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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
As you stand at the open door, a strange smell starts to drift up from below.
Nature DC 14
Spoiler
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You recognize the smell of a number of local and exotc roots and herbs, most notably a type of red grass that tends to grow in cemeteries.
Religion or Arcana DC 16
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These herbs are often used in the preserving of the dead, and sometimes in necromantic rituals
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
Lucan sniffs at the air, trying to identify the smell. "Uh-oh," he says. "That can't be good." He tells the others what he makes of it.
Spoiler
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[roll0]
[roll1]
Since I added that I'm telling the others what I smell, I'm guessing that they can read the spoilered text as well.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Shep too sniffs the air, the familiar scent lingering in his nostrils. He ponders its origin when Lucan speaks it openly.
"Is that what it's used for..."
Spoiler
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Nature: [roll0]
Religion: [roll1]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Pavick - Gnome Wizard
Pavick smiles up at Shep. He strains on his tip toes to get as high as possible so that he can whisper to the goliath. "I've just got one question... Why didn't you do that to the door outside?"
When the smell reaches Pavick's nose, he stands trying to identify it until Lucan walks up behind him and tells what it is. "Uh-oh indeed. Well, I guess we go down and see what Kala's been up to. Let's get everyone together and go. We don't want to give her any more time to prepare than we have to. We can come back up and explore for further clues once we've dealt with the threat downstairs."
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
"It wasn't a downhill door." Shep whispers back, matter-of-factly. "Just as moving downhill is easier, so is opening a door that leads downwards."
Shep's face takes its familiar serene quality, and one could swear the breeze was blowing softly through the corridor of the house. A cherry blossom finds its way into nesting in the Shepherd's tangled beard.
"A wise Shepherd once said, lead a goat uphill and the mountain will break you. But lead a goat downhill and you will break the mountain."
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
Lucan begins moving down the stairs, trying to be stealthy while keeping his eyes open for trouble. He begins by scanning the stairs for apples.
Spoiler
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[roll0]
[roll1]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
As Lucan moves down the stairs, he spots an apple core, but is able to step around it without difficulty. As he gets to the bottom, and rounds the corner, he is met with a gruesome sight. The room is a mix of worked, and natural stone. A few torches burn in holders along the wall, illuminating a a pair of tables cluttered with bottles, small burners, and scattered roots, herbs, powders and liquids. The center of the room, however, is what captures your attention.
A makeshift table/alter stands in the center of the room, stained dark with blood. It appears to be made of thick wood, and re-enforced with metal bracings. What look like cloth wrappings dangle from one side, and on the corners, you see the piles of wax that were once candles. Strange drawings and markings line both the alter, and the floor around the alter. On ted edge of the table, about midway down, you see what look like deep claw marks.
Aside from that, the room appears to be empty. You see no other entrances or exits other than the one you just came down.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Aramil strides into the room, looking at the sight. "Do any of you recognize these claw marks? Are they from a summoned beast, or a dragonborn?"
He continues to ponder what's left of the area, trying to figure out the nature of the ritual.
Spoiler
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[roll0]
[roll1]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
OOC: To determine what kind of claw marks they are, I'll need a Nature check: DC 12
As the swordmage looks over the area, he quickly picks out the arcane reagents and religious symbols and candles used for one thing: Necromancy. Something has been brought back as an undead creature, something more than just a mere zombie or skeleton.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Shep follows the swordmage into room, and stoops over the table. He runs his fingers through the grooves made by the claws pensively.
Spoiler
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Nature: [roll0]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
The claws are definitely from a Dragonborn, most likely male.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
"Dragonborn." Shep offers, raising his eyes up to meet Aramil's as he speaks.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
Lucan snoops around the room, trying to find some clue. The necromancy is interesting, but "The real question is where did they go?"
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
As Shep and Aramil examine the alter, Lucan's eyes pass over the room causually, but snap back to a small seam in the stonework in the far corner. Upon examination, he recognizes that there is a trap door here, camoflaged to look like the rest of the surrounding stone.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
"Over here," Lucan calls, gesturing to the trap door. He reaches for it, then hesitates. "Shep, maybe you should have a look."
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Shep stares at the trapdoor for a good minute before looking back at Lucan with strained eyes.
"Hrrummm...do you see anything?"
Spoiler
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Perception: [roll0]
OOC: Yeah, I really need to train Shep in Perception.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
Lucan examines the trap door for traps. If he finds none, he attempts to open it.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
The trapdoor isn't trapped, as far as Lucan can tell, but it is heavy. With a bit of effort, however, Lucan is able to get it open. As the slab lifts up, you find yourself staring down a spiral staircase that disappears into darkness below.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
"Nothing for it but to try it out and see where it leads," Eltain says, shrugging. He begins to descend the staircase, keeping an eye out for traps and hazards.
Perception: [roll0]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Pavick - Gnome Wizard
Pavick stands on the stairwell leading upstairs, observing the scene below. "Are you sure we should run off down a deep dark hole like that? Uh. I mean, if it leads out, she'll have probably gotten away already. If not, well maybe we ought to search the rest of the house for other information first. We can always set a guard or two here over the hole while the rest of us go search the rest of the place."
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
Lucan looks between Pavick and Eltain, and then follows the half-eladrin. "We can't let them get away," he says by way of explanation.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Shepherd pats a reassuring hand on Pavick's shoulder.
"Sometimes the shepherd walks atop the mountain, sometimes the shepherd walks beneath the mountain."
He follows Lucan and Eltain's descent.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
"Lucan's our best searcher, so if he's going, we couldn't search at full efficiency. We should be able to search here again soon, but not following up on this now could mean a lost opportunity."
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
You continue down the staircase for several minutes before the passage opens up, and you find yourself in a small cavern. The cavern is again a mix of natural, and worked stone. The air is colder than on the surface, but not dangerously so.
History DC 13
Spoiler
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You know that under Fallcrest, there's an ancient network of caves and tunnels from a previous civilization. A large portion of it was turned into crypts, but most of known entrances to these tunnels were sealed off, to prevent citizens from wandering in.
Ahead of you, you see one tunnel heading to the East, one heading southwest, and one heading northwest. As you peer down them, you can see other places in the distance that the tunnels branch off. Finding your way could be difficult.
To try and track the people ahead of you, everyone will need to make one of the following checks. (Either primary, or secondary, your choice)
Primary Skills:
Dungeoneering - DC 14
Perception - DC 16
Nature - DC 15
Secondary Skills:
History - DC 15
Endurance - DC 13
Insight - DC 14
Again, primary skills are what will allow you to track them. Secondary skills will allow you to give yourself, (or someone else) a +2 bonus on their check. If you fail a secondary skill by 5 or more, that means you give bad advice, and the person takes a -2. In addition, if you succeed on a secondary check by 5 or more, then you can cancel out someone else's -2
Also I'm assuming that someone grabbed a torch, or that Pavick is providing light.
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Lucan - Half-elf bard/MC ranger
Lucan doesn't know anything about the caverns, but he keeps his eyes open, trying to follow the escaping people. He sees signs here and there, enough to keep him on the right track.
Spoiler
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To know about the caverns:
[roll0]
To track them:
[roll1]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Shep's shepherdly knowledge of the natural world is sharp as a tack. He leans over Lucan's shoulder unobtrusively pointing out little tidbits and guiding him ever so carefully through the natural caverns.
Spoiler
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Nature [roll0]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Pavick - Gnome Wizard
Pavick holds his orb over his head, and with a quick gesture, it bursts into light. "Okay, I guess we're going then." As the group sets off down the tunnels, Pavick points out. "These tunnels were used by an older civilization that was here before Fallcrest was built over the ruins. Many of these tunnels were once used as crypts. This could be very bad since we're apparently chasing a necromancer." A chill runs down Pavick's spine.
Pavick wades between people's legs to get just behind Lucan and the Shepherd. He uses a combination of what he's been told about the underground passages and his skill as a tracker in the wilds to help stay on Kala's trail.
Spoiler
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Primary Skill (Nature)
[roll0] + 2 for Secondary Skill = 28
Secondary Skill (History)
[roll1]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
Aramil looks around his surroundings for means to track their prey.
[roll0]
[roll1]
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Re: [4E] Adventures in Fallcrest - IC
DM Post
Thanks to Lucan's keen eyes, Shep's keen guiding, and Pavick's keen remembering-of-a-book-he-saw-once-in-wizard-school, the Party is able to make their way through the maze of tunnels, carefully following the trail left by (presumably) Kala and her companions. Despite Aramil's suggestion to go down a rather dangerous looking side-tunnel (quickly shot down by everyone else in the party), the Eladrin keeps the party moving in good time.
After a while, a small mossy patch is passed, and you're able to get a better look at the tracks you're trying to follow. You see several pairs of footprints, one lighter, smaller set (most likely belonging to an elf or eladrin), a few heavy bootprints, and one set of bootprints that appears to be dragging his (or her (or it's)) feet rather than taking clean, even steps.
After a bit, you notice that these footprints are joined by several others that leave scratches in the stone, also dragging a bit.
However, you make good time, and after roughly half an hour or so of traveling through the winding tunnels, when suddenly you spy a light shining through a bend in the tunnel just ahead of you. A series of *thuds* and *thwacks* begin sounding from up ahead, and Aramil and Lucan can hear humanoid voices faintly behind the din.