the carnage in the priest's quarters.

"Smelling salts would help. Common alchemical item. No, I don't have any.

Anyway yes, let's wake the guards, but one at a time."

"The magic should wear off. Or we could try the 'bag of flour' trick. Anyone got flour? I don't think we'll find any in the kitchen here. Dust maybe. Bag o' dust. Yeah."

"What? Oh, you chuck it over the invisible thing. Might outline it. Might stick to it like Glitterdust. Dunno. First time I've faced an invisible critter as far as I remember."

"I'm just going to keep an eye on the guards we knocked out. Hopefully evil priest guy turns visible right before they wake up."

GM, is it possible to catch the demon in a Burning Hands without catching a party member now (moving first if needed)? Or if party members move out of the way? Looks like maybe our phantom might have to move, but it depends where the demon is.

"I may be able to flush him out..." Halali grumbles.

can one of you guys do and AoE effect...maybe chase him out?

Halali has one Burning Hands spell prepared. It's a 15' cone, so it could catch the demon, but the dwarves would need to coordinate a bit and I'm doubtful it would cause much damage. But maybe the BBEG doesn't have too many hp left??

With no time to apply her balm before the priest potentially gets out of the room somehow, Halali offers a prayer to her god.

May your blessed breath carry these darts, O Wind and Waves!

cold iron shuriken, bless, into melee: 1d20 + 4 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 + 1 - 4 = 20cold iron damage: 1d2 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
cold iron shuriken, bless, into melee: 1d20 + 4 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 + 1 - 4 = 14cold iron damage: 1d2 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

Full attack.

"Either he thinks he can escape, or he's going for Shooter. Grim! Get over here!"

Halali's spirit guide returns with another gooey bag, and Halali hurls it at the demon...

tanglefoot bag vs demon touch, into melee, bless: 1d20 + 4 - 4 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 4 - 4 + 1 = 6

Ref DC15 to avoid getting stuck in place if hit.

Also Tolvaj didn't use Fortune - it was in Halali's last post on the previous page but didn't get put on the tracker.

"Is he trying to escape? Hey Grim, go grab another one of those bags from the sleepy ladies outside."

Halali meanwhile shares the wisdom - or at least good fortune - of the ancients whilst she looks for a better throwing angle.

Fortune Hex on Tolvaj - roll twice for one skill check, ability check, attack roll or save in the next round.

The novice storm-monk grabs a small pot from her back, formulating a back-up plan.

Hex, draw a pot of Holy Weapon Balm from her pack.

Shuriken seeming to be the best option against the entangled spider-worm-demon, Halali keeps throwing...

cold iron pointy bits, bless, flurry: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 4 + 1 = 18cold iron pointy damage: 1d2 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
cold iron pointy bits, bless, flurry: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 4 + 1 = 8cold iron pointy damage: 1d2 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Halali looks over her shoulder again, considering her kusarigama. Then she hears the demon's 'taunt'.

"Cold iron, you say?"

Spinning out of the way of the zombie, Halali pulls a small cold iron spike from amongst her tresses, and hurls it up at the fiend.

half speed acrobatics to avoid zombie AoO: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19
cold iron shuriken vs evil priest demon, range, bless: 1d20 + 4 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 4 - 2 + 1 = 18cold iron damage: 1d2 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

"Do that again, Shooter!"

Halali urges the spirits of the ancestors to guide Ander's aim and ward him against the evil priest's spells.

Fortune Hex on Ander. Ander can reroll one attack roll, skill check, ability check or saving throw before Halali's next turn, and take the better result. He has to choose to use Fortune before rolling, so it's really a "roll twice, take best result".

No move action.

Halali whistles for her guide, Grim. "What is that worm-thing?!" she asks. "What does Shooter need to hit it with?"

Grim Know.Planes: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16

"Try different bullets Shooter!" she suggests. "Dran, if you step back a little I can try and burn these zombies up? Although" she notes the two undead already felled by Dran's blade "your sword works good too."

Making do with what she has at hand, Halali activates her wand and stabs the business end at the zombie in front of her.

clw vs green undead, touch: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (19) + 5 = 24positive energy damage: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4 DC11 Will for half.

"Maybe I should go get my kusari-gama back." A slashing weapon with Reach would probably be a good thing to have right now.

Halali makes her way down the stairs and takes stock. Seeing the priest and his pet zombies, she prioritises the priest - taking a wet-looking pouch from her belt as she approaches, she hurls it at the man who must surely be Dakang...

tanglefoot bag vs touch, range increment: 1d20 + 4 - 2 ⇒ (11) + 4 - 2 = 13

"Hey Shooter! There's a bug on the wall in here, come blow it up will you?!"

Standard Tanglefoot bag DC15 to avoid being Entangled if Halali hits. I don't know whether that would leave Dakang glued to the wall/ceiling or if he'd fall off.

I'll update Halali's AC in her header for pfe GM

clw wand: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6

Halali takes one more round, and is then good to go smash.

Halali calls down to the boys in the chapel, "You coming up or going round?"

Basically Halali just needs to know if Grunigon will have time to work his healing hex on her or if she's better off applying her own wand one more time then going through the curtain.

"Where you going, Shooter? You just got here!"

Halali activates her wand.

clw: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

"Damn thing."

Halai wants the dwarves to leave the unconscious guards and head straight for Dakang, pausing only for as short a time as possible to heal her wounds. She'll head through the curtain and down the steps - but wants to spend one more round with her wand unless she somehow gets in range of Grunigon's hex.

Halali takes advantage of Ander's assistance and hauls herself up her makeshift grapnel...

climb, accelerated (DC10): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17

..."Want a hand, Shooter?" she grins down at her accomplice.

If Ander wants, Halali can Ready an action to Aid his climb, or otherwise drop an arm down to shorten his climb if that's easier GM.

If Ander wants to try something else, Halali will draw her wand of CLW as part of a second move action.

"We've softened them up enough boys, now put them down! We're just giving the bad guy free prep time otherwise!"

I've moved you Kaz.

Halali realises she can't get through the line of dwarves and casts her eyes around the chapel, wondering how thick the walls are. She notices the raised pulpit, and realises that there is another way through. Using her kusarigama as a makeshift grapnel, she latches on to the pulpit.

Move, and throw the business end of the weapon. It has the grapple property and reach.

"Wanna give me a boost up here, Shooter?"

"Gah! This is why I said we needed to disarm them!" Halali cries out in pain and anger as she puts her hand to her wound.

"That one means to throw something, watch yourselves."

Halali makes a defensive strike at the spear-wielder before retreating...

unarmed strike vs green, bless, defensive fighting: 1d20 + 5 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (17) + 5 + 1 - 4 = 19nonlethal damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

Pushes her AC to 23, Touch AC to 16 (both +2 vs evil).

...and drawing her long chain-weapon.

Provokes an AoO for the movement.

Ander, we're probably better off letting Dran whack 'em with Halali using her reach weapon from the second rank. We don't want you stuck in place where nobody can get past. But let's see if Halali's movement triggers Yellow's throw anyway.

Halali steps into the breach...

"I can strike from second rank, Dran. Wait on my mark."

unarmed strike vs green, bless: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 5 + 1 = 19nonlethal damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9 Does the phantom threaten when incorporeal? I think only if it's holding a touch spell charge or when facing other incorporeal creatures?

Next round Halali will likely strike then retreat, she won't mind drawing an AoO if necessary.

"Just grab these goons, take their arms, stick them behind us, right?" Halali continues her monologue.

"Make some room, drag them away, it's the quickest way."

Bilos and Gruni are right. The two stunned guards are just a wall of flesh right now. However, combat manouevres are generally quite easy to land on stunned blind opponents - if you don't roll a 1 - so it should be feasible to Drag or Reposition the guards as Standard actions whilst disarming them with a Move, if we manage the odd 5' step to shuffle ourselves around.

GM do the guards have any other apparent armament aside from their spears?

"We only need to hit the one that's moving, you know" Halali admonishes, sticking to the Dwarven tongue. "Take the others' weapons away and I doubt they'll threaten us when they've recovered. We'll move quickly on to the priest and clear up this whole mess!"

Halali matches actions to words, and retrieves the weapon from Blue guard. For good measure, she grabs hold of the same guard's leg and pulls...

reposition combat manoeuvre v blue, bless: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 5 + 1 = 7
If this succeeds by at least 10, blue will be repositioned behind Dran, next to Grunigon. Otherwise I think she stays where she is. I think I can pull her through Dran's square anyway.

Oh well, the plan is completely moot with that roll!

"Deal with this one quickly, and disarm the stunned guards!" Halali informs her comrades, speaking in Dwarven in hopes that the active aasimar won't understand.

"If they recover from the spell and take up their arms again, this is going to be a whole lot more difficult" she continues.

Those who are stunned will have dropped their spears, but we'll provoke AoOs by picking up the spears from the ground.

Not needing a weapon, Halali strikes the active guard with foot and fist...

stunning fist, bless, flurry: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 5 + 1 = 12nonlethal damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4 on a hit, forces a DC13 Fort save, Stun for 1 round.
unarmed strike, bless, flurry: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 5 + 1 = 16nonlethal damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

...then she steps back to allow Dran an opening.

Dice gods, I beseech you!

Diplomacy 1d20+6 not counting aids or magical boosts.

I think you get a +2 for Enhanced Diplomacy and reroll (and take the best) from Fortune Hex, before any Aids. At least a couple of Aid rolls should also get +2 from Enhanced Diplomacy I should think - I'd suggest Dran since he at least has a positive skill modifier. The rest of us can probably count on Guidance on Aid rolls.

Halali will pre-cast Magic Weapon on Dran's greatsword and Protection from Evil on herself, as well as Mage Armour via her wand and Bilos.

Diplomacy Aid, Guidance: 1d20 - 3 + 1 ⇒ (16) - 3 + 1 = 14

"We apologise for our bluntness. As you know dwarves are not renowned for etiquette. But we have taken the opportunity that your good grace afforded and have meditated upon Korada's wisdom. We hope that you have done similarly in our absence and will allow us the freedom to act."

"Alright. Dran, can you prepare a few battle spells? I think it would be worth a Bless before we approach the guards. If they let us past, it'll help against Dakang. If they don't, well it'll still help us. I don't think we need to show them anything, they'll have seen it already or talked to a monk who's seen it.

Our ancestors are with us. I hope our gods are too."

Enhanced Diplomacy looks like it'll work on everyone, helping our Aid checks. Halali has Guidance which doesn't stack but will cut down buff time if that's an issue. I'd suggest Enhanced Diplomacy on Kaz and on Dran as the best Aid. If Halali stands at Kaz's shoulder, she can get into a position where she might catch all of the guards in her Colour Spray, but we'd need others close at hand to take the weapons they drop if they get stunned.

I think we've time to put minutes/level spells up before we talk to the guards. They're physically close to Dakang. If we fight the guards, we may want buffs up and if we talk our way past then we're near certain to fight Dakang without a pause. Halali has one Magic Weapon and one Protection from Evil prepped (3 mins duration). She'll need her Mage Armour wand activating again.

"'I'm just doing my job' isn't a defence. If you do evil because someone else told you to, you still did evil.

I suppose there's a third way. Unlikely, but you never know. Our mission says nothing about tangling with evil cults. We just need to survey the monastery. If we're allowed to do that, we can be on our way. Kaz wouldn't like leaving an evil priest in charge here, but we could just ask for permission to catalogue the library and take rubbings in the crypt, I think that's all that's needed. The crypt was off-limits though, and I really expect that if we go in asking for that then the guards will lose any sympathy they might have."

"I can speak with the dead" Halali offers. "Well, they speak to me. I'm assuming the spirits are dead anyway. Plenty of them complain that things aren't as good as they used to be.

If you lead Kaz, I've got a blessing up my sleeve for you. And if they still don't see the truth, I'll knock 'em out with a Colour Spray spell and we can disarm them before we barge in on Dakang."

Halali communes with the spirits. When she is done she seems smaller than before, but her eyes sparkle with starlight.

Halali switches her Hex to Fortune, which she can use to let Kaz reroll his Diplomacy check. (The text of the ability actually says to use it before the roll is made, so in effect you're just rolling twice and using the better result). Halali also switches to Heavens Spirit, replacing Enlarge Person with Colour Spray. I'll double check my spell list and see if Halali wants to prepare anything different.

"You got anything other than nuts I can munch?" Halali asks Shooter. "I only brought a waterskin."

"It's probably safer in the hills. I don't expect the Ruby Phoenix populated her demi-plane with wandering monsters.

Hey, are any of you guys Hill Dwarves?"

Halali doesn't mind taking first watch with Grim, but I doubt it's really necessary if we stay outside of the monastery. Inside, I would be concerned for Dakang's trickery.

Halali keeps opening her mouth to interject - with some piece of great wisdom, naturally - only for another of the boys to put their proverbial dwarven clodhopper in it.

She bites her lip and looks from one dwarf to the next.

Sorry I didn't get a chance to post yesterday, but it looks like even a successful Aid from Halali wouldn't tip the balance. At this point I don't mind if we fight the guards now, but if we've got the choice to try again in 24 hours that also lets us prepare better with spells and abilities. Halali could flex into Fortune hex to give rerolls for example.

"Grief wracks a person's mind, Shooter. Don't take it personally. She'll need time..."

"Now, I think it's time we went to see Dakang."

Halai cuts down Wei's corpse with the kama on her chain-weapon.

"We avoided injury here, friend. But the zombies almost killed us. It took a lot of healing wand charges to patch us up."

As she works - showing care and deference to the deceased - Halali adds "Strikes me as odd - no, as wrong - that a peaceful god would expect his worshippers to do violence to themselves. Yet that's what you've done with your 'kiss', and that's what Wei did here, albeit at the urging of an evil spirit.

Even Gozreh, whom nobody thinks of as kindly, does not compel her devotees to self-mutilation."

Halali strokes the scar on her face. My own divine 'kiss'. Am I truly Gozreh's Chosen? Or am I suffering trials no different than these Koradans?

"Your temple is haunted. One of your fellow aspirants is dead in the kitchen thanks to one of those haunts, and on the other side of the temple you'll find the remains of several juju zombies that tried to kill us after we tidied up the garden for you.

Anyway, the kitchen is closest I think."

"Maybe talk to some of the ordinary followers rather than the guards, first. Where's the guy with the spheres, from the meditation chamber? Maybe he's back there.

Come on then."

Halali leads the group - if they'll follow - back to the chamber where the lone monk showed them how to follow Korada's meditations.

"Hello?" she calls if she sees a monk present.

"We have some things we want to show you. Some new things for you to meditate on..."

if social skills are called on, someone with a positive CHA modifier should lead ;)

"We should try to get the temple guards out of the way first. Maybe they'll see reason when confronted with what we've found: Gastidem's tricks, undead in the halls, and a haunt that caused one of their own to take his own life..."

Apologies for lack of posting, I'm at the in-laws. Everything is fine but I've had fewer opportunities to post than expected. Travelling tomorrow, normal service will be resumed Monday.

I'm traveling tomorrow (Monday) and probably won't be able to post until late Tuesday night. Please bot me if necessary.

"Okay, this place is really messed up. Finger-chopping rituals, sword-wielding zombies, and now this! What's wrong with these people?

I think we should drag the worshippers in here! Let's see what Korada's got to say about hanging the chef!"

Does the corpse look old, GM? As in decaying?

Halali helps the quick search...

perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (3) + 9 = 12

"Anyone interesting in "Glass-blowing for Relaxation and Self-exploration"? Or 'Basket Weaving: A Grell's Thesis"? What's a grell when it's at home anyway?"

"We need a plan for confronting Dakang" Halali scowls.

"There are a couple of other rooms on the other side of the monastery we could search, whilst the sermonising is still going on.

Or we could bring what we know to the guard outside Dakang's quarters, maybe they'll let us in."

"I want a look at those rune carvings. Maybe they'll tell us who the occupants were. Besides, it's part of our mission to take rubbings from the crypt. Get your journals out boys."

Halali enters the crypt cautiously, then employs a Scroll of Comprehend Languages to see if she can understand the runic script on the sarcophagi.

You can’t take averages in society play, though I certainly wish one could.

Is that a rule? Not saying you're wrong, but I've certainly played at plenty of tables where it's been allowed out of combat.

"Gozreh's Beard! When did bloody zombies learn to use massive 2-handed cleavers?!"

Halali glowers at the dead-again monsters on the ground, and casts her gaze towards the chapel. "I've no doubt that Dakang placed these creatures here. There existence may be evidence we can use against him. But first we need to patch our wounds, and see what the bastards were guarding."

Halali offers to wave the appropriate wands about for any who need it.

That felt like a close call, ouch!

"Get in there and finish it!"

Halali shouts - exhorting her fellow dwarves to heed the call of the ancestors as she drives the spirits to war, and hoping that the pathfinders aren't about the join the ancestors...

Hampering Hex the zombie. -2AC and -2CMD for 2 rounds, Will DC14 reduces duration to 1 round.

Halali steps back to make way for Dran or Kaz, and holds Kaz's axe out in case he should want it back yet.

Halali has Kaz's axe.

"Storm and salt! Finish him!"

axe vs zombie: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

"You looking for this Kaz?" Halali steps back and waves Kaz's axe around.

I'll hex it next round if it's still standing (and if Halali's still standing).

The spirits invoked by Halali drive her to battle-lust; the cool-headed thing to do would be to turn the spirits against the last undead, as she did to aid Dran's attack, but this time Halali allows - or perhaps simply cannot prevent - her ancestors to direct her...

axe, charge, flank: 1d20 + 6 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 6 + 2 + 2 = 17damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (8) + 3 = 11

"Room for one more, Dran!"

"Get clear Gruni! Dran and I will finish it off!"

Halali delays till after Grunigon, to allow the rogue to (sneak) attack then 5' step away to make room for her.

"You got any holy water? That should hurt 'em. Or a tanglefoot bag to keep 'em in place..."