Marcus falls into step with the others.
Turning to Halstadt, "There is little I can do to quiet those dogs, I'd prefer they were put out of their misery before they get free and start after us. They will still be a threat after my magic ends. We may be able to get a head start, but they will more than likely follow and catch us. We have their master, they will most likely come after us to get him back. My magic may not be able to save us from them again."
He looks to the warriors, "Hoyre and Venester, can you look after the dogs, then catch us up? We will follow the bear. Mouse help get 'Lumpy' up, we can't leave him tied up here on the ground. He'll have to come with us." Sir Percival calls out, "Halstadt wait for us." He then does a loud whistle which he hopes will catch the bear's attention, hoping it might stop in its tracks and wait for a short while.
If the bear continues on, Sir Percival pulls a small long brown haired creature from his pocket. "Go follow the bear, we won't be long behind you. Don't loose the bear until he finds his master. Stay with them until they rest down, then return to me." The weasel familiar is carefully placed on the snow, and bounds off after the bear.
The bear halts, and you follow after him with 'Lumpy' between you as Hoyre and Venester set to the grisly work of putting down his rapid dogs, the mangy creatures die with high pitch yelps and squeals.
You are led through the forest, patches of snow making it clear this is the way the large man came until you come to the edge of a clearing. The clearing was been furrowed and is lying fallow over winter. At the head of this field is a large wooden house and barn.
Hal shakes his head at the death of the dogs but does not comment further.
Once the clearing is reached Hal turns to his companions, "I will go to the door and see what we have gotten ourselves into".
Hal walks up to the door and knocks.
Marcus quickly follows Halstadt after putting away his bow. He stands back from the door a few feet, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.
Marcus is just on the porch when Halstadt knocks on the poorly made door. Just as he touches it however, a rack of spikes swing down on him, and three of them bypass his armor, dealing (13 damage) a bloody wound.
Neither hero has a moment for shock as sawblades come up between the floor boards. Marcus manages to jump back onto the steps, but poor Halstadt is not so lucky and gets serated! (17 damage)
As dwarven blood is spilled upon the porch raucous laughter pours out from the barn, and the door is slammed shut, muffling but not stopping the mocking guffaw.
Sir Percival hangs back, and patting the weasel on the head, puts it back into a deep pocket in his cloak. "Well done little one, what would I do without you." He casts a spell quietly in the snow, once more he is able to find any magical forces, worried that this might be a wizards home and magical traps can often protect such a place.
Hal stumbles off of the porch and swaps out Cure Critical Woudns for Dismissal.
Cure Critical Wounds -
"Well Marcus it appears that we need only take the direct approach with these fools!"
Sir Percival concerned by the traps that caught Halstadt calls over, "perhaps we should take a look and be forewarned as to what is awaiting us in that barn? Would you like me to see what's in there, I have something that might help, but we shall have to retreat a few minutes whilst I cast the spell."
You can still hear guffawing in the barn, though its dying down.
Hal motions to Mouse to follow as he trots back to Percival mostly recovered from the traps.
"I want to bring it down by calling on Angradd's Might but I suppose looking inside cannot hurt especially if the bear's master is a prisoner within".
Sir Percival retreats to just behind the tree line, hidden from the barm, "You will have to protect me for 10 minutes whilst I cast this, then we will have 6 minutes to investigate the barn and house, maybe. Did you see plenty of holes in the barn for my eye to go through? The quicker it gets in the more we can find out."
The eye is called without interruption.
It floats into existence then flies across the field to the barn. Once there you have it move around to find an entrance which it does. It floats inside the dimly lit barn and you see three figures in rough spun overalls pulling apart a pig carcass. Their not talking but seem to laughing instead. The barn contains straw and rusty farm implements otherwise. The back is partitioned off and you move the eye to explore it. It is very dark. An upper level runs around the edge of the barn about 15 ft up. The upper section in the darkened closed off area seems to hold two cages, each seemingly house a humanoid figure, though its difficult to make out anymore. Something large moves in the dark but other than its elephantine size you see nothing off it.
You then have the eye float out and wander to the porch. It floats in through a window on the porch, though you see a small sidedoor on the way over from the barn. The interior is entirely unlit, tohugh you find yourself in a crude living room with a rickety chairs, animal head trophies and a crude sofa made of badly cured hides. The eye moves intot he hallway only to find it dark. You are about to turn it around when you suddenly lose the spell, as if it had been cut short or dispelled.
"I'm not sure what's creepier. The trio of pig defilers or a darkened house that's blocking your magic." Marcus gives a shudder. . .and not from the cold.
Sir Percival shakes his head, his face white at the lose of the spell in the house, thinking that there are powerful magics in the house. "I don't like this, but if there are captives in that barn, we are bound to try and release them." He then describes what he saw in the barn and the house. he looks at Mouse after he hears, his words on hearing the description. "Unfortunately for you Mouse, you might be the key to releasing the prisoners, with your subtle skills and ability to be unseen, it's likely we'll need you to open the doors to the barn and the house. I'm worried about sending you in upstairs, knowing there is something unidentified up there. My thoughts are for you to climb up there, whilst we create a diversion and get the attention of whatever it is, then you get the prisoners out. It's not the best plan, but? Maybe Hal can give you some light to take with you, to light the way once inside? However, we need to work together on this, what say you Halstat? "
-
Marcus quietly make his way to the back of the barn, to see if there might be a way to get in without passing the creatures, before making his way back to the others.
-1d20+7
Marcus quietly make his way to the back of the barn, to see if there might be a way to get in without passing the creatures, before making his way back to the others.
Sir Percival wonders about what he saw through the eye, but he can't get over thinking about the lethal trap.
"I can provide you with light Mouse but you need not go alone as it may be dangerous. I can help you while Percival, Hoyre and Venester create a distraction out here. Unless you want me to stay here Percival".
Your help, dear Halstadt, is always welcome. Marcus says to his friend as he draws his blade.
"We have two options, I can sneak in with you, I am better at sneaking than the average dwarf or I can cast a silence on us. This will of course limit my casting but will also limit any casters we may face".
Once more Sir Percival takes a thoughtful pose, "You two OK to climb the barn up there and get in from above? I have some scrolls that might help, I could make you incorporeal and you could float up there, gain entry and surprise whatever's guarding the cages. Like that, you might be invisible in the dark, until you become real again and then haste the release. I have only two of those scrolls, or go as you are and we'll try and make a lot of noise out here, to disguise your entry. Once those 3 orgekin types get out, will you, Hoyre and Venester, be able to handle them with a bit of help from me? Are you both feeling on tip top form, after disposing of the dogs? I can help with some magics, although I think we have a decision to make, whether we think we'll be entering the house after. If so, do you want me to hold back on the magic?" he scratches him chin some more.
He looks round at the tied up captive, before looking back at the group."I think we're going to have to tie him up against a tree as well, away from his friends inside. We don't want them finding him and releasing him? What about knocking him out whilst we do the honors inside? It will keep us safe from any interference from him and then we can return him for justice once we've completed the rescue."
"I think the scrolls will aid us greatly.
"I concur Mouse. Let's float in and surprise our foes. I will handle our prisoner".
Hal uses the butt of his battle axe and cracks the large opponent in the temple seeking to knock him out.
[url=https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AjLwWW8SZGDUdGpHQVp1UFdEUUt3VGtuLXBqNmZDcWc&authkey=CL-SytwM&hl=en#gid=0[/url]
Hal initiative
You float into the upper level of the barn, and Marcus is left blind by the darkness within. Halstadt however can clearly see two men, one in each cage, wearing ragged black tabards. More pressing however is the elephant sized spider waiting in the dark of the upper corner. It sees your gaseous forms and makes a hissing keening sound.
At this exact moment however, Hoyre and Venester begin pounding on the barn walls.
Order: Percy 31
Marcus 25
Halstadt 20
Ogrekin 19
Hoyre and Venester 13
Giant Spider 11
Sir P, casts Magic Circle Against evil on himself.
Hal wide eyed gapes at the monster. He allows his gaseous form to lapse and begins to ask for aid from Angradd, "My Lord, deliver unto me a champion to defend me from this creature of darkness".
Marcus, trusting Halstadt to watch his back, drops out of gaseous form and begins to work on the cage locks. As he does, he whispers to the inhabitants. "Easy now. We'll have you out of there in no time."
:
Round 1
Percival casts a mighty warding spell over himself, protecting himself from evil creatures.
Marcus waits until Halstadt becomes corporeal, summoning a spirit of good, which helpfully provides light by which Marcus can see. He then moves to the neareast cage and deftly unlocks it. Within the cage is a middle aged man with salt an pepper hair and a dark beard. He is unconciousand quite badly hurt.
The lantern archon fires two rays of light at the spider, dealing a small amount of damage to the huge arachnid.
Meanwhile the ogre kin within run for the door, one stopping to throw it open the others charging out with strange degenrate cries, the one who opened the door is audibly weeping, on of the chargers leaks drool out the side of his mishappen mouth.
Hoyre and Venester grip their weapons and move to intercept the ogrekin.
Finally the great spider moves forward along the roof and attacks the lantern archon, swinging its body down and biting at it with its fearsome mouth, it almost extinguishes its light, but the archon holds on, flickering more wealky than before.
Marcus quickly notes the man's condition before running to the other cage. "That's it Halstadt, old boy. Give that beasty the business."
When Marcus reaches the other cage, he attemps to open the lock.
:
Hal channels the divine will of Angradd in a healing burst trying to both help the Archon he has summoned as well as the injured prisoners. Hal makes sure to carve out the spider from Angradd's energy.
Channel Positive Energy -
"Thank Angradd for his wondrous gifts Mouse!"
Sir Percival speaks again arcane words and points to a spot just behind the two ogrekin approaching. Black tentacles spring up grasping all creatures within a 20ft radius. Then moves up behind Hoyre and Venester, so that they are benefiting from his circle of protection. He shouts to his protectors, "Don't enter the area of the tentacles, they will take you down."
The first of the ogrekin is wrapped up in the grasping tentacles and squeezed by them. The others however are not so impeded.
Marcus races over and unlocks the second cage, in this one is a dark-skinned man with a bald head wearing similar ragged clothing.
Halstadt's healing wave washes over the archon and the prisoners who moan and become concious. The one in front of Marcus blearily looks up at him, a look of shock on his face when he sees Marcus isn't ogrekin.
At archon attacks the spider again.
[miss]
[miss]
Both miss however.
The free ogrekin move to attack Hoyre and Venester, while the bound one struggles to free itself. vs. 22, it fails horribly slipping and falling among the tentacles.
Attack Og #2: vs. Hoyre
Hoyre and Venester attackt their respective foes.
vs. #2
vs. #3 [miss]
Finally the spider ignores the lantern archon and moves to directly above Halstadt, reaching down and biting him with its grea maw.
Make a Fort save if it hits!
"Stay still." Marcus says to the man as he sets an arrow on his bow and fires at the spider.
Sir Percival moves forward making sure that the protectors are within the circle of protection, as he moves he speaks the arcane words the protectors have heard before and a patch of grease appears under the feet of the two orgekin, they are fighting.
Fortitude Saving Throw -
Realizing that the spiders bite was too potent for him to concentrate and cast a spell successfully, Hal pulls his axe off of his back and strikes the spider.
Melee Attack -
Melee Damage -