"Be careful," Kendra whispers as you all leave the mansion. She looks a little sad as she closes the door.
The village of Ravengro looks deserted under the clouded night sky. Only a couple of rays of moonlight grace the ground. A soft mist is in the air. Shadows are cast from the few lanterns lighting up the streets.
The Restlands are quiet when you arrive on the Black Path...
Do you remember the way, Valerya? It should be right up there...
Torsten continues to bring up the rear guard, eyes darting this way and that into the shadows, searching for any unrevealed enemies.
Aerys eyes the mausoleums and grotesque statues as they loom darkly out of the moon-silvered mists. Leaves skitter across the path like huge spiders, driven by the chill breeze. "Obviously night is when the Restlands need to be visited to fully appreciate their ambience..." he whispers.
"I'm okay with appreciating it at noon. High noon, with lots of sun," Venedictos says, a slight tremor in his voice to match the one in his hands.
" Personally, Venedictos, I'm with Aerys on this one. This is some wonderful atmosphere, with the refreshing night air; it' almost perfect. In fact, it kinda reminds me of my first date. This combination is almost intoxicating."
Shhh, if the caretakers see us, they'll probably take us for grave robbers. Grave robbers caught in Ravengro lose a hand if they're lucky, or their lives if they're not. We surely don't want that. Valerya nimbly walks around, a bit haunched, hiding behind any trees, tall gravestones or crypts.
The Black Path is shorter than you anticipated, and in time you stand in front of granite mausoleum. Two leering gargoyle statues decorate the roof, and in the wake of moonlight it looks as though they are poised to strike. As you approach the door, you find that the lock falls apart with the slightest touch. Breaking the silence is the shrill creak of the great stone door. Warm heavy air greets you.
Aerys flinches at the door's squeal. He pauses for a few heartbeats to see if the sound draws any unwanted attention. Finally he whispers with a grin, "That was loud enough to wake the dead. Which, I think we all can agree, is something to avoid here..."
He kneels and lights his hooded lantern, directing the light into the crypt's entrance...
Valerya takes a moment to get used to the lightning conditions inside the crypt. She breathes three times to steady herself, and then takes a small wooden tool box in her backpack, lodging it in her belt.
Be careful, there might be traps to protect either the stash or belongings of the dead.
She then starts walking carefully inside the crypt, analyzing the floor and the walls for the telltale signs of traps.
A flight of cold stone leading down greets you in the doorway. As you carefully examine the entryway, you find that the ground is covered with a thick layer of dust. The flat surface of the dust is broken with footprints.
As you all step into the crypt, the heavy air seethes out into the fresh night...
We're going to need light in here. Anyone have one? Torsten mutters, pushing his way toward the front.
Once fully inside, Venedictos casts a light spell on the blade of his glaive. "That help?" he asks.
Looking around the gloom inside the crypt, he shudders. "Not for the first time, I wish one could cast multiple light spells without the earlier ones going out. I think an entire chandelier of light spells would be good about now."
Viktor will cast Dancing Lights, placing one at each corner of the marching party.
" I've got a few more, Venedictos. These can't get far from each other, but they each put out about the same amount of light as your light spell. They will, however, have to be renewed more frequently."
"I'll keep the lantern going as well." Looking to Valerya, Aerys asks,"Those footprints... do you think they might be the professor's?
The light of your spells and lanterns cast great shadows from the two small statues on either side of the room. The grey walls are dreary, riddled with a multitude of cracks. The atmosphere is heavy and damp. Two doors ornate the wall in front of you, one on either side of the room.
@Aerys: The only indication is the decorative pattern on the floor, and it reveals little of who the buried was supposed to be.
Looking to Valerya, Aerys asks,"Those footprints... do you think they might be the professor's?
Not seeing the look - his eyes are focused ahead - but hearing the question, Torsten ventures a response.[/]
That's certainly possible. There's something about the thought of following in the footsteps of the departed that unnerves me. Still, I will meet my death with my head held high, and my sword in my hand.
[i]He draws the blade and flips the hilt in his hand subconsciously as he talks.
I'm having trouble telling where they're leading, though, [i]he says, sparing a glance at the floor. Can you make it out, Valerya?[/b]
Valerya raises her hand, stopping the party for a second. "Let me take a closer look." Then she kneels down, gesturing for a light (any of the dancing globes or the lantern will do), and tries to analyze the patterns in the dust.
What Valerya can see are the obvious footprints of a man walking towards the left-most door, and prints leading back to where you are standing. The quantity of dust, and the heavy air of the crypt assumes Lorrimor is the only man who has treaded here for centuries.
"While I usually tend to take the path less traveled, perhaps in this instance we should follow the professor's trail through the left door?"
" I second the motion to take the professor's path."
Torsten slowly approaches the lefthand door, opening it cautiously and peering inside.
You will have to explain this "seconding of the motion" to me, Viktor. I assume it is an expression of agreement?
When Torsten opens the lefthand stone door, the entire crypt screeches and rattles; shadows flicker and it feels as though eyes are all around... though as the echo fades, you see that the walls have no eyes and there is nobody else but the five of you there.
What's inside the room is a ten-foot-wide open space, and a staircase leading further down into the crypt. There are murals on the walls here, halfway faded away, but painted in blood red and black. Whatever they once depicted is very difficult to discern as the passage of time has been merciless - you guess some sort of scripture, or maybe what could have been a ward...
"Down. Of course."
Venedictos gulps and tries to steady his hand. "I could really use some more of that brandy right about now."
Valerya takes a quick look at the murals, looking for signs used in arcane traps.
If she finds none, she gestures for everyone to proceed down. When Venedictos gets closer, she hands him an iron flask. "It's not brandy, but it'll keep you warm."
Venedictos sniffs the liquor. "Ummm...thanks, but I'll pass. Gotta keep my wits clear in a place like this."
Bluff: to hide his distaste at the smell.
As Valerya scans the murals, Aerys likewise whispers a minor enchantment to allow him to see traceries of magic.
Your spell reveals no traces of magic; the wall is mundane.
You are certain the area is not trapped.
Valerya gestures the way as safe. As you reach the bottom of the staircase, you see a large sarcofagus on a stone dais. There are decorative urns in the corners, and a statuette standing on a pedestal by the room's western wall. Professor Lorrimor's footsteps stop in front of the sarcofagus; you can see handprints disrupting the otherwise smooth surface of dust.
Viktor will use detect magic, and look around in the room we now find ourselves in.
You detect no magic here.
"I don't mean to offend," Venedictos says with a shaky voice, "but we are certain that the tales of Lorrimor becoming a necromancer and playing with undead were just wild rumours, right? I mean, we're going to open this up and find books and not some animated corpse."
"Right?" he asks a bit weakly.
Either way, we will be prepared.
Torsten nervously wraps his hand around the hilt of his greatsword as he moves to the sarcophagus and begins to try to move the lid.
Torsten places a hand on the surface of the sarcofagus's lid; the texture is surprisingly smooth, and well-crafted. With a strong shove, the lid starts to slide off ... a little too fast. The force of the man's great push causes the entire lid to glide off the sarcofagus, and its smooth stonework leaves Torsten unable to grab the lid before it crashes to the ground. The sound is so loud, your ears are ringing - you're certain it must have sounded outside the graveyard.
The sarcofagus is not empty. Inside, you find a large assortment of arrows, vials, scrolls and rods. There is also a darkwood case, thin and slender, decorated with a single eye glaring out of its back. There is a velvet-lined indentation with four glass-and-iron vials, all filled with a strange gas. By the looks of it, there were six more vials - no doubt Professor Lorrimor took them during his first visit.
Sorry about that. I was expecting it to be much heavier, Torsten says, a little too loudly.
He begins to scoop the items from the sarcophagus into his backpack, not taking a great deal of time to catalogue the items.
"Odd the professor saw fit to only take four vials..." Aerys murmurs as he again casts his spell to reveal magic, concentrating on the contents of the sarcophogus.
The short second Aerys has to examine the darkwood case reveals little of what the eye represents; though he does detect a myriad of magical auras from the backpack. After Torsten has removed all the items from the sarcophagus, the room itself feels empty now, and the walls strangely oppressing. There is nothing to indicate why this strange change in the atmosphere has occurred...
"I assume nobody here is disturbed by the fact that we are basically stealing from the Church of Pharasma? No? Didn't think so."
"I consider it more borrowing from the church. In return, I will gladly loan them my spear should they ask." Aerys' brow furrows at the subtle change within the chamber.
"So... how possessive do you think the Church of Pharasma might be? Perhaps we should be returning to House Lorrimor. I'm sure Kendra is missing all of us..."
"I second that motion," Venedictos days, already heading for the exit.
"If you guys believe that there is nothing left in here, then we might as well leave.
The staircase feels heavier to ascend than anticipated; the air feels heavier now, though it could simply be closing the crypt's door is at fault. The stone door into the inner chamber stands open, as you left it, and you go through...
You give a soft glance up to the ceiling... only to be faced with two enormous pincers that dart straight in your direction. Two long, scaled bodies, with hairy, slithering legs are crawling down the wall. The walls are rattling and there's a strange...choking sound coming from the monsters.
They rush at Torsten and Valerya - and as they crash, the impact scatters you all. As you stagger, you manage to keep on your feet; Valerya is keeping the great pincers away from her flesh, but one of the creatures has an iron grip around Torsten's shoulder. Blood trickles down his arm.
Initiative Order
1. Party
2. Monsters
Centipede A initiative:
Centipede B initiative:
Centipede B attack vs. Valerya:
Centipede B damage vs. Valerya:
Centipede A attack vs. Torsten:
Centipede A damage vs. Torsten:
Torsten Initiative:
Aerys Initiative:
Venedictor Initiative:
Viktor Initiative:
Valerya Initiative:
In response to the pain, Torsten grits his teeth. His nostrils flare in anger as adrenaline surges into his muscles. He lets loose with a wordless battle-cry, his sword flashing upward in a violent and explosive arc. He has clearly thrown all caution to the winds.
Aerys bites back a yell of surprise as the scuttling forms drop from the ceiling. Flattening himself against the wall, he thrusts his left hand forward, thumb and ring finger touching.
I would like to draw my scimitar as a move action, and move to the other creature with my second move action, in the square adjacent to both Tolsten and Valerya.
Venedictos let's a few notes fill the crypt, invoking a blessing on all his allies. Everyone is filled with courage and your movements in combat are suddenly more graceful, more beautiful.
Bless spell cast, +1 to attack and saves vs fear
Valerya jumps back, her instincts taking over, and her hand finds the piece of cold steel in a hidden hoister. "No, not Dragonsbreath", she murmurs to herself, her mind racing to find some useful knowledge about these these unknown assailants. Then she draws a slender steel blade, attacking in a defensive pattern and trying to get some distance between her and the enemies.
Torsten's fierce swing cleaves the monster in half - its dead body crashes to the side, where its ichor coats the wall. A morbid, green mural of death. Aerys's spell pushes the creature off of Valerya, whose fierce thrust pierces through its hide. It slumps over lifeless next to her feet, its hairy legs only twitching occasionally.
The echo of Torsten's roar is still ringing. Dust falls down from the ceiling...
With a grimace, Aerys wipes as much ichor as he can from from his face and arms. Nyx rises up on his shoulder to likewise shake himself free of gore, spattering more of it. "I'm hoping one of the vials we've found removes stains..." Glancing at the spattered wall and Torsten's dripping sword, he nods appreciatively. "Remind me never to startle you. Shall we all continue now?"
With great heaving breaths, Torsten manages to calm himself, although his eyes dart to the ceiling again and again. He does manage to chuckle weakly at Aerys's comment.
It has been a few years since I last used a weapon in anger. It is good to see that I have not forgotten how. Yes, let's go.
He stalks toward the opening leading to the night sky, clearly shaken by the experience.
Valerya's eyes dart around, looking for more opponents.
Well, remember me to never make you angry.
She then crouches in front of the creatures, examining their parts. She presses the creature's stinger and uses a small ceramic vial to store the liquid.
Valerya's eyes dart around, looking for more opponents.
Well, remember me to never make you angry.
She then crouches in front of the creatures, examining their parts. She presses the creature's stinger and uses a small ceramic vial to store the liquid.