Joryn and Tharl arrives at the base of the 15 foot statue. They see the following:Northern Doors
To the north and south are two sets of double doors. The northern iron doors are fitted with pull rings. Embossed on front are three circles in a row, each with a crooked star in the center. From left to right, the stars have 13 points, 7 points, and 16 points. There is also an empty slot in the center of each star.
Southern Doors
To the south the double doors are also iron door fitted with pull rings. Tharl can just barely make out the faint outline of a keyhole there as well. Perhaps it's locked...
Large Statue
The large statue looks familiar somehow, and Tharl recognizes the statue from the epics as Prince Targen Amaloss, also called The Wailing Prince. At the statue's base is an inscription, and they can tell by the style of the wording that it's in the Abyssal language. The acid continues to flow from Amaloss' empty eye sockets (and into the small channel leading west)... his mouth open wide in a silent wail.
OOC: Does anyone know Abyssal? Joryn's defenses are at +2 until the start of his next turn.
Meanwhile, back in the chamber...
Back in the chamber, Galad examines the small rock, smooth and round. As far as he knows, he can not find any significance, religious or otherwise. Finding takes the rock from Galad and proceeds north to the statue (#4). It is easy to switch it off as well, since Finding is so good at such things. This statue has another stone just like the one found at the other statue (#1). The statues also has a crooked star at it's base... and this one has 9 points.Suddenly, statue's #3 and #6 explode in a shower of acid and rubble! Luckily, nobody was near enough to either one to be injured.
Right then, Vondal emerges from the pool of acid with a key and bone scroll case in hand! Dwarves are indeed hearty folk.
Tech: Took some acid damage, but also fired up Second Wind. Currently at 14 hit points. You now have a key and unopened bone scroll case.
The room fills with just the sounds of the gentle "waters" flowing.
OOC
We're going to drop out of combat timing. The small statues are all either destroyed or deactivated. You can explore more leisurely, but you cannot take a rest until the room is completed.
Due date for replies to this post is Monday, June 6, 18:00.
Next week I will be traveling to Delaware on business. I will post updates during the evening from the hotel, instead of during the day.
Good Luck!
MilwaukeeJoe
Lohmi felt a sense of relief as Finding disabled the last of the acid-spewing statues.
ReplyDelete"Lets get out of here." Lohmi grumbles. At least no one had died to the traps.
He stows his sword, and gathers himself to hop over the rubble, wanting to avoid walking through the acid-drenched area.
OOC: Athletics +6 to jump to where Vondal is.
Lohmi leaps over to where Vondal is, with ease!
ReplyDeleteTech: Lohmi is now at L7.
Lohmi continues his movement to the entry way of the chamber, and pauses to wait for the others to follow.
ReplyDeleteOOC: Note about Joryn and Tharl, your perception checks are all from standing at the base of the 15' tall statue. Attempting to climb the statue for a closer look may incur acid damage if you're not dexterous enough!
ReplyDeleteLohmi scanned the chamber.
ReplyDelete"Only two of those statues have filled left eye sockets". He said, as a simple observation.
"Maybe we should also open up the scroll case and see where that key goes. Good find by the way."
Joryn begins sheathes his sword and puts down his shield. Turns to Tharl and says "Allow me to investigate this further!" and begins to climb the statue to gain a better perspective.
ReplyDeleteTech:
Athletics check to climb the statue + 8 (no shield penalty)
Acrobatics (?) to avoid acid -2 (no shield penalty)
Perception check to investigate + 3
Joryn has no problems climbing the statue of the Wailing Prince, avoiding the acid with well placed footholds. At the top he can see the face much more clearly. The eyes are empty, where the acid is flowing from.
ReplyDeleteAnd peering into the mouth, he can see a small protrusion - the tip of an iron spike; it reminds Joryn of a some wild creatures that have barbed tongues. The iron spike has a dark purplish energy flowing all around it.
A few minutes later ... Vondal chambers out of the Acid Pool ... Muttering curses to himself BUT! He has the scroll and key in hand, proceeds to open the scroll
ReplyDeleteJoryn relays this information quickly to Tharl and says, "What should i do?" He shouts loudly down to Lohmi and Finding, "MAGES! GET OVER HERE, I FOUND SOMETHING WEIRD!"
ReplyDeleteVondal opens the scroll tube, hands shaking with extreme excitement! Inside Vondal finds the following:
ReplyDelete- A scroll of Animal Messenger
- A scroll of Remove Affliction
- A loose scrap of paper with writing in Druidic, that you can't read (any Druids here?).
- A smooth black stone, 50% larger than the ones that were found in the statues.
OOC: Note that I usually reveal what language it is, even if you can't read it. For example, I can tell that something is in German, even if I can't read German. It helps speed things up in a play-by-blog game.
ReplyDeleteFinding comes up to the base of the statue. Resting the everburning torch against its base, she clambers up to join Joryn, regardless of the acid.
ReplyDelete[tech: Athletics +2 / Acrobatics +3]
"Fascinating!" she exclaims. "These small stones could fit the eyes and stop the liquid from flowing, but I don't think it would be wise to try that until we know what this energy is doing, and what the spike may end up doing..." She trails off as she begins her examination.
[tech: Arcana +9 / Thievery +8]
Finding feels a minor burn of the acid, but it's nothing really. She's up at the top, examining along side Joryn. The two small stones she carries are indeed the right size to plug up the Wailing Prince's eye sockets.
ReplyDeleteAs for the spike, a careful examination reveals that there's a mechanism within that is meant to thrust forward the spike for a few moments, then retract it, and that it's activated when it detects something placed inside the mouth.
Finally, a Detect Magic shows that the purplish energy is indeed magic, but she's not sure what kind.
Tech: 2 points acid damage. A very nice roll on the Thievery, an OK roll on the Arcana.
Finding sighs in frustration as she can't make out anything about the purple glow and calls Lohmi over for some assistance. She makes sure to caution Joryn against putting an exploratory hand near the spike. Addressing both Joryn and Tharl this time, she asks if putting the small stones in the eyes would be worth a try. "If anything goes wrong with it, it's the three of us who might be in most trouble and I wouldn't want to assume that we all want to try things just to see what happens." She smiles at them both.
ReplyDeleteJoryn drops down from the statue and gestures to Lohmi. I think we need your expertise here. "Can you read this script? There's a scary purple needle in the mouth and I'd rather not deal with it until we have all the facts."
ReplyDeleteTech: Move to V7
OOC: My computer died, but I should have my new one by early next week. I'll try to post later, but it's awkward because I have to use my phone for everything.
ReplyDeleteGalad shrugs and calls after Finding, "I have no clue what it is." He then moves next to Vondal and asks, "are you alright?"
ReplyDelete[Tech: move to L7]
As Joryn drops down from the statue, Finding goes ahead and tries to plug the small stones into the statue's eye sockets.
ReplyDeleteLohmi grumbles a bit as someone from atop the statue was yelling. Double checking that his sword was secure, Lohmi nods to Finding as he clambers up the statue to take a look at whatever it was they had found.
ReplyDeleteOOC: Atheletics +6 and Arcana +10
What kind of checks would it be to decipher language?
Ambrose will make his way to the large stature, listening and soliciting the groups discoveries for possible knowledge and contributions.
ReplyDeleteJoryn finds both success and failure in his attempts to place the stones in the Wailing Prince's eye sockets. The stones ~should~ fit and perhaps might even do something, but the acid pouring out keeps them from staying in. If Joryn could somehow find a way to turn off the acid first, the stones would stay in their place.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, Lohmi ponders the meaning of the words in a language he cannot read. (OOC: Either you know a language, or you'll have to use a Comprehend Languages ritual.) Climbing up on the statue, he avoids the acid and takes a look at the spike within the statue's open mouth. Only the tip is visible and indeed, it has enervation magic about it. And then he notices something that the others have not - there is dried blood on the spike...?
Vondal says ... "I found a key thay might be useful upon one of the doors. Plus, a scroll with some spells ... And a piece in Drudic. Can any of you read it? I cannot."
ReplyDeleteLohmi examines the spike closely. "To read the scroll, perhaps someone has a magic that will let us read it."
ReplyDelete"This spike has some dried blood and magic on it."
OOC: Examining spike more closely. Perception +3.
Lohmi sees blood on the spike, and also drops of dried blood in the "throat" of the statue's mouth. He's not sure what to make of the magic aura.
ReplyDeleteLohmi sighs and climbs down the statue. "I can't make any sense of it. Perhaps someone has to make some kind of blood sacrifice using the spike. Although with the magic on the spike, I wouldn't advice doing that."
ReplyDeleteOnce at the foot of the statue, Lohmi walks over to where the scroll is and reaches out a hand for it.
"Turns out I have a magic that may allow me to read the scroll."
OOC: Arcana +10 check to cast Comprehend Languages.
After 10 minutes of ritual chanting, Lohmi gains the ability to read Druidic (for the next 24 hours)! Taking a look at the loose scrap of paper (with writing in Druidic), it reads: "red, black, white, white, red"
ReplyDeleteLohmi finishes the ritual, reads the scroll, and looks confused.
ReplyDelete"Red, black, white, white, red. What does that mean?" Lohmi says. He glances up, looks around the chamber for colors.
Lohmi doesn't see any obvious colors, except for the blue from the everburning torch.
ReplyDeleteOOC: I'm thinking that the colors may be symbolic somehow. Red may mean blood, and black may refer to the necrotic energy. White may be healing energy? What does the scroll even apply to? So many questions.
ReplyDelete"I can't read druidic or abyssal, but I will try to help determine what I can about the magical nature of our discoveries," Ambrose says to Vondal and the others. He checks out the dwarf's cache and the large statue's features. He also tries to decipher the symbols and the stars, especially noticing that some appear to match one of the doors. "Perhaps the stars symbols are to help open one of the doors, while the key may work in the other door."
ReplyDeleteTech:
Arcana check +11
- A scroll of Animal Messenger
- A scroll of Remove Affliction
- A loose scrap of paper with writing in Druidic, that you can't read (any Druids here?).
- A smooth black stone, 50% larger than the ones that were found in the statues
- Large statue eyes and mouth
- A few steps closer to each door in turn
Finding, still clinging to the statue, looks for a way to turn the acid flow off.
ReplyDeleteTech: Thievery +8
The best Finding can tell is that the acid flow shut off is somewhere within the deep throat area of the statue, and somehow tied in with the strange spike.
ReplyDeleteClimbing down from her position, Finding relays the results of her examination to the rest of the group.
ReplyDeleteShe takes the opportunity to rig up a simple holster on her pack to hold the Everburning Torch. Thinking about the list of colours carved on the base of the statue as she works, she asks of the group "does anyone know anything about the story of Prince Amaloss that could give us some clues? History was never my strong point."
OOC: The list of colors are NOT carved onto the base of the statue. The list of colors were on a scrap of parchment found in the scroll (in drudic). The base of the statue is in Abyssal and has not yet been translated.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteOOC: Sorry, my mistake. Forget I said that last bit then (I can't seem to edit the post).
ReplyDeleteAmbrose detects that the two scrolls are what they are, and no more (See compendium for what they do). The paper in Druidic seems to be some kind of clue for who knows what. The large stone seems to be the right size for fitting in one of the holes in the northern door. Taking a few steps closer to the doors reveals no further details.
ReplyDeleteJoryn, growing confused by all this magical business, strides cautiously towards the southern door. Tapping the squares in front of him looking for traps. He then regards the door to see what it looks like.
ReplyDeleteTech:
Move to W11
Perception +3
Joryn searches his way south, discovering no traps along the way. He arrives next to the double doors there. They are iron door fitted with pull rings and keyhole. Close inspection shows that it is indeed locked. What lies beyond?
ReplyDeleteLohmi ponders the clue a bit more before moving to the base of the statue. Again, he repeats the same ritual to read what is written at the base of the statue.
ReplyDeleteOOC: What Lohmi translated was the scroll. Doing Comprehend languages for the statue now.
Vondal says ... "I have an idea" ... He proceeds over to the southern door and puts the key into the lock and turns it - to see if it unlocks ... ??
ReplyDeleteAnother 10 minutes go by, and Lohmi gains the ability to read Abyssal! Carved into the base of the statue is an inscription that now is readable by Lohmi. It says:
ReplyDeleteThe tears flow unless a sacrifice is made to the hungry gods.
Meanwhile, Vondal unlocks the southern door with the key he found!
Galad follows up behind Vondal and stands ready in case something comes bursting through the door.
ReplyDelete[Tech: move V9]
Tharl, listens intently to the inscription bring read. He then leans his longspear on the statue and attempts to climb the statue enough to get close to the mouth. He uses the blade of his spear to cut into his arm just enough to draw a steady trickle of blood, and drips it on the end of the spike, being careful to stay out of the way should the spike shoot out or extend.
ReplyDeleteTech/OOC: Not sure what my climb skill is. Iplay4e is being touchy on my phone.
Lohmi looks grim as he recites the inscription. He himself would have made the sacrifice, and watches carefully as Tharl makes his way up the statue.
ReplyDelete