Rafael scratches his chin and is focused on the head of the fallen crystalline beast.
Taking 10 I can make a DC 18 Heal check and I do 1d6 damage to inanimate objects (the skull) up to 6 times per day.
If possible, let me know.
How valuable are the eyes? Appraise check
As you attempt to gather the dragon's eyes, you find that after the beast exploded, there was no head to extract them from. After a quick scan, you find the ruined remains of one eye splattered across the walls. The other eye is badly damaged, secreting all over the floor - yet you manage to contain it without further damage. The iris has turned jet black.
Approaching the exit, you find that you can feel fresh air brushing against your faces - and in the distance, you see daylight. The tunnel itself is smooth, white stone, beautifully carved - there are no more jagged crystals.
You find no caches on these smooth walls.
The eye can be repaired ever so slightly, though it would require curative magic. You assess this much.
From what you know, dragon's eyes as an alchemical reagent can easily sell for several hundred platium pieces - it can also be used for potent spells and concoctions. To call it an artifact in the world you know would not be far-fetched...
Rafael says, "Anyone able to harvest a pelt from the creature? This grand adventure we are about to begin won't be free. Perhaps these dwarves will be interested in something so unique?"
Rafael says to Zachary, "Those eyes you have there are quite rare. Dragon's eyes can be used as alchemical reagents. They can also be used for components for potent spells and concoctions."
In the aftermath of the exploding dragon, you find that there is little skin to harvest. What you do find, however, are a couple of crystalline fangs that seem for the most part unharmed - and they are sharp.
As you attempt to gather the dragon's eyes, you find that after the beast exploded, there was no head to extract them from. After a quick scan, you find the ruined remains of one eye splattered across the walls. The other eye is badly damaged, secreting all over the floor - yet you manage to contain it without further damage. The iris has turned jet black.
Approaching the exit, you find that you can feel fresh air brushing against your faces - and in the distance, you see daylight. The tunnel itself is smooth, white stone, beautifully carved - there are no more jagged crystals.
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
Zachary gingerly picks up the eye and puts it in a sack on his side, noting: "Well, may as well take it. Maybe some cooky wizard'll want it."
Coross picks through the remains of the dragon, clearly amused that he had something to do with making a dragon explode. As everyone seems to be leaving he looks up. Oh, time to be off then. Very well. He moves to leave through the new tunnel, still flexing his hand around the facinating crystal now embedded in it.
Rafael follows in the middle of the group with Donte.
Rafael says, "If I was everyone I wouldn't be flaunting these crystal patches embedded in us. If history is ever a fortune teller I'd suspect common folk may not take to us. Be sure to keep the patches on your skin covered while around others please."
Rafael follows in the middle of the group with Donte.
Rafael says, "If I was everyone I wouldn't be flaunting these crystal patches embedded in us. If history is ever a fortune teller I'd suspect common folk may not take to us. Be sure to keep the patches on your skin covered while around others please."
Zachary tears off a piece of his shirt to bandage his hand with, in order to cover the crystal. As he does this, he says to Rafael, "Hey, you mind holding the eye? It kinda stinks."
Rafael walks over the Donte and opens the small chest and rummages around and pulls out a Shaving kit.
He takes out a small mirror and blade and sits down and shaves. He then says, "Lorem mecum aquae." Water beings to flow from nothing in front of him. He washes the blade thoroughly.
He then takes some wax paper and lines the inside of the Shaving kit. He carefully places the eyes into the Shaving kit and uses some of the water to keep them moist.
He carefully packs the kit back into the small chest wrapped with a sack to cushion it. He places the small mirror and blade into a corner of the small chest.
Rafael says, "Here lets go. Sorry for the delay. Let's move."
The walk through the tunnel proves to be rather taxing. Despite being in view, an hour passes by before you feel the refreshing breeze of the outside world kiss your skin - or your fur, as it would be for the Kincade. Outside, the snow-kissed ground greets you, and the ocean of white seems ever refreshing, though it blinds you as the sun is ever bright. There is no silence, however - there are cries in the air, of shock and horror. As your eyes adjust to the sharpness of the light, you see the cause of screaming.
In front of you, one of the spires of Snöfjell Academy lays, in ruins. The collapsed, dead bodies of fellow students and teachers taint the white sea with red and black. Glancing up at the academy, you see that the mountain itself is slowly collapsing, crumbling underneath the structure. Incantations can be heard in the air - the strong voice of the headmaster is casting spell after spell to prevent the collapse. Another spire crumbles, the tower sliding down the snowy mountain, crumbling into bits as it reaches the root - with more casualties.
Behind you, the mouth of the cavern closes...
Zachary stares dumbfounded for a while, the shock of it taking away his words and his breath. However, the screams of the dying ring in his ears, bringing him back to reality. He sprints off toward the fallen ruins of the spires, intent on finding survivors and bringing them to safety.
Wild thoughts race through his head. How could this have happened? Why? As he runs, he starts to piece things together. It couldn't have been a coincidence. Not this soon after they had destroyed the crystal. However, he pushes the thoughts aside for now, determined to stave off the Lady of Graves from collecting more souls as best as he could.
Gah! First my pocket watch, now this? I don't care what they call themselves, I'll kill the gods and that other thing and everything else! For now Mr. McDonald has the right idea, lets try to get ourselves an army!
Darche chases after Zachary attempting to stabilize as many dieing as he can.
Gah! First my pocket watch, now this? I don't care what they call themselves, I'll kill the gods and that other thing and everything else! For now Mr. McDonald has the right idea, lets try to get ourselves an army!
Darche chases after Zachary attempting to stabilize as many dieing as he can.
Gah! First my pocket watch, now this? I don't care what they call themselves, I'll kill the gods and that other thing and everything else! For now Mr. McDonald has the right idea, lets try to get ourselves an army!
Darche chases after Zachary attempting to stabilize as many dieing as he can.
|
Frum can picture what it might have looked like as the passageway opened up from the mountain. Had the Academy fallen into ruin with the initial earthquake, or when the dragon emerged, or when it was defeated, or when the passageway opened? Frum feared the worst, addressing the band of adventurers:
Nobody move. not a single step! Zachary, get back here right now!
Turning to Skender and Coross - Whoever is fastest, go get him and bring him back screaming if you have to! Go! Don't get caught.
Addressing everyone else: Listen, he began, choosing his words carefully and trying to be as diplomatic as possible. For all we know, we will not be welcomed warmly. Chances are good that the passageway out was opened in a dramatic fashion. I'm sure it was noticed. And then, what do people see? A bunch of adventurers come out of the magical exit with crystals embedded in their hands?
What good are we going to be able to do anyone here? The mountain is coming down. We've got to keep this in perspective -- if we don't survive this the whole world is destroyed, not just a few people in a school.
And mark my words, we will be blamed for this. Blamed, detained, and killed. We've got to get Zachary back and disappear. I'm sure plenty of eyes are on us now. We don't have much time.
]
Gah! First my pocket watch, now this? I don't care what they call themselves, I'll kill the gods and that other thing and everything else! For now Mr. McDonald has the right idea, lets try to get ourselves an army!
Darche chases after Zachary attempting to stabilize as many dieing as he can.
"No, the most important thing right now is to get any survivors to safety. Coross, if you would, please help get any students out of the rubble. Now, Frum, what you do is up to you, but I would suggest, if not for those children, then for your soul, that you help who you can."
Skender will then rush off to do what he can to help those trapped in the rubble.
Kill a whole world to save a few, Frum spits. Fine, I'll come too but mark my words. We'll regret this stupidity. Its up to the Gods to save us, if they want us to save the world.
1d20 + 6
|
|
Being Lawful Good, Frum values all life, not just the life of his friends, or people he knows.
Frum sees this situation as a moral dilemma that pits the worth of millions of unknowns against a handful (at best) of friends.
Choosing the friends is an immoral choice, to Frum, because it devalues the lives of people who don't have any personal meaning or importance to him. To Frum, a stranger's life is as valuable as his mother's. But all things being equal, if he had to choose to only save one, he would choose his mother because of preference. But 2 strangers versus his mother would make things harder. In this case, you have a ratio more like several million to 1.
This balance switches, however, when it becomes obvious that the rest of the party refuses to listen to him. Now, he has to stick with the group in order to have any hope of saving the world.
He will try to do what good he can, under the circumstances, but is smart enough and moral enough to understand that a short-term act of good in exchange for a substantial increase in risk to lose the whole war against evil is a trojan gift he need not feel guilty in rejecting.
He tends to talk as though he is older, but he really isn't. Not that anyone can really tell his age. After all, he is a cat.
While his words may be cold, he is a vivisectionist.. but he is also a preservationist, so the cold words could easily be a guise to influence lesser individuals. Also, never did say that it was a personal army.
And also take into consideration.. you are a tiefling. Not exactly the kind of people who would be like "Oh lets go and save everyone with koombyya". Darche is following your lead as well as interjecting a little of his own thought in there.
Coross is torn away from his contemplation of the crysatal in his hand by the sight of the mountain coming down around the academy. He runs alongside Skender. We need to get as many people as possible out and have them rescue what they can of the academy! Tell everyone go gather up what books and scrolls and magic items they can!.
I will go where the group needs me most and help where I can.
Rafael says, "I suspect this will not be the last Catastrophe we will witness. Keep yourself covered. Hopefully we won't be blamed for this. If hysteria overwhelms the survivors we will rally at the fishing village to the south-east if we are separated.
I wonder if we can help these survivors more if we were to continue on our mission. For all we know the next crystal would amplify the damage seeing here - a hole mountain.
Those poor souls, if only we knew."
A tear runs down Rafeal's cheek as he and Donte hustles to keep up with the group.
In regards of alignment and the likes - I'd say it's on the darker side of Lawful Good to "sacrifice some for the greater good" - in regards of Paladins, for instance, their code requires them to save everyone without sacrifice if it is possible at all, and defying from this is, IMO, justification to have them fall from grace.
Having said that, Frum isn't a paladin and isn't subject to losing any class features for his attitude. As long as none of you go on blatant killing sprees, a little bit of callous behaviour doesn't make you evil. It would shift you slightly into neutral, but Frum is also right in that things are prone to go to hell right now (though I wasn't planning on world-wide panic for the fabled crystal villains until the second crystal has been destroyed).
For what it's worth - this is a NICE discussion opposed to some of the bull I've had to deal with in my other games. There's no need to apologise, Zachary. But the OOC thread is better for these discussions - I seem to be developing a large preference for OOC posts only in the OOC thread. If you could comply to this for future discussions, then that would be fantastic. But I won't punish you if you slip either.
From what you can tell, you are not at risk of any avalanche - you're that far away from the falling academy. The fallen spire is about three hundred feet away, which seems to be the limit. I have no intentions of killing you. Yet, anyway.
As you rush towards the fallen spire, you find only the dead. Nobody survived the crash from what you can tell. There are no eyes on you either - the nearest living creature you can spot is far in the horizon - Snöfjell Village. The villagers are shouting and pointing at the catastrophe unveiling. Travelling south-east without being spotted would not be difficult - and from what you can tell, being able to help the academy will be close to impossible. The mountainous path up to the academy has long since been torn apart from the quakes, from what you can see.
|
|
Frum wonders how much the Gods are helping them on this quest, or conversely, how much they might be completely on their own to battle a force so powerful it overthrew the Gods.
He feels uncomfortable, and even a bit guilty about a thought that continuously pricks at him: what if tools/items/money that could help them is on the dead bodies in their path? What if the Gods put them there to help? After all, he had asked the God-bird for treasure to fund this enterprise.
Frum makes a perception check (takes 10) to see if anything jumps out at him: 16.
The perception check is not to see the items themselves -- He is looking for people he knew, or clothing that indicates wealth, or magical inclination; clues that warrant further investigation. It would not be uncommon for somebody to grab the most valuable thing to them (which could be a picture or something only valuable to them.) Obviously a book covered in cloth, clutched by rigor mortis-ed fingers would be a clue. So would a coin purse. etc. . .
If Frum sees anything worth investigating he will run to the person and take a pulse, check for vitals. If the person is indeed dead he will use another perception check, taking 10 = 16, to investigate further into what might be there of value, and if he sees something of value, he will use sleight of hand (take 10 = 16) to obtain what he finds.
This is a process he will perform over and over again, looking through the rubble for clues, taking 10 = 16 for all perception checks, and for any sleight of hand checks.
Frum runs over to the bodies in search of friends and colleagues, crying. The carnage overwhelms him and he vomits self-consciously.
My God, . . . is all he can say before he has no more words. He walks amongst the dead looking for hope, answers.
Coross moves through the ruins towards where the library would have been, trying not to look at the faces of people he knew, which is difficult since the entire student body of the academy is scattered around dead. He mechanically picks over the remains for any books which may be of value (ie, spellbooks, books about the gods/demons/creation myths/crystals) that people had grabbed in their haste to escape.
There are no eyes on you either
Zachary stands at the lip of the fallen spire, glancing at it from different angles in an exasperated attempt to find a way into it. However, he soon realizes that there are no screams from inside the ruins, and sorrow starts to set in. He stands still for a moment, a glazed look in his eye. His shoulders are drooped in resignation, his expression one of someone who wants desperately to fix something he can't. He starts to tear up, and fights hard to keep himself from crying. However, he gives in to the pain, and collapses into a heap of sobbing.
The academy, the one place in the world where he was worth something, the one place where he had friends, was gone. His friends all lay underneath the rubble in front of him, and he was powerless to free them. He bawls, unrestrained, for several minutes.
Get a hold of yourselves, you two! This is no time to be crying or vomiting. Just because no one on the surface is alive, doesn't mean everyone is dead.
Darch quaffs down both his super energy pill (Str type) and his extract of stone fist. Then begins to work feverishly to excavate the spire.
Skender falls to his knees, unable to express any emotion. He sits, unable to truly comprehend what has just happened. His life, at least what it had been, is now truly over. He has nothing to go back to.
Rafael consoles Skender and says, "There's nothing you could have done to save them. Our grand adventure to save the world hopefully will mean you can save thousands more."
Rafael continues a few minutes later after a prayer for the dead, "Focus your energy not on the dearly departed but on the enemy that is attempting to destroy this world. By doing so you help make sure their deaths are not in vain."
Zachary will place his holy symbol at the tip of the fallen spire, tears still falling down his cheeks. He is deeply moved that Darche has the conviction to keep digging, not giving up on the fallen even as hopeless as their survival seems. However, Rafael's words have struck deep into Zachary, and he realizes that there isn't any saving that they can do. He comes up behind Darche, quietly avoiding the debris he's throwing to the sides, and gently taps his shoulder.
"Darche, brother," he croaks, snot now running unheeded down his face, "Darche, its okay. We can only help them now with our prayers." A lump catches in his throat, and he can't stop himself from quietly sobbing again. He turns away from the collapsed academy and starts to walk, not noticing nor caring in which direction.
Rafael interjects as Zachary speaks, "No...prayers will not be enough. Our actions will directly help save many many more; we must. The world now rests on our shoulders."
Lucca sits down- more collapses, actually- against the side of the spire at Zachary's words. At Rafael's comment that the world rests on their shoulders, he makes an odd choking sound that might have been laughter. Dry-eyed, he looks up at the sky blankly for a moment, pulling himself together. "Right," he says quietly, "I guess the choice for saving the world has sort of been taken from us- we don't have any reason not to, anymore." The Academy isn't my responsibility- I'm not a cleric- if there were even survivors I could reach, I couldn't help much. Standing up, Lucca arranges his expression so he looks like nothing horrible just happened; he doesn't succeed completely, but manages just to look slightly pale and unsettled instead of practically broken. He makes his way over to Coross. "Zachary's leaving- good idea to save the books, but we'll tell some of the villagers to salvage what they can. Go talk to your friend- he needs some moral support." That done, he heads off after the tiefling. It only occurs to him after he's far enough away not to see the lifeless eyes that he could have performed the death rites for at least a few.
Rafael says to Lucca and Zachary as he and Donte rush to catch up with them, "You are not going to save the world without me! Wait up!"
Rafael catches his breath. The rattling gear on the back of Donte settles down to a regular beat.
A few moments later he sighs and says, "The others will come when they are ready."
Rafael says to Lucca and Zachary as he and Donte rush to catch up with them, "You are not going to save the world without me! Wait up!"
Rafael catches his breath. The rattling gear on the back of Donte settles down to a regular beat.
A few moments later he sighs and says, "The others will come when they are ready."
Zachary's still dazed, but Rafael's words help to shake him out of his trance.
He turns to Rafael, a half-smaile on his face, and says, "Yes, I think that none of us will be able to save the world without the others. We can wait for them, too." He draws a long breath, avoiding meeting Lucca or Rafael's gaze, and mutters, "Could I have some water?"