Random Banter D&D 3.5e Campaign IC

[LaZodiac]

"Damn...no way just spiders did this. Lady Tass, do you see anything?" Alphonse shouts, looking around for anything else that could of caused this.

Spoiler: Arguably worthless spot check

Show

Utilizing my worthless spot to try and see anything more then just spiders: (1d20-1)[2]

[Teddy]

No, they wouldn't even be here.

Tass' gaze sweeps aross the open area and the roofs of the buildings around them, searching and listening for the signs of other life as she picks out a crab's leg from her spell components pouch.

We may have to fight. Վազել ողջ օվկիանոսի ավազաթումբ.

Her speech switches to Druidic as she calls upon the forces of nature. With a hand brimming with magic, she touches Alphonse's shoulder.

Spoiler: Spellcasting

Show

Casting Crabwalk to make Alphonse's charge bonus +4 to attack with no penalty to AC for 6 minutes.

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

Spot check: (1d20+15)[22]
Listen check: (1d20+16)[29]

[Cuthalion]

Béla turns at the shout, starts apologizing, then looks back at Daedrim as he goes off. Hm. He gets up and jogs over to Lucas. What is wrong? Do you know where the other two have gone?

[TheWombatOfDoom]

"Whatever it is, they seem to know where it is," Lucas said quietly, nodding at the man with the white crow and his companion. "They're heading the same direction the other two went. Still, I'm nervous following everyone out...what if it's an attack? We've already lost one prince..."

Lucas glances at the prince with obvious concern.

[Cuthalion]

He sighs. Well, perhaps one of us should remain behind with the prince. Do you think Tass and the other one will be capable of defending themselves?

[Amidus Drexel]

Outside:

Spoiler: Alphonse

Show

You don't see anything else of note.

Spoiler: Tass

Show

You don't hear anything of note. In fact, it seems oddly quiet outside...

You can just make out the faint glow of torchlight over the roof, but it suddenly grows dimmer, and then disappears completely. Aside from the torch by the entrance, the outside is lit by starlight alone.

--
Inside:

The guests begin to talk anxiously amongst themselves. Someone says rather loudly, "What's going on?", which only spurs further debate between the merchants and nobles.

[Teddy]

Torchlight. On the other side of the roof. It just winked away.

She crouches down and start adjusting the clasp of her periapt as she looks around herself, searching for any part of the building which could be easily climbed.

We need to get up there.

[LaZodiac]

"Hmm, I could easily jump up there, but I'm not sure I'd be able to see our enemy. Hmm...you should tell the others to keep watch over the Prince, I'll see if I can flush them out. Unless you have any better plans...?" Alphonse says, getting his glaive out quickly, already guessing what the result will be.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Lucas nods. "You go, I'll stay with the Prince."

Lucas turns and heads over to the man that Alphonse had pointed out earlier, and bows curteously. "My leige," he says quietly, "My name is Lucas Espenshade, and I thank you for inviting me to the feast. All that aside," he says, in a lets get down to business voice, "it seems there may be some sort of danger that some of your guards are dealing with. My companions have gone to see in what manner they can assist. In the mean time, I wish to ensure your safety."

Lucas eyes the Prince to see if he is the sort that can handle himself, and stays within reaching distance of the Prince. Should danger appear to present itself, Lucas plans to cast the a spell from his God on the man to ensure his safety. Sanctuary should do the trick.

[Cuthalion]

Bela heads out the entrance everybody left from, steps carefully around the spiders, and walks over next to Alphonse. Are you in full health?

[Teddy]

(Okay, if it's okay with you I'm going to do a sligth time reversion, because I don't feel like letting Tass get interrupted now will be for the better...)

Tass pauses for a moment and nods to herself.

No, go tell them, then come. I think I know how to find them for you.

She makes a few swift adjustments to the clasps on her curiously shaped gauntlets, which only cover half of her fingers and seem to lack little fingers altogether, before she puts her hands on her feet. Suddenly, Tass and her armour seems to meld together as hair and dragon scales sprout into feathers, her small body shrinks further while her mouth and nose grow together in a sharp beak, and for a moment her arms and legs seem to shift into a single appendage before two large wings separate themselves from her talons, and she utters a low screech to complete her eagle form.

Tass leaps up and spread her wings to launch herself into the air just as Béla exits the building, and the odd shape of her gauntlets now suddenly become apparent, as they now adorn her legs, digits swapped for claws. Her periapt remains unchanged as well, tightly hung around her neck as to not swing too much. Her pristine feathers gleam sligthly with a brown hue in the dim light of the torch, except for her back and tail feathers, which seem to be completely grey in colouration, standing out visually from the rest.

She flies 30 ft. upward and 20 ft. toward the building.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse points to Bela "Sir Bela, go warn the Prince, then come back. Perhaps get Pere Lucas as well. We may need the assistance...though someone should watch the prince...aaargh, I hate assassins." Alphonse directs, hopefully not too forcefully. He runs off as he mumbles the last part.

Once at the side of the wall, watching Tass fly to it. He smirks and punches his fists together. He then crouches as if he's starting to do squats, but as he lifts himself up from the movement, he leaps from the ground!

(activating Leaping Dragon Stance, then jumping up the wall with a jump check)

Spoiler: Jump on it, jump on it

Show

Jump check, to get to at least grabbing distance so I can pull myself up: (1d20+14)[22] +10 feat

Alphonse leaps 15 feet in the air, easily able to grab the ledge (presumably), pulling himself onto the ledge as if he was jumping over a vaulting horse.

[Cuthalion]

Béla looks up at him curiously, than walks over to the door. Pointing at Lucas, he casts Message. Tell the prince; there's something on the roof. I think. I'll follow the others up. Try to get somewhere safe, if you hear explosions it might not be a bad idea to follow.

Béla strides over under where Alphonse got up. An eagle feather, spinning rather aimlessly, settles lightly on the ground. Picking it up with a tender expression, he casts Fly, the feather vanishing in his palm. That done, he follows Alph cautiously.

[Amidus Drexel]

Lucas:

The prince looks at you first with enthusiasm, and then with a blank, serious face that seems slightly afraid. He nods and softly says, "Years ago, when the hall was built, there was made a bolt hole for royalty trapped within. I will take two of the remaining guards with me and go to that place. You can come with me if you like, but there is little to do in that dank hole, and I will most assuredly be safe there. It is warded by the strongest magics that my ancestors could muster."

--
On the Rooftop:

Spoiler: Tass and Bela

Show

The rooftop is dark, although your eyes adjust fairly well. It is made from large pine logs, similar to the sides of the building, which give the roof a ribbed look. You do not see anything obviously out-of-place on the roof, aside from the three of you that are up there.

Spoiler: Alphonse

Show

The rooftop is dark, and your eyes strain to see. The roof is made from large pine logs, like the building's sides, and it feels terraced under your feet. A dark, winged shape moves off to your side, and another shadowy flying figure appears behind you. You recognize them as Tass (in eagle form) and Bela, but their forms are eerie and vague in the darkness.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse draws out his Glaive and says "Lady Tass, Sir Bela, what do your elf eyes see?"

[Cuthalion]

The elf draws close to him and whispers, Keep silent. We do not know who or where they are, and we wish the same will apply to them.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse whispers back "I know, sorry. It's just hard to see, I had to make sure it was you."

Spoiler: Perception on the off chance I'm suddenly blessed by the dice gods.

Show

And, because I don't see why not, lets try a perception check just to see. I might suddenly roll a twenty or something: (1d20-1)[10]

[Teddy]

Tass rises to a safe altitude over the roof, her eyes scanning for movements and anomalies as she continues to make her way toward the other side of it.

Tass spends 30 ft. of movement to fly 10 ft. forward and upward, the rest of her movement is straight forward.

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

Spot check: (1d20+15)[17]
Listen check: (1d20+16)[32]

[Cuthalion]

Béla will carefully float behind and slightly above Tass.

[Amidus Drexel]

On the Roof:

Spoiler: Alphonse

Show

You don't see any signs of other people on the dark roof.

It's oddly quiet out here... you can't even hear the sounds from the city.

Spoiler: Tass

Show

You don't see any signs of other people on the roof; however, once you are over the ridge in the middle you see something gleam in the starlight, but you loose sight of it when you turn to look.

The outside seems incredibly quiet; the only sounds you can make out are Alphonse, Bela, and the low hum of people talking inside the feast hall. No insects, no bats, no other creatures of the night. Even the nighttime sounds from the city are dampened and dulled so much as to be nigh-inaudible.

Spoiler: Bela

Show

You don't see any signs of other people on the roof. Tass proves hard to keep up with, and even though you have better maneuverability, her eagle form is much faster. Despite your efforts to stay with her, she ends up around 30ft in front of you. You see near the far edge of the roof something metallic gleaming in the starlight...

The outside seems strangely quiet, and even the sounds from the city are almost impossible to hear.

--
Inside:

Spoiler: Lucas

Show

Wuscfrea walks over to go get the guards, and General Holtti returns from the south side of the building. "They've barred the door. I wanted to let you know before we tried to break it down." Holtti looks at you and smiles. "Mister... Espenshade, is it? Good to meet you!" He takes your hand and shakes it firmly, and you feel that his hand is misshapen and gnarled. Noticing the serious looks on your faces, he furrows his brow. "Is something wrong?"

[Teddy]

Spoiler: Airborne over the roof

Show

Tass turns toward where she saw the gleam and swoops toward it, keeping her eagle eyes open for anything standing out.

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

Spot check: (1d20+15)[29]

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Spoiler: Lucas Inside

Show

Lucas nods at the prince. "What of your guests? Where can they be safe?" Meanwhile, Lucas keeps a watchful eye on the ceiling as he esquorts the Prince toward the trapdoor.

As General Holtti returns to the room, Lucas latches on to what the general described. "General," he nodded curtly, "who has barred the door?" He speaks in quiet tones to the General, even while his hand is being shaken, his business side having fully taken over. There was not a trace of the bumbling public persona left. "I know not exactly what, sir, but I can tell you that it is currently occupying at least six guards and five guests, three of which were those you invited under the same pretenses as my own, the other two were a man with a white raven, and a man in white silk robes. I believe you've spoken with Alphonse? All I know is there was a crash from that direction, and that whatever made the crash, it is now believed to be on the roof." Lucas gestures the way the others left. "One of my party mentioned explosions, so I gather it is NOT of the diplomatic distraction. I was just esquorting the prince to safety..."

[Cuthalion]

Spoiler: I believe I can Flyyyyy

Show

Béla will aim for the gleam, and fly straight at it. What did you expect?

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

[LaZodiac]

Spoiler: Rooftop Ramble!

Show

Alphonse will do his best to follow and keep track of the two flyers, so he's nearby for when anything goes down. Gotta keep on his toes!

[Amidus Drexel]

On the Roof:

Spoiler: Tass, Bela, and Alphonse

Show

When you get to the far edge of the roof, you see the gleaming object is a longsword, of the same make as the guards' swords. The sword is chipped, as if it's recently been struck against stone. Next to it is a thick, wooden shaft that's been snapped in half - likely the butt of a spear - and an unlit torch.

You can see on the ground near the feast hall the bodies of several guards. One is somewhat far away from the building, but the others are rather close.

--
Inside:

Spoiler: Lucas

Show

"I don't know. The kitchens have a back entrance, as does the south side of the building with the private rooms. If it's assassins, though, wouldn't the guests be safe? They'd be coming for me, right?"

"The musicians. I'm going to assume they're incredibly drunk. Oddly quiet in the room for a bunch of drunkards, though. Maybe they've passed out." As you tell Holtti what's happening, his face becomes steadily more serious. "I haven't heard anything, but I'll take your word for it." He turns to the guard behind him. "Fetch me my sword, and if you can find it, Brynne's box of potions. I'm sure he won't mind me borrowing one now..." Holtti looks back at you. "The old bolt-hole is on the south side, at the end of the corridor. I'll come with the two of you, and then you and I can deal with whatever it is that's on the roof after the prince is safe."

--

Holtti leads you down a hallway, past the musicians' room, and then kicks a few floorboards until he hears a hollow one. He pulls it up, revealing an underground passage hewn from stone. Wuscfrea looks at the two of you, and says, "Please let me know when all of this is over."

The guard soon returns with a massive two-handed sword, the blade engraved with runes and the pommel set with a flawless ruby, and hands it to the general. Holtti gestures to the door leading outside. "Are you ready? Or should we try to wake up these drunkards first?" He nods to the musicians' room.

[LaZodiac]

Spoiler: Rooftops

Show

Alphonse will go to investigate the roof where we found the sword, trying to see if there are any nearby doors into the building proper.

Spoiler: Eyes don't fail me now

Show

Spot Check: (1d20-1)[7]

[Teddy]

Spoiler: Above the Building

Show

Tass swoops down in a wide spiral encircling the bodies, her alert eyes looking out for where whoever did this could be now. If she doesn't spot anything, she'll land on the lone guard's corpse, trying to determine what he was doing so far from the others and how he was struck down.

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

Spot check: (1d20+15)[17]

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Spoiler: Lucas Inside

Show

Lucas looks into the area the prince goes to ensure it is safe for him to enter. He glances at the both of them. "Can't be too careful."

---

Once the prince is safe, Lucas exchanges a look with Holtti. "It's not very professional for a highly acclaimed troupe to get well and drunk before a performance. I should know, I've entertained a few in my time. Something about them in locking themselves in doesn't smell right." Lucas reaches in his bag, "Do I have permission to draw my weapon?" He quirks an eyebrow as he portrays the question.

[Amidus Drexel]

Outside:

Spoiler: Alphonse

Show

You don't spot any doors on this part of the roof.

Spoiler: Tass

Show

You don't see anything moving around, so you fly over to the man on the ground. You notice that this guard is without his sword and spear. He is also very, very dead.

The guard has several long cuts down the front of his torso, and two deep puncture wounds on opposite sides of his chest. He also has a particularly large wound on his throat that snapped his neck in half. Additionally, several of his bones are badly broken, as if he was violently thrown down from somewhere high up.

--
Inside:

Spoiler: Lucas

Show

Holtti nods. "Have it out, and tell anyone that says otherwise to take it up with me. We can watch each other's backs." He walks over to the musicians room again. "I'm agreed with you on them being suspicious. I had a listen, but I can't hear a thing from in there. We unlocked the door, but it's pretty solidly barred shut. I figure we have to either break it down or try to snap what they've barred it with and force it open, unless you've got any better ideas. I swear, if these musicians are assassins, they won't be making it to the gallows when I catch them..."

OOC: Forcing the door down would require a strength check, and breaking it down would require attack rolls. The door is big enough that both of you can attack/force it open at the same time.

Also, make a listen check. You can make two, if you want to actively listen at the door.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Spoiler: Lucas Inside

Show

Lucas pulls out his mace, heavy in his hand. "I suppose we'll have to break it open...unless...are there any windows level with the ground outside?" Lucas listens for a moment to see if he can hear anything going on inside. No noise would likely be bad. "Have you heard ANY noise in there since you attempted to gain entry?"

Listening: (1d20+4)[17]