Xerissa Auraraun's page

"WOah girl!" says Xerissa, "We aren't giving up that easily. It took a lot to get down here. Not without taking a good look around first. My gut says the treasure is somewhere on this level. Perhaps even here."

Nice try Beetle.

Gandel chuckles, "The note is from our friend Xaven reminding us not to touch anything.

Xerissa raises one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows. "I see. So! The million gp question then. Is Moonpate wrong and the halfing understands our mutual predicament all too well and this is his way of looking out for us? OR is he just psyching us out so he can keep us away from any treaure we might find down here? Some of us went through a lot to get here."

I'm still hanging near the back for the moment, around that corner even.

I completely missed the point where we acquired the potions. At least we got 'em.

Ya. I used supra-Diplomacy and got them to agree to hand the potions over and Xaven's weapon was put away. That's why i was kinda surprised some fo us started laying into them all of a sudden. We were nicely using them as trap-finding tools to be ganked in the future at a time convenient to us. Maybe it was just a misread then. Anyways, let's move on, we got other trapfinders in this party I can gank in the future at a time convenient to me (just kidding). Where to next?

"Good riddance then?"

Xerissa quickly begins discussing options with party members still in ear shot.

Ha! I think that electronic d20 landing on the 20 for the save is the sound of our Plan "A" disintegrating. Board's gone silent. If we're hunting them, I think we need all of us to chase em down at once and grapple and tie him back up. I'll get in there with a tanglefoot bag or something. But if not, let's stop taking turns injuring ourselves and burning off our spell resources. No way Suekahn let's us rest, I think, not if he's watching us.

"Wait! What?! What just happened?

Xavkon - nice! Well I don't think me bombing him is going to help our situation as long as we are tied together with the Pact and I'm guessing my DIplomacy is kinda negated at this point. If we need to see where they have run to remember we got DOnkor's clairvoyance thing. But I'd rather save our resources for dealing with the fiend. I feel like we're burning up a lot of energy on what was at one point looking like allies. THough so I'm not totally inconsistent, i remain just fine with ganking em, if that's what people want to do, we were probably gonna do that at some point anyways.

I go away for a couple days and there's peanut butter in my Diplomacy. Should I bother to fix this? Cause maybe i still can. Or should we just get it over with and gank em? Immobilizing Xaven as oppose to eliminating him. I feel like we're right back to where we were before with these guys.

I had a hunch you would be up to the task.

Beetle, I'm taking that as my affirmation to proceed then. Xerissa will join Hrokon and charm the pants off him while they travel and make the trade. She will shoot down any other Dune Squaders who bash Xaven or Hrokon to make herself look good. Let me know if you need a new Diplomacy check, but hopefully this is just a continuation. Once she gets the nine potions she distributes them to the party. Problem solved (for now).

Well apparently Hal is paying, so I needn’t worry but if not, here’s what I got to trade:

-Potion of Cure Light Wounds,

-Potion of Fox's Cunning,

-Potion of Hide from Animals,

-Potion of Hide from Undead,

-Potion of Keen Senses,

-Potion of Mage Armor,

-Potion of Pass without Trace,

-Potion of Protection from Evil,

-Potion of Resist Energy,

-Potion of Restoration, Lesser,

-Potion of Sanctuary,

-Potion of Shield of Faith,

-Potion of Spider Climb,

-Potion of Touch of the Sea,

-Potion of Water Breathing

I think we need by my count nine gaseous form potions. The above won’t have the same street value by a longshot, but with my awesome diplomacy surely he will see it is better to have this collection than nothing but the same potion over and over. Besides, how does he know the pharaohs gaseous form liquid even works outside the pyramid?

And in case it wasn’t clear, once Hrokon bites it, I’m getting my gear back. There’s a gold piece in it for the Dune Squader who helps make that happen.

You guys are just makin my DIplomacy all the more potent.

It appears my post was eaten...

Hal shifts to get Xaven in his sight, "Calm down Halfling! Don't you dare stab yourself like some fool. You should have let on what you knew instead of trying to play us false! I will pay Hrokon for the potions on behalf of all of us if you agree to stop your mad threats! Besides no one has laid a hand on him."

"What do you mean false? They haven't lied. Did you give them an inventory of everything you carry?"

"Hal's right though, we can simply pay or trade for the potions. Xaven already knows he needs us to get out of here alive with him. THey already want to help us."

"So Gandel, let Hrokon go. Everybody here is reasonable, right Xaven?"

I say we can always turn Hrokon upside down and shake him like in Breach's future dream any point. No need to do it now. If he bites it in the dungeon, it gets even easier to take his stuff.

Nice move Gandel!

"Hey boys! Go easy on poor Hrokon there. He hasn't done anything wrong. It's not his fault he's smarter than you all and thought to grab some potions."

Diplomacy check: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (17) + 14 = 31

"How about instead we do a trade. you probably don't need a backpack of gaseous form potions. Why not let me swap you some better stuff for your collection."

Xerissa's probably really talking to Xaven as Hrokon probably can't answer (correct?) But c'mon, that's a sweet roll.

"Ha! That's what we shoulda done. Load up on the potions of gaseous form from the pool for the return trip. We're all a bunch of fools for missing that and not thinking of it first. Now we gotta grab em off the half-orc. Somebody keep an eye on Xaven. Don't let him do anything stupid."

Initiative: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22

I do feel a little bad that we're muggin him for his stuff, but hey, we gotta get outta here too. I'm going to delay until after Moonpate as I like his softer approach here.

"I'm going to guess that warning sign is a bluff by the pharaohs to keep people away from the secret to their pact magic. Something this powerful they wanted all to themselves. I'm starting to get why Kimrassa wants a piece of it."

I'm cool with that order, though that order doesn't quite fit Moonpate's caution that we not bunch together. Maybe insert 5-10 feet between each pairing?

I've decided Xaven is to going to attack us, he can't really, but I still have no trust and want Xerissa to watch him like a hawk. He can still rob us with the old slight of hand/pick pocket.

All right, all you brainy types - time to put those impressive Spellcraft modifiers to work. And while you're at it, Hurgah is STILL waiting to find out what the black stuff he took from the dead monk is.

Xerissa will identify Hurgah's potion.1d20 + 16 ⇒ (16) + 16 = 32 plus whatever she should get for Brew potion and master Alchemist feats.

Also since nobody else wants it, Xerissa shall take the wand of CLW. Might just use it to keep our bazillion collective HP at full.Also take the hat of disguise and cloak of resistance. Maybe you guys should just sell the wand rifle as a rare curiosity or keep it as a trophy.

"I'd take care and make sure he's actually dead. He just kinda fell over there. Didn't look like anybody touched him right before."

And I know this GM.

Oh, I guess I should actually roll that perception check.d20+13

Keeb off the whide blade undil he is dead. Karek reminds the party. Don'd link our vade do 'is doo.

"That's it! The incomprehensible and hygenically-challenged dwarf has the answer! That's how we get the devil. We gotta pact him with someone expendable!"

How do you stop a fiend who teleports as a swift action? Bind him with someone else who can't teleport away and then kick the crap out of the fiend's new buddy. We could use Sceptre or Hrokon or even a summoned dire rat. Now how to figure out how to get Suekahn on the Pactstone. I'm a genious, it's OK to say it.

If it helps, I'll just come off delay and get out of the way! I think I am still back there somewhere. But I don't see him right?

"Ugh! This is getting confusing. What side are we on?!"

I guess I'll switch my readied action to a delay then. Things are too fluid - and target poor - for me to go first.

Awesome. Great move Moon.

I'm in for initiative. 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13

"What was that!?"

Upon feeling the force of Hurgah's hit and Donkor's unnecessary showboat stabbing, and the exhilerating feeling of having more hit points than ever before Xerissa says "Wild!" But she won't lose sight of the fact that something hidden on the ground might be stalking the polymorph team. I'm still ready to bomb it, but obviously not if other Dune Squaders get in the area of effect. No sense hurtin the pool.

Breach notices something strange coming from the backpack of the soon-to-be butterfly and moves to inspect. "Now what the blazes are you?" he asks out loud and to no one in particular as he follows it. "Do you all see this?" he asks idly.

"Yeah! And whatever it is it's headed for our peeps! I don't like it"

I will follow it with a readied action to toss a bomb at it if so much as looks threatening. Somebody back me up!

Hahaha! Nice one. HEY PACTSTONE! Our half-orc is cooler than your half-orc! Also, I bet that hand-crossbow, if that is what it is, has a range increment issue if he's at the top of a 60 or 100 foot shaft or whatever it is. P.S. I'll ID that potion for you once this new encounter is over.

Wicked idea wizard!!! Using the dungeon as a permanent polymorph other spell on tap. Love it. Do it!!

Xerissa compliments Moonpate on his sudden inspiration and pulls out an empty alchemy flask and hands it to him for him to use. She might even poke an air hole in the top of the cork with a sewing needle. She too can't help but chuckle at the halflings fate. Maybe she's just a gen at heart.

But sorry bout this guys, but as soon as Hal isn't looking or the Dune Squad is moving on, Xerissa is going to quietly pocket the flasks from the Xaven equipment pile. There's no way she can pass on what might be 6 potions. We need this stuff. She will attempt to identify them of course, which should be a snap for her, unless this is another debacle like the gaseous form pool thing. Let me know if you need any rolls.

"I must agree with our fair companion. This mercenary is not to be trusted. We should search him well, tie him up good, and incentivize him not to escape. I'm sure Xerissa and Gandel can rig a bomb to keep him still. When we are finally done with the cursed tomb we can decide to be merciful and let him go...or not."

Xerissa is happy that one of the party has finally notice what a knock out she is."Can do wizard! Breach helped me rig it up last time." She steps forward, ready to ply her deadly trade.

If we're doing this team up on Suekahn thing first let me know and I'll obviously hold off. Otherwise I'll prepare a bomb for Breach to tie to his bindings. Personally, my vote is we slit his throat and move on, but I remain cool with anything, including this plan or the team-up the halfling is obviously trying to slow-play us into. I could accept the devil is the greater threat.

Actually, I suspect we just found the Pact Stone...and it's a bit bigger than expected. As in, big enough to build an entire pyramid on top of.

Holy Schmidt! We're sitting on top of our goal? or one of em, at least? I guess we sorta forgot to cast detect magic, eh? And maybe a few other stuff. Not sure how we'll keep it out of the bad guys hands if we can't put it in our pockets and run away with it. Or how will Hal destroy it. Anyways, Xerissa doesn't know about this so she won't comment yet. it looks like Gandel and Karek are keeping it quiet for now, possibly to hide this discovery from Xaven.

" I am here based on an authority much greater than any secular ruler could ever dream to be. You think any of us fear a half orc? Your bravado is misplaced. You have given us no cause to kill you but certainly we should tie him up and leave him, we do not need him interfering with our goals here".

I feel like I've seen this con before in another game. The halfling impresses us as a straight shooter-type with his honesty about his rougishness and then rogues us. I'd be cool with just eliminating him now while we have the upper-hand. but I get that there might be alignment issues for some of you so I'd understand if you prefer some half-measure. If we battle him later, it'll be just as fun. It's all good. Just make sure our rear's are totally watched. Besides, if I'm right this is a "pet" NPC of the GM and those are notoriously tough to kill.

Xerissa rolls her eyes at the feisty halfling. "As you wish," she says to Halstadt. "But I buy none of it."

More important though...Did Gandel just discover that the entire pyramid above is rigged to fall down on us or something? Should we get the frick out of this room?!

I'm guessing he's a rogue, which is fortuitously an area we are a bit light on, but I can't abide by him trash talkin the party. No objections from me hurgah. but before he does, I'd best check.

Xerissa turns to Donkor and quietly asks, "I don't suppose he's likely to have any info on Auraraun of the Lost Scroll?"

Gotta look after our pet sub-plots,right?

I'm with Hurgah on this one, and not just cause he's got a shiny new hero point. Default is fine, but i want to move to stay in position where I can strike. It's gonna be a single dude, let's surround him, not line-up. Though I think our real problem is that we just wandered into the middle of the chamber without checkin for traps. We might get ambushed from all sides or something. Stay sharp everyone!

"Hello, hello!"

"Third level down, then?" muses Donkor. "When I was in the Veinstone Pyramid, the third level down proved to be the bottom. It was there that we met the most fierce of the pyramid's guardians. . ."

Ever influenced by his death goddess, he let's the ominous thought hang in the air.

"Yeah, and maybe someday you'll actually tell us what went on in that pyramid." Although Xerissa can be overheard, she is speaking more to herself. There is a slight bitterness to her tone as, while she has come to really like the guy, she still feels Donkor has not been completely honest as to what he knows about what happened to her Father. She then moves on, eager to catch up with the others exiting the room. Also going to follow the purple cloud closely, but behind Karek and Hurgah. Got a regular bomb out ready to throw if an opening presents itself.

Speaking of me! Xerissa will get in line for the air elemental lift, going next if nobody else is. Was gonna go the polymorph bug route but it doesn't look as fun anymore. Holy crap. Combined with my fireball incident the party might have a bigger issue with friendly fire than the opposition.

Somebody down there be ready to catch me when the air elemental runs out!

So are we moving the party to the lower level? I am all for unifying everyone. I think the Beetle tries to split us up on purpose. But by my count there are two other rooms on this middle level that we know of. Should we leave them behind? Also Hurgah has nailed how the shaft works. Nice one. At least I think so. I'd argue Hurgah thinsk simply enough to figure it out while the rest of us over-INT's over-analyzed it.

I am ignoring the Vanilli reference. Anyways, Xerissa just lost her ride, so Xerissa will instead move so she has a clear shot at the captured gas cloud and wait for it to solidify. She's not going on a readied action, just on delay, cause I don't want some legalese trigger. But when the cloud solidifies, she'll assess, and if she's unhappy, it's bombs away. One of the things to take into account is whether she'll hit the air elemental or other allies. Anybody giving any thought to what happens if the cloud lasts longer than the elemental?

Oh right! I did come off of delay. Don't think that I'm any less perfect though! Well no need to continue with the rope any longer. Xerissa moves to the edge of the shaft, the big one, so she's able to jump aboard the air elemental express if needed. She keeps an eye on the tube, the small one, in case she needs to chuck a bomb at it. She gets a bomb out for that purpose.

A lot of stuff going down it would seem. Pact you will have to let me know if I can say this and stay on delay or if I need to come off delay to speak.

"Heads up everyone! A purple cloud started to come out of the tube. When I saw it, it saw me and sucked back inside. I think someone has followed us!!"

I don't think it's the Suekahn. if he wanted to get in the room he would have just teleported. Unless he was doing this to try to take a safe peek.

Oh sure, cliffhanger. But Xerissa probably can't see whatsever behind the double doors with the sand wall anyways. Or can she with the hole Karek's been making?

As to the spoiler tag, Hurgah may not have had much luck but Perception is my middle name:

middle name: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (13) + 18 = 31

Xerissa comes off delay and starts getting a length of rope out. She'll start feeding it down the shaft. I guess that'll take more than a round. We'll get Breach back up the old fashioned way. But I don't think Xerissa is strong enough to do the hoisting. Perhaps one of our handy goons could assist? If I have to I'll toss Breach my potion of spider climb and he can get up that way, but it might be better to save. Unless we're all going down the shaft in a moment anyways, in which case we should just leave him there.

"Breach, what do you see down there?"

Am I able to avoid the obvious misunderstanding by shouting,"Breach! Watch out for Gandel's spider! I think it's coming down to give you a lift back up!" Who is up next? I can't help but notice the Beetle is trying to split us in two directions again. This time while we get picked off by an fiendish egyptian nightcrawler.

Put me down for a delay as well. Not sure what we'll do here. It sounds like Moonpate has something in mind? Do we rescue Lydia? Or is that just a trap in the making? Do we pack ourselves in a confined corridor to protect ourselves from getting split up by his wall attack? or is that an area effect story in the making?

Xerissa can't actually beat the hardness without planting a bomb at least, so maybe she'll get out of the way and let the angry dwarf smash away. Total defence if she can still do that.

Teleport or dim door as a swift action?! That's pretty freakin uNrEaL. Not sure what we do to stop that. If he's healing up inbetween these attack, we've got issues. We mgiht need to plan a way to beat him down in a single round. Not sure this room is the place to do it, but then I'm not sure where else. Yoiks!

Xerissa moves over to the hole in the sand wall, staying on the same current side. I want her to be able to move from side to side quickly if need be. But I don't want her blocking the hole, in case another party member needs to suddenly rush through. She'll get one of her tools, like a sickle and help the elemental work away on that wall.

THat was nuts!!! Way to go!!! At some point if enough people pile on, maybe he'll sag and sink softly to the ground.

Xerissa cheers!

Still staying on delay. Xerissa should still have her back to the wall and be away from the lip of that pit where the action is. She's got a dispelling bomb in her hand still.

I remeber the last time Xerissa started chugging bombs at a wall that had some of her party members on the other side. What fun that was.

I remember! But that's cause the party dim doored into me. As the person on the safe side I was trying to help by getting rid of an opposing wall, something which might be useful here, BTW. in the meantime, i'll hold those bombs.

Huh?! Do i sense I am suffering from some kind of affliction or something? Can I talk normal? She's gotta know something, right?

Hal will hold, "Donkor, can you see what is on the other side of that new wall! Our friends may be in trouble!"

Uh yeah. Mos def we're in frikin trouble. Let me see if I can't help with that.

Xerissa screams. Like for real and really loud so she's heard through the wall. I'd like her to come off delay for that free action and then go back on it so she doesn't lose her turn. Can I do that? Don't know what to do for her substantive actions just yet. She wants to blow the wall apart with some bombs, but I'm kinda worried were in a confined space and that's unwise.

Now that we are more or less out of initiative, Donkor saunters over to the sand wall and sees what his goddess shows him on the other side of it. Another round of game-breaking Clairvoyance. Any idea how much he's used today?

Nice! Totally do that. Since we last rested, i think he's only used the two rounds on the empty room that turned out to be that heart beat thing. I wouldn't drop out of initative just yet though, I think that's what beetle wants us to do-we've got two high-gear 4th level one round per level spells draining away.

Xerissa is staying put. She switches from a readied action to a hold. She'll come off as soon as the bad guy shows himself or another good reason arises.

Well i think he's made us pop off our high-tier spells and then teleported away so the duration runs out. Then he's gonna try and scry and die. We need to counter that. It's a devil right, they're pretty intelligent. Well some of em anyways.

Xerissa moves her back to the wall and readies an action to chuck her dispelling bomb.

"Easy on the spells guys. This might take some patience. Get ready to cover each other's backs!"

I cry at all saves.

Xerissa makes mystery Will save: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (18) + 10 = 28

When her turn comes, she'll take a readied action to bomb his $ss to the stone age if he re-appears somewhere she can get a clear shot without hitting a fellow party member. Actually, let's make it a dispelling bomb instead. He's prob got really good fire resistance.

Ha, ha! I love it. Usually it's our beloved GM who is pulling the rules fixes on me. Give it to him guys! He totally deserves this. Seriously.

Sorry I missed initative. I suspect after the Sue-Demon has his turn the landscape might change so I'll wait and see before declaring Xerissa's action. I totally wish I had quick draw though, with Donkor's spell I could be whipping out an insane amount of bombs. But I get it that once the party's got the surround, bombs are not cool. I might just buff instead.