Starfall [IC]

[lostsole31]

DM's purposes ...

(1d20+3)[19]
(1d20+5)[15]

Zephram: Originally, you attributed it to being disoriented, but now that you have had time to clear your head you realize that there is something 'not right' but you can't put your finger on it. There is something -oh, so very faint - about this area that makes you feel uneasy.

[DJDeMiko]

Ezekiul

Ezekiul looks around for a few moments and gasps.

"These stones . . . they are some type of shrine or altar or homage to Heakun. Those marks, each are an astrological star sign. Each stands for a month." Ezekiul mumbles under his breath, it sounds like he is counting. "Why, they are in chronological order clockwise. In fact, if that shimmering in the mist is the sun . . . I think these are even aligned to point towards the stars location on Midsummer's Day. I think this was some sort of calendar or observatory!"

Ezekiul grins, looking quite pleased with himself.

[slurpz]

Loath

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Loath is a relatively short man, standing only 5'3'' high. He seems more animalistic than the average man, though not in a savage way. It is almost like he's beyond the normal world, seeing things that no other mortal could see. A silvery blue birthmark runs down the right side of his cheek, looking suspiciously like a dark widow spider. Where the spiders eye would have been lies his right eye. The spider's legs sprawl across his face. The legs almost look like battle scars. The hazel in his eye shifts in color from a light brown to a medium golden-green depending on the angle of the the light source and the observer, though his pupil is an immutable black. A glint of intelligence and cunning shines in his eye. His straight black hair is medium length, partially covering his left eye. He is athletically built, neither scrawny nor nuclear in his muscle mass, possessing a marathon runner's' fluid muscles.

Loath turns over in his sleep, perhaps thinking that he was still in a comfortable inn bed, when he rolls right off the rock he was on. The shock of the small fall jolts him awake, and he cautiously opened his eyes and narrowed them, for a moment resembling more of a feral predator than anything else. His hazel eyes shift more towards a golden brown as he observes his surroundings. He immediately notes the huge standing stones that pierce through the mist. From his vantage point on the ground, he sees the moss on the stone closest to him that seems to be hiding a pattern, though he cannot clearly see what the pattern is.

At the sound of voices, the hair on the back of his neck immediately stands up. He bares his teeth and curls his right hand around his quarterstaff that was inexplicably right beside him even as his left hand's claws itch for action. As he began to comprehend the voices and understood that whoever was talking was speaking in Common, his guard still doesn't drop.

Loath slowly rises to his feet, using the rocky surface of the monolith as a prop, when part of the moss comes off. Inspired, Loath continues to remove the moss from the rock as he searches - (1d20+2)[22] the monolith for any answers.

[slurpz]

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Other relevant rolls:

Nature - (1d20+10)[24]
Survival - (1d20+8)[16]
Spellcraft - (1d20+6)[15]

Woohoo, a crit search I wonder what that reveals

[lostsole31]

Sure enough, Loath finds a faint engraving of a spider on the stone that matches his own birthmark on his face.

[Gorgondantess]

A diminutive, emaciated form appears in the center of the monoliths, apparently out of nowhere. He simply stands there, looking up at one of them.

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Ok, the sign goes from his ribcage to eye level. There.

[slurpz]

Loath

Loath sits back down to think. "Twelve stones...sign of the 10th month...I wonder..."

He moves to the next monolith and searches. Quickly, he finds the sign of the 9th month in the same spot as the last sign.

"These stones are somehow related to the stars..."

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Do any of my other rolls apply here?

[DJDeMiko]

Ezekiul

Ezekiul gives a small chuckle and says "Yes we had already determined that, you are a few moments behind me. Now why don't we all introduce ourselves again, since we seem to all be here under similar circumstances. As i said before, I am Ezekiul, Priest and Sword of Brith."

[srgonzo]

Anaximander Shuul, but you can call me Annie. 'Anaximander' is an awful mouthful.

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That's what she said

So, now that we're all up, does anyone have any idea what we're doing here?

[lostsole31]

As if in response to 'Annie's' question ...

Out of nowhere, a voice speaks to you. It is faint but perfectly clear. As it speaks, the stones thrum with a strange vibration, as if they were amplifying the voice somehow.

'The time of the Equinox is come. My children ... I am sorry. I have done what must be done. You deserve answers. I am far ... too far from you. You must learn who you are. The land is yours. The people are yours.'

The speaker seems to be under great strain, as if speaking to you was exhausting her.

'This place is sacred to you. Sacred to the stars that you are. There are other places like this. From the time when people remembered. Heed me now. If any of you should fall, then bear him to the stones, and the soul will be able to enter the flesh ... once again. But make haste, for flesh that is spoiled can never be made whole.'

There is silence again and you wonder if that is all. Then the voice speaks once more, faint as a dying echo:

'Know this. There is a force against you. Already it gathers, already it senses your return. Seek the sword of Starkweather John ... it lies near, waiting to be claimed ... when that is found, you may begin to understand, to remember.'

With these ominous words, the voice falls silent. You are alone in the thining mists, with dawn's early light trying desperately to burn through the mists.

Over the next five minutes, the mists vanish altogether. You can then see that you are on a scraggy, almost featureless island a quarter of a mile across, with nothing by way of landscape other than grass and rocks. The stone circle is the only sign that anyone has ever been here. To the south, a causeway of stone connects the island to the mainland that can clearly be seen stretching away in either direction.

[slurpz]

Loath

Gruffly nodding his head, Loath simply states, "Loath."

Taking a look around, he points a finger in the direction of the stone bridge and says, "I'm heading there." Without a further glance backwards, he begins loping to the south.

[UserClone]

After a brief moment of reverie about the voice, Zephram shudders with the creeping feeling he had had just a moment before the voice called for them.

"WAIT. Something is...wrong here."

Zephram grows tense, his jaw ridgidly clenched. Looking about warily, he says,

"I suggest you ready what weapons you have, as a precaution; it feels as though we aren't alone, and I don't mean the voice."

[slurpz]

Loath

Peering back at the human, Loath grunts and hefts his quarterstaff, before continuing south towards the stone causeway.

[UserClone]

Zephram nods in agreement and, hefting his lance, follows suit.

[lostsole31]

A split second after Zephram's paranoid prognostication, small masses of dark mist rise out of the ground adjacent (separately) to each of the stones that "birthed" a PC.

The mists take shape, and several Small-sized shapes stand on the outside of the circle, hissing angrily, waving javelins. They are wretched, ugly creatures with large, pointed ears. They seem to wear leather armor, carry a light wooden shield, have an extra javelin each in a quiver, and a morningstar at the side. Their overall appearance, including that of their equipment, seems shadowy.

For the sake of simplicity, the party is in a general mass around the center of the circle.

Here's initiative ...

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SG-Unicorn (1d20+1)[12]
SG-Reaper (1d20+1)[7]
SG-Spider (1d20+1)[19]
SG-Firedrake (1d20+1)[20]
SG-Spectre (1d20+1)[2]
SG-Delver (1d20+1)[10]

Annie (1d20+1)[12]
Zephram (1d20+1)[18]
Loath (1d20+2)[8]
Kael (1d20+8)[14]
Jaime (1d20+5)[19]
Ezekiul (1d20)[17]

Therefore ... adjusted initiative order:

SG-Firedrake [20]
SG-Spinner [18.9]
Zephram [18]
Ezekiul [17]
Kael [14]
Jaime [13.9]
SG-Unicorn [12]
Annie [11.9]
SG-Delver [10]
Loath [8]
SG-Reaper [7]
SG-Spectre [2]

[lostsole31]

R1T20 (Round One, Turn/Segment 20):

The bogey by the Firedrake megalith throws his spear at Kael, who is flat-footed: (1d20+3)[23]. If it hits, it does (1d4)[4] damage.

EDIT: This is excruciating ... the DM will roll "follow-on rolls" behind screen to save time (and posts).

The small javelin sails across the circle effortlessly and pierces the upper right part of Kael's chest, puncturing a lung for 6 hit points of damage (3 remaining).

[lostsole31]

threatend crit ... (1d20+3)[18]

R1T19: Jaime's turn ...

[Gorgondantess]

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Emm, just to save time, why don't we all just post our actions when we can? If we just do it in initiative order, we'll never get anywhere. Jaime will wait for someone to get into a flanking position, then run over and attack. If there isn't a possible flank by the time Kael goes, he'll attack the mook by the spectre megalith. Anyhoo, rolls:
attack 1: (1d20+3)[20]+2 if flanking
attack 2: (1d20+3)[15]+2 if flanking
dmg 1: (1d4+2)[4]
dmg 2: (1d4+2)[3]
SA 1: (1d6)[3]
SA 2: (1d6)[1]

[lostsole31]

The critter by the Spider monolith where Loath awakened throws a javelin at Loath: (1d20+3)[4] ... damage, if any = (1d4)[4]

The javelin sails well past Loath.

R1T18: Zephram's turn, followed by Ezekiul, then by Kael.

[UserClone]

R1T18, Zephram

In an effort to protect Kael from further harm, Zephram lowers his lance, charging at the "SG" (...Spectral Goblin?) which appeared at the firedrake monolith.

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Attack - (1d20+6)[7]Damage - (1d8+6)[7]

...if the way to charge is blocked, however, he takes an entirely different tack, dropping his lance at his feet, drawing a javelin, and proceeding to show these diminutive imps how a javelin is used, starting with the firedrake one.

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Attack - (1d20+5)[14]Damage - (1d6+4)[7]

[lostsole31]

For ease, we will use FlWiPig's naming convention. Anyway, Zephram firms both hands on his lance, huge muscles tensing and charges the "spectral goblin". But the sg's small size, the dewy grass, and the remaining disorientation throws his aim, and his balance, askew as he misses the creature ... and now Zephram is off-balance with a -2 AC penalty.

R1T17: Ezekiul, followed by Kael.

[DJDeMiko]

Ezekiul

ooc - I'm guessing that the thrown javelins mean I'm out of the creatures range.


Ezekiul Draws his great sword and reaches out with his left hand to touch Kael.

He says loudly, "Brith, give my ally the strength to fight our enemies."

Spontaneous cast divine favor into cure light (1d8+1)[6]

[Douglas]

R1T14, Kael

Kael blinks, then shakes his head as a javelin first pierces his lung and then slides out, leaving nothing but a tiny scar and a few flakes of the little blood that had time to come out.

Thank you, friend, that should make this easier...

Seeing that the creature that threw the javelin is still unhurt, Kael determines to remedy this fact immediately. The head of his spear bursts into flames as he quickly advances on his target. Once there, the spear appears to split into two. The poor creature suddenly facing an extra weapon stands in confusion a moment too long, and Kael's real spear hits home. The illusion cuts nothing but air and then fades, but the glowing tip of the real weapon leaves a nasty cauterized wound in the creature's side before the flames, too, fade.

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Use Burning Blade (swift action, 1d6+1 bonus fire damage for the round)
Move next to SG-Firedrake (move action)
Use Shadow Blade Technique (standard action, roll attack twice, pick which to use, get 1d6 bonus cold damage if I use the lower one)

Attack rolls:
(1d20+5)[24]
(1d20+5)[7]
I pick the higher one, so 24, which I am quite certain is a hit.

Damage:
(1d8+6)[7] weapon damage
(1d6+1)[6] fire damage

Unused because I didn't pick the lower attack roll:
(1d6)[6]

[lostsole31]

The creature looks open with mouth agape in pain, and barely manages the slightest scream because his body puffs in a mini-explosion of smoke and shadows and disappears ... including his equipment (and the javelin he previously threw).

Jaime, heartened by this though lacking someone with which to flank, darts towards the Spectre spectral goblin while drawing both daggers with blinding speed - blinding enough to surprise the creature. Jaime runs forward, like an arrow, and stabs the creature through the center of the throat. He doesn't even have time to retract his dagger from the thrust before it bursts into smoke and shadow and disappears.

[lostsole31]

R1T12: Furious, the Unicorn-based spectral goblin throws a javelin at Zephram: (1d20+3)[14], for (1d4)[4] damage if it hits.

Only because Zephram was off-balance does the creature's javelin strike true at Zephram's side flank for 4 hp's (bringing him down to 7 hp's).

[lostsole31]

@DJ/ Ezekiul: What spell did you sacrifice for the cure light wounds spell?

R1T11.9: Anaximander "Annie" Shuul gains a quick assessment of the scene. Within a split second he realizes that his best chance is to target one of the goblins that are still readying their javelins to throw (i.e., flat-footed). He concentrates for all he's worth and raises a hand with an index finger pointing towards the Delver-based goblin and says, simply and without shouting, "Burn."

A ray of red shoots forth from his fingertip. Attack: (1d20+2)[20] for (1d6+1)[4] damage. (With a total of 21 to hit and 5 damage due to Point Blank Shot - just at the 30' range.)

The red ray burns through the center of the goblin's chest, searing through its leather armor and out the other side. The goblin, surprised and without a noise, disappears.

R1T8: Loath's turn ...

[Douglas]

@DJ/ Ezekiul: What spell did you sacrifice for the cure light wounds spell?

Divine Favor

Spontaneous cast divine favor into cure light

[lostsole31]

Divine Favor

Sorry, as the DM I am akin to the gods in the heavens ... but the mists were indicative of low-lying cloud cover, so I didn't see all of your post. Or, there was condensation on the screen. Um, yeah, that's it.

[DJDeMiko]

Divine Favor

yeah, what he said :)

[UserClone]

Still reeling from his failed attempt at skewering the spectral goblin who had attacked Kael, Zephram groans with pain as, in the next instant, his side is pierced. He simply twists his body quickly, and the javelin falls loose to the ground. Not wanting to seem weak, Zephram taunts the creature.

"I dare you to try that again when I'm looking, wretch!"