Rasina, coughing and gagging due to the nausea created by the swarm, and only nods weakly.
Rasina moves out of the peryton's shadow. Durnast, you're clear! Nadeq, you can throw your oil bomb, or else ready an action to levitate the dark swarm's next victim, if they're close enough.
Alia will just try to get out of the shadow reach, but close enough to be able to rescue some of the victims.
She also growls to Swiftpaws who will move out of the shadows, back to Alia.
Seeing the slight new-comer pull away from the Swarm, Durnast sees his opening to hit the swarm,
and though Artimus is right by the abomination, decides he needs to take the opportunity anyways.
<Watch out Artimus! Anybody who can, get Artimus away from the swarm, I'm going to hit it with a Fireball!> via Message.
Cam hovers above Durnast, Aiding Another to Saves.
Seeing Rasina make it to safety makes Nadeq redirect his spell in the last moment, targeting the paladin instead.
Actually, my apologies all around. Richard said he as trying to damage the evil thing, not heal people. So, nobody got healed from Richard's channel. I'm sorry for the confusion.
The Usurer obliterated the ranger ho had just arrived to the fight, not the acolyte that you and Artimus saved.
If within 170ft Mikka will once again command the lightning to crash into the verminous entity.
She reaches into her quiver, drawing out a worn horn, even as the thunder echoes across the area.
Actually, my apologies all around. Richard said he as trying to damage the evil thing, not heal people. So, nobody got healed from Richard's channel. I'm sorry for the confusion.
Did it actually do anything ... and did I notice ?
How far is Mikka? Within line of sight?
Mikka is indeed within 170', but she doesn't have a clear sight line to the dark swarm. (She could step out into the road, between the ranger's compound and the wellhouse. That would give her a straight line of sight south to the commons. But she can target the square of the peryton's shadow from where she is; there's certainly enough ruckus down there.)
And there's a pseudodragon next to her. She hears a voice in her head. <Feeling better?>
Did it actually do anything ... and did I notice?
No, it's not undead. (As you recall, the hobgoblin cleric with skulls on his robes seemed to injure it with a wave of negative energy.)
Round Five
26 - Rasina moves to the west, getting clear of the dark swarm for the moment.
25 - Durnast holds his attack.
24 - Chamomile:
23 - Alia: readies an action to rescue the thing's next victim.
22 - Swiftpaws:
19 - Hobgoblin cleric: he sighs wistfully as he sees the ranger perish. "Died doing what she believed in." He fixes his gaze on the dark swarm. "Let's see if I can manage the same." And he calls forth another wave of negative energy, hitting both the peryton's shadow and Artimus. (Artimus, take another points of damage. A Will save of 15 reduces that to 7.) The swarm (Will save =) spasms, and you hear the cracking of a hundred exoskeletons.
The woman Artimus resuced, the acolyte, turns towards the dark swarm and invokes a complementary wave of darkness. (She's closer, and careful to exclude the Paladin from her area of effect.) There's a smaller effect, but still noticable.
14 - Mikka: calls down another lightning strike on it, which seems to do very little damage, and draws forth a horn.
13 - Nadeq: levitates Artimus away from the swarm.
13 - Durnast acts now and hits the area with a flash of fire. (its Reflex save: ) There's some sizzle from the ground, but the swarm appears unhurt. (If your suspicions are correct and this thing is resistant to fire, you may have just not done enough damage.)
12 - The peryton's shadow chitters "Not so fast, manling." It sweeps west to cover Rasina again. As soon as it touches the celestial sorceress, the dark swarm casts poison on her. (Rasina, you'll need to make a Fortitude save, DC 14, to avoid taking of Constitution damage.) It just barely gets to her, with the first fiendish arthropods climbing up the back of her calves, ...
12- Alia acts now and rushes forward, grabbing Rasina and pulling the half-elf free before the swarm can overwhelm her.
12 - Montegue:
12 - Artimus:
9 - Richard:
5 - Windrazor:
3 - Rangers:
btw, Durnast went ahead a drew out an oil lantern with his Move Action.
Montague continues to stay away from the shadow. After all someone must survive to go after Gurg.
Montague continues to stay away from the shadow.
Have you anything to say to the Usurer?
After all someone must survive to go after Gurg.
Will Save
Artimus lets out a pained grunt as he is struck by the blast of negative energy and then is swept upwards above the fireball. He shakes his head, looking around, unsure immediately if this is a result of friend of foe. When the swarm moves away he calls out "Lower me back! I cannot do much to harm this thing, but I can aid those who can!" He tries to will himself back down, grabbing up his sword when he reaches his feet again.
Rasina's body shudders and is wracked with several spasms as the poison takes ahold of her. Leaning against the female stranger who came to her, she gasps "Thanks for your assistance, that thing is drawn to my blood!"
As Fireballs explode and Unholy energies erupt, Cam decides he should get back to his master's side.
Windrazor dives towards his mistress assured of no approaching enemy.
And there's a pseudodragon next to her. She hears a voice in her head. <Feeling better?>
Mikka begins to respond before she even realizes the situation.
"Better, but not well."
Round 5, continued
24 - Chamomile: makes his way back to Durnast, hiding as best he can
12 - Montegue: holds his action
12 - Artimus: holds his action
9 - Richard: you're up
5 - Windrazor: approaches Mikka
3 - The remaining ranger, and the Usurer
And that will bring us to Round 6.
Montague turns to the Usurer. "What is this thing", as he drops the creature close to the man. "If you can speak with it, send it away".
"I suppose you know as much about it as I do. And it seems well beyond speaking now.
"Or did you mean its shadow over there? Me, take it away? I don't think it will come to that.
"You know, Sammar sent his people into the desert yesterday. Why, do you think, didn't he end you with them?"
Richard looks around, hoping that someone else can defeat the beast, his arsenal of weapons does nothing against this horrible shadow.
He goes to help the person that in the worst condition, looking to his god for aid, he casts his spell.
Nadeq gently lowers the paladin back to the ground so he can do his thing.
Running out of options against a foe such as this he creeps closer to the man that killed the ranger, who is now talking to the bald man who downed the peryton. Someone with enough power to make people simply vanish is worth keeping an eye on.
stealth
"I suppose you know as much about it as I do. And it seems well beyond speaking now.
"Or did you mean its shadow over there? Me, take it away? I don't think it will come to that.
"You know, Sammar sent his people into the desert yesterday. Why, do you think, didn't he end you with them?"
"Well Yes. Of course I mean the shadow". "This one is dead". "And it is hurting these people". "Perhaps you can tell me what I can do to harm it". "Or is it working for you"?...Then Montague is brought up short by his statement.
"Well he wanted me to stay and protect him obviously...then realization dawns over Montague's face...but wait. He is sending me with these people...I...I...Maybe I should speak with him again before I leave...I'm sure he is just desperate now. Montague frowns as his brain tries to make sense of this new information.
"Can you do anything to help them"?
Richard, deathwatch has a 30' cone area of effect, so you can't look at everybody this round.
I cast Deathwatch to see who needs my help the most.
- The swarm is alive, and "fighting off death",
- the hobgoblin cleric and his acolyte are alive
- the man in armor wafting back to earth is "fighting off death"
- the garments that held a woman getting ready to strike at the swarm only seconds ago, now hold only death
- the strange woman with ivory horns amid her brown hair, who pulled Rasina out of the swarm, is slightly injured
- Rasina is in bad shape, herself, but not near death yet.
"You know, Sammar sent his people into the desert yesterday. Why, do you think, didn't he end you with them?"
"Well he wanted me to stay and protect him obviously ... but wait. He is sending me with these people ... I ... I ... Maybe I should speak with him again before I leave ... I'm sure he is just desperate now.
"Can you do anything to help them"?
The Usurer raises his right eyebrow and spares a couple seconds to turn from observing the battle and lock eyes with Montegue. "Sammar kept you back because he doesn't trust you, dear boy. Hugin, Skarja, that fellow with the misshapen ear --Eneloth, was his name? None of them have your talent for combat, your fighting skills, but they struck me as the 'can-do' types. When an axle breaks on a wagon, or someone comes down with dysentery, each of them will do what they can, muddling through whether they have any expertise in the area or not.
The Usurer returns to observing the battle. "You, on the other hand, give me the impression of someone who leaves most tasks to others, Montegue, except those which fit neatly into your baliwick.
"You ask me what I'm going to do to help them? Why, I'm going to send you back into the fight. If you aren't up to a few hundred nasty little centipedes, then maybe it's better for you to stay in Camp and tend the boarding house."
He then passes you by and moves towards the commons. The stout dwarf sees him coming and rushes back to the ranger encampment to the north.
Round Six
currently holding - Montegue:
settling back on the ground, currently holding - Artimus:
26 - Rasina, about 10' away from the swarm, with a full-move available: you're up
Rasina, please make another Fortitude save to end the effects of the Con-sapping poison.
24 - Chamomile:
22 - Swiftpaws:
19 - The hobgoblin cleric sees the Usurer coming, glances down at his acolyte, and understand what that means. He's willing to die for his beliefs (maybe, if he's lucky, the Grave One will see fit to use him as some wonderful undead thing!) but he's not willing to sacrifice his acolyte, at least not today. He takes a step forward, grabs her by the wrist, and pulls her through the temple archway.
14 - Mikka:
13 - Nadeq:
13 - Durnast:
12 - The peryton's shadow:
12- Alia:
9 - Richard:
7 - Tinthariel:
5 - Windrazor:
3 - Rangers:
Rasina looks over at the swarm, and knows her heavenly fire can harm it, but it also announces her heritage to all observers. She thinks Can't be helped now.
Rasina's body shudders and is wracked with several spasms as the poison takes ahold of her. Leaning against the female stranger who came to her, she gasps "Thanks for your assistance, that thing is drawn to my blood!"
I can't do more than that. My weapons cannot harm it. Move away if you can and bring it down with magic. I'll try to distract it.
I can't do more than that. My weapons cannot harm it. Move away if you can and bring it down with magic. I'll try to distract it.
By that, do I understand "Aid Another" to help Rasina's attack chance?
I can't do more than that. My weapons cannot harm it. Move away if you can and bring it down with magic. I'll try to distract it.By that, do I understand "Aid Another" to help Rasina's attack chance?
If I can, but my action is after the shadow action.
Mikka strides forward, breath shuddering wickedly in her lungs, rage burning in her eyes. Her vision taking in the scene around her, the pain, the hurt.
Strangers and allies battling desparately to defend the innocent and each other from this vile thing from the lower planes that dared to hunt here, speading its filth.
Enough...
As one hand creeps across the birthmark on her belly the other rises high above her head, she can feel the maternal power of Freya, a mother angry at that which endangers her children.
The words ring out, a language as old as the stones themselves, words of power that call upon the ever cleansing purity of fire.
"This ends now!"
If I can, but my action is after the shadow action.
Actually, I was a little imprecise with that. You had readied an action, rather than delayed, and by that technicality, you acted a sliver of a moment before the dark swarm. You can Aid Another before it acts this round.
The swarm () takes the brunt of Mikka's Flamestrike, which blinds everybody momentarily. ) Even the Usurer, striding towards the fight, takes a step back and covers his eyes. When the blaze fades, the darkness around the peryton's shadow is briefly interrupted, and you see a collection of savage grubs, centipedes, scorpions, and other, less-identifiable arthropods. All of them are scarlet and black, and a pale blue light still plays over their bodies. Most of them are charred and lifeless, but there's still a core that's alive, active, and somehow really angry.
Until Alia gets its attention and Rasina's gout of Heavenly Fire extinguishes it entirely.
Tinthariel reaches the doorway of the boarding house. "Yes?"
Tinthariel reaches the doorway of the boarding house. "Yes?"
Alia breathes deeply, trying to still her shaking hands.
"Sorry Tin, we were having a little problem with a strange shadow," she says. "But we got some aid from others. Some of them may need some healing though"
She turns towards the stranger as her side : "Thank you for your help. I am Alia and my companion here is Swiftpaws. The other ones are Artimus, Durnast and Montague. You are not from the Camp I guess ?"
While talking to Rasina, she casts a glance at the Usurer to check what he is going to do.
Rasina looks over the the remains of the shadow swarm, making sure it is destroyed. Once she is satisied, she turns to Alia saying "No we are not from here, we came from...far away from here. You get the impression she was going to say something else, but corrected herself at the last minute. Continuing on "I am Rasina, and the flame wielder is Mikka, our priest is Richard, and Nadeq is...around here somewhere. If you have any healing, I believe I was poisoned by the creature.
Once Alia returns her attention back to Rasina, she leans in to whisper, "We need to talk as soon as possible. Do you have safe haven?"
Windrazor lands on his mistress' shoulder with a screech of triumph
Thyr answers his prayers and Richard senses that enough people around him are in need of his healing powers.
He prepares another channel to heal everyone except the swarm, the hobgoblin cleric and his acolyte.
"Thyr, grant me the power to channel thine divine power through this mortal vessel!"
He then moves towards the armored man floating down to earth.
Richard, the hobgoblin cleric (whom you recognize as "Father Death", a pleasant-enough priest of Orcus, a follower of Death and Decay but a patient one) and his acolyte (Obuhymnia; you recall that her brother Craw was Orcus' other acolyte) have departed for the safety of their temple. You'd have to call them out if you did want to heal them.
Tinthariel invites all assembled to table at the boarding house.
The Usurer picks up the fallen ranger's staff and returns to his forge.
"I'll join in a minute ... But I need to heal those who are hurt first."
When I reach the armored man, I ask him if he accepts my assistance.
"Sir, you have been injured by this horrendous beast, will you allow me to heal your wounds ?"
The healing energy washes over Mikka, healing the scores of wicked stings and bites that marred her skin. As Rasina begins introducing them, she quickly utters a quiet but powerful chant, her hands going to her temples as she does so.
Tinthariel lays out some bread, tea, and some minced-vegetables-and-leaves-in-a-thick-dairy-spread thing that elves eat. "So, what happened out there?
Rasina accepts the fare gratefully, after a few moments of silence as she collectes her thoughts, she says "Is there a way you can prevent this room from being scryed on? I have my suspicions as to where the creature came from. Also I am still feeling the effects of the combat"
Rasina accepts the fare gratefully, after a few moments of silence as she collectes her thoughts, she says "Is there a way you can prevent this room from being scryed on? I have my suspicions as to where the creature came from. Also I am still feeling the effects of the combat"
"I am as well." adds Alia wearily.
"I do not know if we are scryed on but Durnast may. Tell me, what do you know about this creature? It came from the north and the desolation. Do you know more about that?"
I can help you both with the effects, but not until I sleep and arise. Freya will grant me the powers I need at dawn.
"I am as well." adds Alia wearily.
"I do not know if we are scryed on but Durnast may. Tell me, what do you know about this creature? It came from the north and the desolation. Do you know more about that?"
"I overheard some troubling information during the battle. More I dare not say until we are completely alone. If my theory is right, though we are all in danger in Camp. Are you certain the creature came from the north?"
Durnast, various Camp denizens were coming out onto the streets during the last round of the battle: a peculiar old haggard woman out of the earthen building next to the Bard's Gate Embassy, Sammar himself, some armed ne'er-do-wells out of the Sip-O-Blood tavern. While you're out on the street, the Camp can see you, but the dining hall of the boarding house is private.
Alright, then Richard cures Artimus first.
He then quickly moves on to Rasina and Alia.
After the cures he follows Alia and Rasina into the tavern.
He introduces himself, and asks once more if people are in need of Thyr's healing embrace.
Nadeq move closer to the dead peryton and nudge it with his foot. He turns toward the wizard wth the small dragon companion. ”So, you must be the group who killed the giant the other day. You guys seem the attract yourself a lot of unhealthy attention.” he says with a grin.
”I take it you are a wizard? I've dabbled a bit in the Arts my self. Do you have any idea what that shadow was and how it was connected to the dead creature there?”
Alright, then Richard cures Artimus first.
He then quickly moves on to Rasina and Alia.
After the cures he follows Alia and Rasina into the tavern.
He introduces himself, and asks once more if people are in need of Thyr's healing embrace.
At Rasina question, Alia turns to the raptor perched on Mikka's shoulder. "I saw the beast coming from the north. It was spotted first by him so maybe he knows more."
Her face turns grave as she recalls the fighting that just occurs and the helplessness she felt when none of her blows could touch the shadow.
"Your group and Montague of course were the first ones to help since we arrived here. And for that we have a debt. We also have one for the priest and the rangers. This will need to be settled. But tell us, what do you expect coming here ? I think we could help each other's goals and we seem to be stronger together."