Last Redoubt

[appending_doom]

Dreamcatcher

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You know Qush and Mari are kalashtar, and you can easily pick out the other ten that dwell here.

The woman is obviously possessed; under the circumstances, you would have to assume by a Quori spirit.

Her guards appear to be utterly material, if still mysterious.

Qush stares for a few quiet moments before nodding tersely.

The woman smiles. "Good. Then let your people come forth to be...judged."

[Fishy]

"In the spirit of full and peaceful cooperation," announces Dreamcatcher, making his way to the front of the crowd, "I volunteer to be 'judged' first."

[appending_doom]

The woman smiles, a thin, nasty expression that leaves no doubt that there is some pretext or plot involved in this demand. She steps forward and meets Dreamcatcher's eyes, and something about her changes. It's not clear if it's her posture, her bearing, or something else entirely, but a strange haze descends over the warforged.

Dreamcatcher

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You feel a probing presence, and, before you can react to it, you feel something within you reaching back out to the probing.

The haze vanishes almost as quickly as it appeared, and the woman recoils, eyes wide and face draining of color.

"Impossible!" she hisses.

The loss of composure lasts only a moment, however, before her face hardens. "I might have thought something like this would happen if we left you alone too long," she growls. Then she raises her voice, carrying throughout the gathered crowd. "This warforged is found guilty of the crimes of kidnapping, wrongful imprisonment, and heresy, for which the penalty is death."

She raises one hand, and the strange constructs around her move in towards Dreamcatcher.

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Roll initiative!

(1d20+8)[21]
(1d20+6)[8]

(1d20+7)[20]

[Sallera]

"Good luck making that stick," mutters Niev, faint flickers of light already playing over her left hand as she spreads her fingers. She turns to Mari, expression solemn, and places a hand on her shoulder. "Looks like this is the first step on the path. Make sure you live through it; I'd hate to walk alone."

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Init: (1d20+2)[12]

[FirebirdFlying]

"Thanks," and Mari briefly brushes Niev's hand.

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(1d20+9)[10]

[Fishy]

"Interesting claims," responds Dramcatcher, calmly. "Do you have proof of these accusations, or are you a band of roving thugs sent to execute the first person you came across?"

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Initiative! - (1d20+1)[7]

[appending_doom]

The woman does not reply, but Qush, backing away from her at top speed, does. "She is one of the Inspired and, carries the full weight of the law of Dal Quor. I won't-" His face crumples in a sort of pain. "We can't fight her, if she wishes to kill us all."

The woman seems to ignore the comment, punching forward with a kick to Dreamcatcher's chest. Her foot seems to darken as it moves, until it explodes into a cloud of shadow.

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Normal Melee, flat-footed: (1d20+7)[19]
[roll]1d10+1d6+1[/roll]

If it hits, make a Will save.

Almost immediately after, a lance of violet energy spears down from the rooftops, aiming towards the Inspired.

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Ranged Touch: (1d20+7)[26]
(3d6)[11]

The blast causes the Inspired to make a shocked sound in the back of her throat as the energy cuts into her flesh like a knife.

MAP

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Rasht Battle

Each of you are noted
DC = Dreamcatcher
NV = Niev
MR = Mari
IN = Inspired
RW = "robot" warriors
QU = Qush
??? = Mystery assailant
pp = crowds of people, difficult terrain

The dark areas are buildings, with the elevation written on them.

[Sallera]

The light playing over Niev's fingers snaps inward, rushing through her body and causing every curve and angle to appear more precise, more sharply defined. Pulling away from Mari, she sidles through the crowd to its inner edge, getting close enough to strike.

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Manifesting a wild-surged Vigor for 25thp, then moving to G22.
Enervation on a 1: (1d10)[3]

[Fishy]

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Will Save - (1d20+5)[24]

"Run if you must," Dreamcatcher calls back to Qush, "My place is here, between the darkness and the-"

With an ear-piercing crack, Dreamcatcher is cut off in mid sentence. The agent's foot connects solidly with his chest, and snaps a chunk of his composite plating clean in half. He staggers, beads and string spilling out of his 'wound'- and expanding into a living, writhing net that fills the plaza.

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Dreamcatcher burns his psionic focus to take 15 on the Concentration check to cast defensively, and fires off an Entangle.

Entangle is a stupidly large spell. Dreamcatcher will try to grab the agent and all of the robots- trying to catch as few civilians as he can, but not worrying about himself. I think that's a 40' radius spread centered on A15, unless I can't cast onto the brown tiles for some reason. (What are those, again?)

Anyway. Everybody in the affected area makes a DC 15 Reflex save, once a turn, or be entangled.

Reflex Save - (1d20+4)[23]

[FirebirdFlying]

Mari pulls at the living string that curls around her. Dammit… Wriggling out of its grasp, she hops over and around it, working her way across the square.

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Ref: (1d20+5)[8]
If I make the save:

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Move to E20, attack robot thing at F17.
Ranged touch: (1d20+4)[23]
Damage: (3d6)[12]
15/18 pp

Move to E20.

[appending_doom]

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(1d20+2)[22]
(1d20+2)[16]
(1d20+2)[5]
(1d20+2)[18]

(1d20+7)[13]

[appending_doom]

One of the robots is thoroughly entangled, and the Inspired seems hopelessly ensnared, as well. Qush appears caught in the trap, too, while only a few parts of the crowd are overrun.

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The black-outlined squares are now entangling territory.

Two of the trapped one glance up towards where the bolt of energy came, as if searching. The third snaps its right arm out. Something like a crossbow has been welded to it. It fires at Dreamcatcher without preamble.

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Spot: (1d20+1)[12]
Spot: (1d20+1)[3]

(1d20-11)[-8]

Attack: (1d20+5)[8]
Damage: (2d8)[7]

[appending_doom]

The two searchers abruptly point upwards, and each ready their bows, firing up to the roofs on the east.

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Spot to see it for yourself

(1d20+5)[7]
(2d8)[10]

(1d20+5)[15]
(2d8)[8]

The bolts speed to either side of the roof, not hitting anything.

[FirebirdFlying]

Spot: (1d20)[17]

[Sallera]

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Spot: (1d20+2)[7]

[appending_doom]

On top of the roof is a small, humanoid form -- a child, halfling, or gnome, you suspect. It is crouched low, illuminated by the violet energy clutched in one hand.

[appending_doom]

The Inspired's eyes flicker as she glares, and makes a strange, aborted gesture. Next, she smiles at Dreamcatcher. "Do you think wrapping chains around my body will stop me?"

Her eyes turn inward and down, as if praying. Perhaps she is, you think.

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(1d20+23)[33]

1/6

The air around her suddenly becomes hazy and difficult to perceive. It isn't clear where she's standing. "Get out of this mess and kill the interloper!" the Inspired screams.

Another blast arcs down from above, this time aiming for the warrior entangled in Dreamcatcher's spell.

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(1d20+7)[12]
(3d6)[5]

The creatures are oddly clumsy, so the strike hits true, spattering against the metallic skin of the beast.

[Sallera]

About to dive into the web of string, Niev holds her ground when the Inspired conceals her position. If she were focused on defense, then perhaps her soldiers were more important to her than they seemed, and they presented much easier targets. Scanning the threads wrapped around the nearest warrior, she picks out one that passes close by, and reaches out to lay a finger upon it. A line of fire ignites, running along the guiding string toward the trapped target.

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Wild-surged energy ray at the entangled warrior.
Ranged touch: (1d20+4)[8]
Damage: (5d6+5)[23] fire
Enervation on 1: (1d10)[9]

[Fishy]

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At the beginning of Dreamcatcher's turn, everyone caught in the spell makes another Reflex save, including himself.

Reflex - (1d20+4)[6]

[Fishy]

"Yes," Dreamcatcher notes dryly. The web shifts, changing from a chaotic, tangled mass to an intricate fractal, which suddenly becomes painful to look at.

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Chastise Spirits! Every Inspired and Kalashtar within 30' of Dreamcatcher takes (3d6)[7], Will save DC 17 halves.

[FirebirdFlying]

It looks like nothing so much as snapping off a piece of air and pushing it, what Mari does halfway between fighting off strands of - well, what she's not managed to get beyond thinking of as Dreamcatcher's guts. The air hurtles towards one of the soldier-things, shattering wherever it hits. Look at me, little construct.

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Ref: (1d20+5)[23]
Ranged touch: (1d20+4)[21]
Damage: (3d6)[11] (piercing)
EDIT: That's to the one at B17, by the way.

[appending_doom]

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Reflex Saves
(1d20+2)[10]
(1d20+2)[7]
(1d20+2)[16]

Will saves
(1d20+9)[26]

The fire and shards seem to do little actual damage to the robot; it seems oddly resistant to physical harm, and the metallic form doesn't burn well. Still, the immobile warrior seems damaged by the attack.

Now there are three entangled by the webs; they struggle against the restraints while the Inspired glowers. The last free warrior escapes the area of effect, and takes another potshot at the hidden sniper.

[appending_doom]

The Inspired winces at the sight of the projection. "You think stealing our power will get you anywhere, made thing? You won't survive this encounter!"

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(1d20+5)[9]
(2d8)[10]
(1d10)[7] 1-2 miss

The warrior's blaster bolt goes wild.

[appending_doom]

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Gah. Strength checks for robots to get out of web.

(1d20+2)[19]
(1d20+2)[11]
(1d20+2)[6]

"Regardless, I tire of this."

The Inspired glows blue for an instant -- as does the one warrior free of the entanglement.

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Concentration: (1d20+23)[30]

Then the two swap places, the warrior fully entangled in the web while its master is free.

Sadly, the location appears to be in the sniper's blind spot, and now free, the Inspired closes her eyes, as if concentrating even harder. She does not move.

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Psicraft for details.

The sniper makes another shot at the nearest robot, perhaps hoping to chip away at its strength.

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ranged touch: (1d20+7)[16]
if hit: (3d6)[15]

The metallic substance that makes up its form is beginning to show wear...and something is visible in between the gaps in the metal.

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Spot (move action) to discern

[Sallera]

Should have known fire wouldn't work... Niev glances around, quickly gauging distance. The Inspired was out of range, and she didn't much feel like casting a bolt straight through the crowd in any case. Studying the nearest warrior, she visualizes a link between them, then, almost as an afterthought, snaps her hand closed, ready to release a violent bolt of electricity into the entangled warrior's shell.

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Psicraft: (1d20+2)[5]
Active Spot: (1d20+2)[16]
And another wild-surged energy ray, electricity this time, unless the previous two rolls reveal something important...
Ranged touch: (1d20+7)[25]
Damage: (5d6)[18]

[FirebirdFlying]

Mari struggles through the string, breaking free into the crowd with her sights set on the Inspired.

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Reflex: (1d20+5)[16]
Psicraft:(1d20+8)[28]
Spot:(1d20)[9]

[appending_doom]

Mari

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At first, it seems just like she's summoning and astral construct, but then you realize there is a beacon embedded in the power, calling for something to inhabit the body within.

Given everything you know about the Inspired, there is only one type of creature they would dare summon from the outer planes...

[FirebirdFlying]

She's summoning quori. The pit of dread in Mari's stomach suddenly seems a lot deeper. "She's summoning quori!"

[Sallera]

Niev briefly clenches her hands into fists, immediately dismissing the warriors. Fear flutters at the back of her mind, but it lacks importance in the face of the more immediate threat, and she ignores it. Damn it, I got too complacent. Never should have underestimated an Inspired. "Hit her with whatever you can, I'll be right there!"

[appending_doom]

On top of the roof where the sniper has crouched, a monstrous form takes shape. Dozens of legs, too thin to support any weight, sprout from the headless, handless body; eyes glare from the creature's torso, and two glowing blades of force take the place of the thing's hands.

The crowd, already panicking at Mari's warning, try to flee away from the monster, as it closes in on the sniper and attacks it.

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(1d20+9)[17]
(1d8+4)[11]

(1d20+2)[5]

The Inspired, oddly, is not moving, her eyes fixed on the living nightmare.

Mari

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Your psicraft was high enough to know - this power is maintained by concentration alone; rather than defeating the quori, you can attempt to break the manifester's focus.