Wrath of the Righteous: The Worldwound Incursion

[Khosan]

Udo

"You don't know about the Storm King?" Udo gapes, eyes wide, "He's...Well, factually, he's a demon lord who we came to know of two decades ago, when he first attacked Kenabres and, in so doing, cracked the Wardstone" He pauses, considering his next words before throwing caution and tact to the wind, "Less factually, he's perhaps the most terrifying thing I've laid eyes on."

Coming upon the clearing and the stench, Udo lifts his shirt to cover his face. Taking his cue from Tefkros, he draws his sling and loads a bullet, preparing for whatever may come.

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Stealth - (1d20+6)[19]
Perception - (1d20+9)[29]

[DaedalusMkV]

Tefkros is just about to round the corner to investigate whatever Gann was talking about when he stumbles slightly. It's nowhere near as bad as a more encumbered warrior might manage, but the scuffling of rocks is more than enough to cause him to pause, just as he notices an evil-looking, snouted face peering around the corner at him, seeming just as surprised to be seeing a human here as Tefkros is to be face-to-face with a five foot tall rat-man carrying a nasty looking blade still glistening with blood. The creature scrabbles back for a moment, hissing in shock, and the call is answered by several more squeaking voices farther around the corner. Just past the four rat-men, Tefkros can just barely make out the shapes of a pair of mail-armoured corpses, faint light reflecting off their metal armour.

That's all the time he has to observe, though, as it's plenty clear that the sword-armed rats have no intention of leaving you be, the malice in their verminous faces obvious even in the dim light.

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Battle time again. Initiative order goes like this:
Tefkros, Udo, Idranel, Astias
Aravashnial and Anevia
The enemies
Karsten
Gann and the Mongrelmen (guess who rolled a 1 for Initiative? These guys.)

The rat-men are about five feet tall, and vaguely humanoid. Each has a sword, though the weapon used by the fourth is odd, about the size of a longsword but with a slightly wavy blade, and black like the night sky. It certainly doesn't fit with the utilitarian-looking gear used by the rest.

Also, Khosan: Since Udo is currently guiding Aravashnial, you'll need to move no more than 15 feet per round if you want him to be able to keep up with you, and you'll need to describe the situation to him if you want any help from him at all.

Map:

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Udo, Tefkros:

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Those creatures match descriptions you've heard of Wererats, men afflicted by a Lycanthropic curse which turns them into twisted hybrids of man and animal. You aren't too sure on the specifics of the breed's abilities, but you do know that Lycanthropes are all very resistant to wounds caused by weapons not made of silver.

[ProudGrognard]

Tefkros
HP 10 AC 18


Quickly recovering, Tefkros calls out

"We have wererats here! Silver if you got it. Idranel, Astias, take my spot"

Hoping that the two better armed warriors will do so, Tefkros only takes a small step backwards, quickly retrieving two silver arrows with a smooth movement. The next moment, they are both flying towards the closest wererat.

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So. 5 ft step back to create space for the more heavily armored. Rapid shot
Atk1 (1d20+5)[6] dmg (1d8+2)[10]
Atk2 (1d20+5)[25] dmg (1d8+2)[5]

Guys cover me or Tefkros will fall quickly.

[Drothmal]

Astias

During the walk, the bard chose to remain somewhat silent, choosing to amuse himself by starting to compose a small ballad of the event of the cave.

When Tefkros repeats his scouting sign, the arcane duelist makes a small bow at the archer, indicating that this time he would give him the benefit of his silence.

But when the scout finds himself surrounded by the lychantropes, Astias breaks said silence.

"To battle!" yells the bard as he charges into the fray, hoping that his challenge will divert attention away from his ranged companion.

As he moves, a strange feeling takes over Astias... as if he knew exactly what would happen next in the battlefield and could predict the enemies' next movements.

Trusting his instincts, the arcane duelist tosses his sword from one hand to the other and retrieves the whip he has been carrying by his side, his eyes fixed on the wererat's leader.

Actions

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Free: Move sword from right hand to left
Standard: Cast True strike (trait power)
Move: If R1 falls from the crit, move into his spot (J6). If not down, move to Tefkros spot (I6)

As part of the move action (now that I have BAB +1), retrieve whip.

Status

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Hp = 10/14
AC = 16

[Mr. Turniphead]

Idranel

The Elven warrior was shaken from her usual moody silence by the appearance of the wererats. Drawing her rapier, she carefully glides past Tefkros, taking up a position to defend him as he rains silvery death on the first of the creatures.

"Stay behind me." She rasps at the Ranger. Striking out at the nearest creature.

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Status! HP: 14/16
Arcane Pool: 0/4 (After my next swift action)
Move Action: Move to 6I or whichever square is available between Tefkros and the Wererats.
Standard: (1d20+7)[13]
Damage: (1d6+2)[3]
Note: If there are no enemies within range (If Tefkros killed the one closest to us for example), than Idranel will hold action and attack the next one to get close with the above roll.)

[Khosan]

Udo

"Wererats," Udo groans, his sling wouldn't be much of use against them, not that he could get a clear shot in these cramped quarters anyway. It was just as likely he'd hit someone in the ass.

"Warden, we might need one of your summoning spells. We've a small pack of at least three armed and hostile wererats about thirty feet straight ahead of us." He spares a hurried glance towards the front line, "I don't know how effective that can be, they're resistant to all but silver, but it could keep some of the attention off Tefkros. If you've any other ideas, I'm all ears."

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HP: 14/14
AC: 17

[DaedalusMkV]

Tefkros is the first to react to the sudden encounter. His first silver arrow is too hasty, dashing itself against the stone walls to little effect, but the second is uncannily accurate, punching directly through the startled Wererat's chest and into its heart. The beast grabs at it, looking terribly confused, and has time to make a halfhearted attempt to pull the arrow out before collapsing, dead before it hits the ground. Idranel moves forward to cover Tefkros' lost ground, but her thrust is dodged fairly effectively by the second ratman, while Astias readies himself for the fight.

Aravashnial clicks his tongue in response to Udo's suggestion. "Lycanthropes? I've got just the creature in mind." Without hesitation, he begins the arcane incantations to call forth a creature, hands contorting into shape to channel the energy. Meanwhile, Anevia hobbles forwards as best she can, wincing in pain as she discards her makeshift crutch to devote both hands to her bow, and fires an arrow expertly through the developing melee, its steel head striking her target in the chest... To little avail, as it fails to cause any sort of visible injury. "Damnations." She curses to herself, not bothering yet to draw another arrow.

Meanwhile, the Wererats move to retaliate, hissing in anger at the loss of their comrade. One swipes at Idranel with his sword, cutting a shallow gash in her arm, while the second advances at Astias but fumbles his swing at the last second and barely manages to avoid impaling himself on his own sword. The last, clearly eager to succeed where the other failed, dashes forwards and slashes at the bard with a vicious overhand chop, which Astias checks with a parry... With a resounding snap and crack, Astias' blade shatters into shards, shining pieces of metal flying through the air. Several glance off both combatants' armour harmlessly, but the tip of Astias' shattered sword flies directly at the Wererat's eye, causing it to flinch back and bring both hands up to protect its face, dropping the odd-looking wavy blade in the process.

Quickly recovering from his shock at the dramatic scene ahead of him, Gann shouts to the other Mongrels. "Stay back and guard the rear! There might be more of them!" then charges forward, slashing at the now unarmed Wererat, but a combination of the creature's resilience and armour wards off the blow harmlessly.

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Tefkros' crit instantly kills R1, bringing it down to a scarily low negative HP number. Idranel misses. Aravashnial begins casting a spell (which Udo can recognize as Summon Monster III), while Anevia harmlessly bounces an arrow off of R2's chest.

R3 manages to hit Idranel for 3 Damage, while R2 misses Astias. R4 Sunders Astias' longsword, destroying it, but drops his own weapon in the process.

Gann moves up, but doesn't manage any appreciable damage on R2.

Your turn again, and sorry for the confusion.

Map:

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[Athaleon]

Karsten was already behind, having waited in order to keep quiet. When the enemy appeared he hesitated at first, mistaking the ratfolk for more mongrelmen. By the time he moved forward, the situation was already a chaotic melee.

He moved around to the front line and seeing that Astias' sword had been broken, readied his own blade to hand it over. He held his hammer in his free hand, harrying the ratfolk while he holds his falchion in his other hand.

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So basically, he will 'draw' his Falchion as part of a move action to K5 and hold it out for Astias to draw when his turn comes around. He will then use his hammer in his free hand to Power Attack R2.

Attack: (1d20+6)[9]
Damage:(1d8+6)[11]

[ProudGrognard]

Tefkros
HP 10 AC 18

"Ah, here we go" Tefkros mutters as his arrow proves very accurate. With the same smooth motions, he sends two more silver arrows flying towards the furthest wererat

I must remember to collect those arrows later on. And so far I have not used my dragon scale.

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Rapid Shot at R2 Atk1 (1d20+5)[14] dmg (1d8+2)[3]
Atk2 (1d20+5)[13] dmg (1d8+2)[9]

[Drothmal]

Astias

Still in his magically induced battle trance, Astias watches in slow motion as his sword shatters into tiny fragments. Using the time dilation to his advantage, the arcane duelist ducks and weaves through the shards effortlessly, ending his dodge with a whirl.

But Astias was not done yet.

In an amazing display of skill and luck, the bard continues the motion with his whip, bringing the momentum to his weapon and using it to catch the falling sword mid air. With an expert pull, Astias sets the blade into a whirling motion towards his direction, catching the sword in his now empty right hand.

Armed once more, the arcane duelist lunges at the wererat leader with the sword that was in his hands mere seconds ago.

Actions

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Text above is just for flavor, Astias will not be using the whip and the true strike to retrieve the weapon.

Move: Retrieve Sword (provokes AoOs from all three wererats)
Swift: Activate Arcane Strike
Standard: Attack while fighting defensively. Rolls do not include any bonuses from weapon.

attack - (1d20+20)[26] (1 BAB + 3 STR + 20 True Strike -4 defensive)
damage - (1d8+4)[5]

Status

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Hp = 10/14
AC = 18 (10 + 4 armor + 1 Dex + 1 shield + 2 Defensive)
Bardic performance = 4/6 rounds

Lvl 1 spells = 0/2

[Mr. Turniphead]

Idranel

Hissing softly in pain, Idranel is nonetheless confident in the flow of battle, as the wererats fumble, break weapons, and miss wildly she attempts to take advantage of the chaos.

With a murmured spell, she charges her hand with electricity, striking out at her foe twice in quick succession.

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Concentration Check: (1d20+7)[15]
Rolling attack: (1d20+7)[15]
Touch Attack: (1d20+5)[9]
Damage: (1d6+2)[7] (2d6)[10]

[Khosan]

Udo

The sight of the blind mage's casting brings a grin to the little Grippli's face, "Fan-" his grin quickly transforms into a grimace as the sounds of shattering metal split through the cavern, he continues with a tone noticeably less pleased than before, "-tastic."

He takes a moment to size up the situation; there remained three angry wererats, though one had been slain, another with a strange sword he hadn't seen before emerged from the cavern to take its place. Worryingly, though one had been killed, the other wererats seemed little worse for wear after the attack. Many of his more tactically advantageous options were impossible due to how crowded the area had become; he could neither reach the dangerous-looking sword dropped by the wererat, nor could he get close enough to distract the rats in some way. That left one thing he could do.

"Thank you, Warden," he begins to jog forward, "we may need more soon, but I'm going to help the others first. Stay here."

Udo slides to a halt just behind the rest of the group. Before moving further, he casts a spell of his own, though one much less grand than the one being completed a short distance away. Just a little insurance, he thought as he gave Tefkros a light pat on the back, "Just focus, Tefkros."

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Udo moves to I5 and casts Guidance on Tefkros.

HP: 14/14
AC: 17

[DaedalusMkV]

Karsten's assault proves unsuccessful, his slash falling wide as the Wererat dodges out of the way, and the creature takes the opportunity to stab at the Paladin as he moves forward to attack, a lucky strike punching through a gap in his armour to draw blood. Idranel, unfortunately, fares little better, missing her target by the narrowest margin as it dodges gracefully out of the way, and her spellcasting is fouled by the distraction causing her electrical spell to dissipate harmlessly. Tefkros' twin shots do better, the first arrow just barely connecting as Udo's guiding magic gives him a flash of insight, but it isn't enough to bring the creature down as the second arrow flies wide. Even Astias' slash, flawlessly executed to hit his target directly in the throat, seems to accomplish little as the scavenged blade is not silver, although as he makes his strike it begins to glow faintly with the dimmest glimmer of light, black slowly changing shades to a faint yellow.

Things seem dire until Aravashnial's spell finishes with a flourish and a trio of flaming dog-like figures materialize in a flash of light at the opposite end of the hallway. He shouts in an unfamiliar language, and the flaming creatures begin reaching out with burning limbs to pummel one of the ratmen. Only one of the two manages to connect, but the rat shrieks in pain and fear as its fur catches aflame, leaving a horrible actinic smell in the air.

Already harmed by Tefkros' silver arrow and suddenly surrounded by foes, the burning Wererat panics and turns to run screaming from the fight. The opening is all that's needed, as Karsten, Astias, Gann and the two small elementals cut, stab and batter it until it is little more than a burning heap on the ground. The other two rats hiss in anger again, the armed one rushing forward to stab at one of the Elementals while the other reaches down to pick up the weapon of his fallen comrade then resumes his attack on Astias, once again finding his attack parried albeit with slightly less spectacular effect.

Gann reaches down to the ground and picks up a rock, hefting it thoughtfully, then gestures to Karsten. "Sir, I believe you are better able to harm these creatures than I. I will support."

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Oh man, there are getting to be waaay too many characters on the map right now. I'm going to be so happy once you can drop some of these NPCs off and the fights simplify a bit.

Karsten takes 5 Damage from a Wererat AoO. E2 is also hit, although judging a Fire Elemental's wounds is not an exact science. Otherwise, no damage to you, and R2 goes down to a flurry of AoOs and attacks.

Gann uses Aid Another to distract Karsten's target just as he attacks, so Athaleon you get +2 to your next Attack roll.

Map:

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[ProudGrognard]

Tefkros

Tefkro takes another small step back and to the left, to have a better angle at the wererat. Timing his arrows to the melee, he sends them to the wererat near Idranel.

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Atk1 (1d20+5)[10] dmg (1d8+3)[5]
Atk2 (1d20+5)[18] dmg (1d8+3)[6]

[Athaleon]

Karsten dropped his sword as the wererat's wicked blow connected. He cried out as the blade bit deep, but a moment later the pain seemed to disappear. He could feel the wound closing again, until it disappeared entirely.

Iomedae. We are not forgotten.

With newfound courage, he hefted his hammer in both hands as he strode forward to smash his remaining foes.

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Swift Action Lay On Hands, rolled in the OOC thread.

5' step forward and two-handed power attacking R4.

Attack: (1d20+6)[11]
Damage: (1d8+9)[13]

[Drothmal]

Astias

The spell discharged, the bard comes out of his battle reverie and re-evaluates the situation.

The first thing he notices is the marvelous blade and its coloration changing

"I'm always being told I have a sunny disposition, but this might be too literal. " says the arcane duelist, returning to his usual self.

But is not only the bad turns that return, but also Astias' recklessness. Without a thought about his personal safety, the bard tries to jump through the enemy position while singing a merry battle tune meant to inspire his allies.


Actions

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Standard: Begin bardic performance (+1 to hit, +1 to damage)
Move: Try to move through R4's square to K8, giving Karsten flanking bonus

Acrobatics checks to move through/avoid AoOs
acrobatics - (1d20+2)[13] (vs 5+R4's CMD)
acrobatics - (1d20+2)[20] (vs R3's CMD)

If this works, Karsten's to hit should be 5 higher (+2 aid another, +2 flank, +1 Bard music). If acrobatics fails, it should still be 3 higher.

EDIT: Most likely this fails against R4 and succeeds against R3, so Astias will only take an AoO from R4 and the to hit should be 3 higher.

Status

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Hp = 10/14
AC = 16 (10 + 4 armor + 1 Dex + 1 shield)
Bardic performance = 3/6 rounds

Lvl 1 spells = 0/2

[DaedalusMkV]

Astias' attempt to leap past the humanoid rats does not end as well as he would like; his path takes him far too close to one of the two, who manages to lift his sword in time to send the Bard stumbling back with a small but bloody stab wound in his leg. Fortunately, the rest of the battle fares far better. Once again only one of Tefkros' arrows manages to strike his target, the silver arrowhead again ignoring the creature's supernatural resilience, and while the hit is not quite enough to bring it down it is more than enough to stagger the wererat. Idranel follows through on the opportunity, and while her blade is not quite as effective she still manages to inflict some lasting harm. Karsten again misses with his slash, perhaps too focused on invoking his divine healing to connect the strike, but it proves irrelevant. Once again the two burning elementals close on their target, fires crackling, and this time both manage to connect, leaping on the wererat who formerly held the strange sword and smothering him in flame. The third takes the opportunity to move past the burning rat, and its desperate slash at the uncaring elemental earns it nothing but scorched fur, an effect only amplified by the elemental turning and batting at it with an incandescent limb.

Between the injuries it has already sustained and the elemental's fire, the final wererat is unable to keep its footing and collapses. Within moments, the elementals' fires have consumed both, and Aravashnial dismisses them with a word and a wave of his hand, then smiles sadly. "There. I've done my part. Damned tough, lycanthropes, but not so tough when you bring in fire or acid."

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Technically, at the end of the round R4 has 4 HP left. Unfortunately, grappled and completely surrounded by elementals and party members, there's no point running another round of the fight for you to kill him in.

Sorry again about the delays for this one. Mr. Turpinhead, it's been a while since I've heard anything from you. Are you still with us?

[ProudGrognard]

Tefkros

Tefkros starts collecting his arrows and searching the bodies.

"More than your share, my good fellow. That could have gone far worse."

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Perception take 10 for 16. How many silver arrows can be recovered? I shot 4.

[Drothmal]

Astias

"Thanks for the assist, Warden. Your magic is very heart-warming" jokes the bard. "And if acid works, we'll make sure to have master Horgus hurl a couple comments in their direction."

The battle over, the arcane duelist turns his attention to the weapon he had picked up in the heat of battle. The blade was balanced and sharp, but there was more to this marvelous weapon. Astias felt a... resonance... towards the sword, as if his very soul had found a mirror in the weapon's polished metal.

Was that why the blade had changed colors?

"Aravashnial, when we are back at Kenabres, I think you'll be rather interested in an item I just "liberated" from one of our attackers." says the arcane duelist, describing the blade and its change of color (but not mentioning the whole resonance thing)

"But let us continue to our destination. Not that I don't find the scenery charming, but I'm starting to feel like a wererat in a werecage."

[Athaleon]

Karsten retrieved his old blade and followed along, too lost in thought to make small talk.

[Khosan]

Udo

"Huh," Udo retakes his place at Aravashnial's side, guiding him forward, "that went better than I'd thought it would - Mind your step, Warden, there's quite a bit of blood - what with their...unnatural resilience."

He tosses a cautionary glance back toward the now-deceased wererats. "Gann, you said there might be more of them. Do you encounter werecreatures like them often? We're not invading their territory, are we?"

[DaedalusMkV]

With the wererats defeated, you finally manage to get a look at the two corpses you saw in the circular side-chamber when you first ran into them. Both are clearly wearing the heraldry of Crusaders of Iomedae, wearing shirts of chainmail and tabards with Iomedae's holy symbol emblazoned on the chest. Each man seems to have been equipped with a two-handed glaive, one dropped at the man's side and the other clutched in a deathgrip. They wear silvered spiked gauntlets on their hands, an uncommon if natural supplement to the glaives' powerful reach, and one of the two wears an empty scabbard at his waist. Neither bear the sword wounds you would expect from men slain by the wererats. Not far from them is a strange mass of what looks like some sort of fungal slime, and Gann gasps at the sight of it. "The spore-cougher. Ancestors, I had not realized it had moved this far west. These men, or perhaps the rat-men, must have killed it. But not before it killed them... No, sir Udo, the rats do not often venture this close to Neathholm, in large part because their warrens lie on the other side of the spore-cougher's lair. Hopefully, with the death of these scouts, they will not approach so closely again." He pauses, thinking for a moment, then continues hesitantly. "I think I've seen men dressed like this before, down in the tunnels. I avoided them; better not to come into conflict with the surface-dwellers. Plus, we think they may have been allied with the Others..."

Aravashnial smiles wanly. "Thank you, friends. I do what I can to see us through this, though I fear I just spent my greatest weapon. Still... Eyes or no eyes, I am glad I can still carry my weight."

Horgus and Anevia both approach the two corpses, each seeming curious for their own reasons. After a moment, Anevia comments quietly. "I wonder how they got here. Perhaps they fell through a crack in the earth as well?"

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What the wererats had:
4 suits of leather armour
4 Shortswords
21 SP
134 GP (in purses that look like it came from the two Crusaders)
One Masterwork Longsword (Currently acting as Astias' Bonded Item, matches the empty sheath)

What the fallen Crusaders had:
2 Masterwork Chain Shirts
1 Glaive
1 Masterwork Glaive
2 pairs of Spiked Gauntlets

One of the Crusaders has an unused Potion of Cure Light Wounds. The other has a brass symbol of a bull's head with tiny red gemstones for eyes (Horgus estimates it might be worth 50GP or so, but the workmanship is substandard and the style unpopular in this region and thus it may be difficult to find a buyer) clutched tightly in one hand, and a Scroll of Cause Fear clutched in the other.

[Athaleon]

Karsten muttered a prayer for the fallen Crusaders, one of the standard incantations. Its brevity made it the only one Karsten actually remembered, of all the scripture he had been taught. He stood awkwardly before them as he recited it.

"None that died in Her service died in vain, for the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Faith." That finished, he continued after a pause. "I wouldn't normally say it, but we'd better strip these poor bodies of their kit. This mail is too good a quality to leave behind."

It made him slightly uncomfortable to take their belongings, but logic and circumstances dictated his actions. Karsten retrieved for himself one of their glaives, the one that appeared to have better workmanship, and a spiked gauntlet that fit him. The reach of the polearm would allow him to fight more effectively in a group. Once they were stopped for the night, whatever that meant down here, he might consider adding one of their mail coats to his already cobbled-together armor.

Once Gann and Anevia got to talking, however, Karsten also started wondering how and why these men were here. He was a Paladin of Iomedae, but he was once a cynical merc who only found faith mere months ago. "We only survived the fall because Terendrelev saved us with his last breath." He sighed and decided to say what he assumed they were all thinking. "Forgive me if I'm wrong", he started with a glance toward the bodies, "but Crusade Business is the perfect cover for anything you want. Armed men in Crusader tabards are always rushing about, day and night, no reason for anyone to look twice. We've all heard the stories. I'd like to hear more about these men, if you know anything else about them, Gann. And who are these 'others'?"

[ProudGrognard]

Tefkros

Tefkros stands respectfully as Karsten recites his prayer. Silently, he adds his own

Take them in your arms, Sunflower. Judge them and, if the fought the good fight, accept them in your embrace.

He then says

"I can help you build a small cairn, if you want. But the equipment might indeed be valuable. And I do not see any crack through which they could have fallen...

But I am also curious. Which are the others? And what is the spore-cougher?"

[DaedalusMkV]

Gann grimaces lopsidedly, the reptilian side of his face incapable of contorting to match the elven features opposite it. He answers grudgingly. "We do not speak much of the Others. They were once kin to us, but were cast out of Neathholm for their wickedness. They do not follow the example of the Ancestors. We have seen men such as these near their dwelling-place, but if they are Crusaders then they cannot be seeking the company of the Others." He spits, an odd sight that clearly requires a great deal of practice, given his odd features. "None of virtue would treat with them." He then sets to answering the other question directed at him, seeming glad to be finished with that topic. "The spore-cougher was a fungus-beast of some sort. We named it such because it coughed out toxic spores in battle. Quite dangerous, if it caught you by surprise."

At this point, Horgus interjects. "Well, I think that about settles it. Probably some sort of horrible cultists pretending to be Crusaders. Maybe that's why the one had that odd little waste of precious stones clutched in his hand. I bet it's the symbol of some demon or dark god or whatever. Strip them of anything useful and lets be off, before we run into yet more monsters in these Gods-forsaken caves."

This, of course, sets Aravashnial off, and he immediately begins quietly whispering a new set of conspiracy theories to himself, not bothering yet to share his conclusions with the rest of you. Still, it's pretty clear that the idea this might be 'proof' of some sort of sinister conspiracy has him far more excited than it should. He pauses in his musings just long enough to suggest. "We should bring them back intact. As proof of oddities and misdeeds among the crusaders. Perhaps they'll believe us when we suggest infiltrators, if we do."

[Khosan]

Udo

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. All we know is they died down here, and not to our friends the wererats. Probably to this spore-cougher-thing." A thought struck him and he casts an uncomfortable gaze toward the dead crusaders, "Gann, about that. I assume 'spore-cougher' is pretty literal, yes? What happens to people killed by these spores? I have a guess based on how some other fungi work, but I'd like to know a little bit more before I say anything."

Udo pauses for a moment, considering the Others as they're discussed, "And sorry to pry on this subject, but can you tell us anything specific about what the Others have done? Or is this something we should ask the elders?"

[Drothmal]

Astias

The bard looks at the fallen crusaders with pity. After all, that could have been him...

And still might be, if he could not find a way to stop the curse's progression.

The arcane duelist emerges from his gloomy thoughts when the conversation turns to conspiracies and betrayals.

"Do not get me wrong" says the bard "The 'uncovering the evil conspiracy' scene is a long honored scene in any decent epic and I enjoy it as much as every other person, but we are NOT carrying one or two bodies all through these caves towards an exit we have not even found yet. Talk about dead weight!

But one way or another, their gear might help us. Let's gather everything and examine the bodies. If they work for some nefarious agency, they might have a specific sign, like a tattoo, identifying them as such. "

With that, Astias helps the others collect the gear and examine the bodies, ready to resume the trek towards Gann's village.

[DaedalusMkV]

"People poisoned by the spore-cougher just died. The fungus choked the life from them, I suppose." Gann answers slowly, seeming uncertain about Udo's implications.

Aravashnial seems disappointed at not being able to bring the bodies along, but quickly bows to the wisdom of not loading the group down with dead weight, and before long you are under way again. It's only another 20 minutes or so before you arrive at what you assume is your destination; the tunnel opens into a circular chamber perhaps 20 feet wide with a large stone door in the far wall, four armed and armoured Mongrelmen guarding it. Gann quickly introduces you, explaining how you helped his group earlier, and they seem to trust him enough to open the door and allow you through.

A small, dark lake ripples in the center of this two hundred foot wide cavern, the walls and ceiling aglow with thick sheets of luminescent fungi. In the center of the lake, over two dozen low stone buildings cluster on a rocky hundred-foot-wide island. Lights glow in the windows of the buildings, giving the settlement an almost welcoming look. Rafts made of mismatched planks of timber bob along the length of a crooked pier at the lake's closest shore. Gann addresses you as soon as you're inside. "I am certain it lacks the grandeur of Kenabres Above, but this is our home. I expect you will want to speak with the Chief and the Elders as soon as possible?"

Horgus turns his mouth down, clearly not impressed by the place, but doesn't make mention of it. "I expect you lot can undertake any negotiations with the leaders of this place without me. I will see if I can find us some supplies." Gann insists on sending one of the Mongrels to 'vouch for' the caustic nobleman, and the pair head off into the settlement. Gann, meanwhile, leads you to a slightly larger building than the rest, double stone doors marked with an insignia of a bat perched atop a mushroom; it seems familiar somehow. You could swear you've seen something like it before.

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I'll leave it up to you to decide how to enter the chief's hall, as well as give you the option of making any preparations first. There are several citizens of Neathholm in the area, and while none are going out of their way to approach you, they don't seem to be pulling away either.

[ProudGrognard]

Tefkros

...straightens up and takes his pipe out of his pocket. Without lighting it - he does not know the customs here- he puts in his mouth and looks at the door.

"My good fellows, I am not very good at negotiations. I will stay mostly silent. Before we get in, I say we go through the issues we want to talk about. First is our return to the surface. The second is some medical care for our wounded. And third is probably the activity of any cultists around here. Can you think of anything else?

If yes, add it to the tally and let 's go. We must get to the surface."

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What check to identify the symbol that seems familiar?

[Drothmal]

Astias

The arcane duelist continues his humming for the rest of the journey, each new development adding new verses to a possible composition of the group's deeds since they were thrown deep into the earth.

When the party enters the Mongrelmen cave, a smile comes to the bard's lips (the smile seeming somehow... more honest than other times when the arcane duelist had previously demonstrated amusement). Early on in his childhood, the itinerant performer had learned to distinguish the places that people truly called 'home', and this was one of them.


Seeing how the citizens of Neathholm seemed as interested in them as the group was in getting back to Kenabres, an idea comes to Astias.

"It might not be bad to accrue some good will from the locals" whispers the bard to his companions as he turns to the audience

"Good day to all of you!" declares Astias to the aseembled with a clear voice used to address crouds "My name is Astias Sildor, and together with my companions, we will be in the care of your hospitality for a short while. To compensate for the inconvenience, I would like to grace you with a new composition of my device."

A charming smile appears in the arcane duelist's lips

"But please be kind, this is a work in progress, both in the composition and the deeds that compose it."

The bard begins to sing a quick composition describing the groups survival through a dragon's sacrifice, the battles against the dwarven priest and the wererats, and the rescue of Gann's companion. From time to time, Astias uses his magic to produce lights

Spoiler

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Sing for 5-10 mins. Take 10 on perform(sing) for 16. Not great, but not bad either, so it should at least produce a moderately positive reaction.

Once he is done, the performer bows in appreciation to the listeners and, after promising an encore at a later time, turns back to the more immediate planning.

"My good fellows, I am not very good at negotiations. I will stay mostly silent. Before we get in, I say we go through the issues we want to talk about. First is our return to the surface. The second is some medical care for our wounded. And third is probably the activity of any cultists around here. Can you think of anything else?

If yes, add it to the tally and let 's go. We must get to the surface."

"Completely agree" says Astias "but first, there is something odd about that insignia...

Aha!" exclaims the bard, pulling out the pendant that the party retrieved from the snakes

"Gann!" calls the arcane duelist "What is that symbol? We found something similar before we met you... Is there a connection?"