D&D 4E: "Three Little Pigs" with Creed IC Thread

[Creed]

She'll look at them and then cautiously open them if they don't seem dangerous/super gross.

To get to the sacks, you have to pass the first hallway on the left, which continues for 50 feet before terminating in a wooden door not unlike the one that led to the bathroom.

Most of the sacks are full of salt, except for one, which is half full of salt and open to the air. A small tin cup can be seen inside this open sack.

[Ramsus]

Laughing Spider takes a cup full of salt in the cup and holds it out at the others and proclaims, "It's just salt. Guess it will come in handy for when someone is wounded later."

[Sol]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Aodan gathers a cup full of salt and puts it in one of the many pockets in his cloak.

[demidracolich]

Drazen follows the others and also puts a cup of salt into his cloak.

[Vesth]

Harbek looks oddly at Laughing Spider. "Laddie, I dinnae know what culture ye from, but I'm pretty sure that salt burns wounds and ghosts. I should know. Many people threw salt at me before."

That said, Harbek looks down all the branching hallways, looking for anything interesting.

[Creed]

Harbek looks oddly at Laughing Spider. [color=darkorchid]"Laddie, I dinnae know what culture ye from, but I'm pretty sure that salt burns wounds and ghosts. I should know. Many people threw salt at me before."[/colof]

That said, Harbek looks down all the branching hallways, looking for anything interesting.

Having already passed the first hallway, you peer down the remaining two.

The second hallway runs for 50 feet before ending, turning north and south. 20 feet into this hallway, there is a wooden door on the south wall, a wooden plank nailed across the door just above the handle to prevent it from being opened. A smear of dried blood about 3 feet in diameter is opposite this door, a few feet above the ground. Next to the brazier, at the corner of the hallway, illuminated by the light, are strange runes, each about 6 inches tall, inscribed in the brickwork, which some may recognize as an ancient dialect of Dwarven.

Spoiler: For those of you that have Language: Dwarven, or History DC 20

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The runes read,


"DWARF WARRIORS DID HERE PERISH
SHADOWS OF THE PAST DO HERE REIGN
IN NUMBERS BEYOND RECKONING"

Spoiler: History DC 25 (i.e., if you got 25 or higher on your History roll to get to this point)

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You recall that, in ages past, a clan of dwarves once ruled the halls that would become Undermountain. This script is much more recent a dialect, and you don't expect that even someone who speaks the language of the dwarves fluently would recognize such an ancient tongue.

Despite the soft crackling of the fire in the brazier and the dripping of water from the areas you came from, your footfalls seem unnaturally loud in the near-silent hallway.

The last hallway is less illuminated by the brazier, but stretches the same length as the second, 50 feet, before ending in a hallway running north and south. After 20 feet in this hallway, there is also a door, but it is on the north side of the hall and not barred shut. From the other end of this hallway, for the briefest of moments, you can hear the echoes of a man singing, but from how far off, or if it is even on this level of the dungeon, you are uncertain.

[Rakaydos]

Razak's ears cant toward the singng voice, and he glances to the otheres before heading toward the door concealing the source of the call.

[demidracolich]

Drazen moves towards the wall and attempts to decipher the runes.

Spoiler: History Check

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(1d20+16)[23]

[Creed]

Razak's ears cant toward the singng voice, and he glances to the otheres before heading toward the door concealing the source of the call.

((I should clarify, the singing is coming from the hallway that runs North and South on the other end of this hallway, not from beyond the door on the north side of this hallway. Do you still want to go check it out?))

[Rakaydos]

((I am giving the party a chance to intervene before I move to check it out))

[Creed]

((I am giving the party a chance to intervene before I move to check it out))

((Gotcha. *thumbs up*))

[Sol]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Aodan holds a finger to his lips and motions to the others to follow quietly.

Moving silently until he is a ways around the corner from the hallway it seems to be coming from, Aodan pulls his bow off of his back, pulls a quiver out of his cloak and loops it over one shoulder. He then stands with his back to the wall and closes his eyes, listening to the singing and hoping to identify something about its origin.

Spoiler

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My passive perception is a 30, but, as I am actively trying to discern more than that tells me,
Perception: (1d20+20)[22]

and stealth to accurately move silently into position: (1d20+14)[34]

[Creed]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Aodan holds a finger to his lips and motions to the others to follow quietly.

Moving silently until he is a ways around the corner from the hallway it seems to be coming from, Aodan pulls his bow off of his back, pulls a quiver out of his cloak and loops it over one shoulder. He then stands with his back to the wall and closes his eyes, listening to the singing and hoping to identify something about its origin.

Spoiler

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My passive perception is a 30, but, as I am actively trying to discern more than that tells me,
Perception: [roll0]

and stealth to accurately move silently into position: [roll1]

Undermountain Hallway Level One, Day One, 16:30 Local Time (2.5 hours since last meal, 6.5 hours since last rest)

The voice seems to be coming from a ways off still, but you can make out the general sounds of the song, sung by a man, in gruff common. It appears to be a relatively standard drinking song, sung by a lone man more out of idleness than any desire to showcase or practice skills.

[Ramsus]

Laughing Spider follows along, keeping quiet and to the walls as much as possible.

Spoiler: Stealth

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(1d20+16)[36]

[Ramsus]

Seeing that nobody else seems inclined to go first, Laughing Spider shrugs and continues towards the sound of the singing.

[Creed]

Seeing that nobody else seems inclined to go first, Laughing Spider shrugs and continues towards the sound of the singing.

To the south, the hallway goes thirty feet, going ten feet past the hallway with the barred door, before terminating in a stone wall, with a small skeleton slumped against the barrier.

To the north, the hallway goes sixty feet before ending in a large wooden door. Twenty feet down this hallway, there is a small doorway on the eastern wall, with firelight pouring out of it and into the hall. Sitting on a stool in the doorframe, with his back to you, is a human man singing softly. He's wearing a chainmail shirt over simple clothing, with a thick burlap sack over his left hand. His scalp is shaved bald, and you can see the outlines of old tattoos on his rough skin. Leaning in the doorframe across from him is a greatsword wrapped in a dark, thick pelt.

As he sings, three rats, each about a foot long, sit on their haunches in the hall, five or six feet down the hall from him, watching him. When you come around the corner, one glances your direction for a moment, then goes back to looking at the man, silently.

[Sol]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Peeking around the corner and seeing the man, Aodan waves that it's safe to follow, and rounds the corner, keeping to the shadow and listening to the man's song.

Spoiler

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(1d20+20)[25]Perception, (1d20+14)[30]Stealth.

[Creed]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Peeking around the corner and seeing the man, Aodan waves that it's safe to follow, and rounds the corner, keeping to the shadow and listening to the man's song.

Spoiler

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[roll0]Perception, [roll1]Stealth.

You can more clearly hear out the words to his song now,

"Leave her, Johnny, leave her,
An' the bosun was a beggar with the middle name o' work.
An' it's time for us to leave her.

Leave her, Johnny, leave her.
Oh, leave her, Johnny, leave her.
O the voyage is done an' the winds don't blow,
An' it's time for us to leave her.

The old man swears, and the mate swears to,
Leave her, Johnny, leave her.
The crew all swear, and so will you
An' it's time for us to leave her.

Leave her, Johnny, leave her.
Oh, leave her, Johnny, leave her.
O the voyage is done an' the winds don't blow,
An' it's time for us to leave her.

The rats are gone, and we the crew,
Leave her, Johnny, leave her.
It's time be damned, that we went to.
An' it's time for us to leave her."

At this point in the song, he rocks forward with a cough, interrupting his song and sending the rats scurrying off down the hall towards the door in the north, then he reaches inside the room to his right, pulling out a glass bottle wrapped in leather straps so that it can be secured to a belt. He uncorks it and takes a hearty swig of whatever liquid may be inside.

[Necroticplague]

Merca doffs the dagger in order to pull out the odd chain, draping it over her shoulder to try and be casual as she approaches the man in human form. "Quite a song you got there. Even the rats can recognize it's quality, and the don't seem like they'd be ones to know much on the subject."

[Creed]

Merca doffs the dagger in order to pull out the odd chain, draping it over her shoulder to try and be casual as she approaches the man in human form. "Quite a song you got there. Even the rats can recognize it's quality, and the don't seem like they'd be ones to know much on the subject."

The man looks over his shoulder, peering into the darkness, and stands to face the hallway. In the firelight, you can see that one of his eyes is sealed shut, but the other looks surprised to see someone. He appears to be in his late 30's, and doesn't reach for his greatsword.

"The rats in this part, they act strangely... how did you get back there? I thought the cave-in had sealed off surface access to this area?" he asks, keeping his voice relatively low. He scratches at the burlap sack over his hand nervously, and stares down the hallway behind you, as if expecting something more threatening to appear from around the corner at any moment.

[Necroticplague]

"They probably had, at some point. However, there's a literal hole in the wall between here and a lift up. Follow your nose, if it starts to smell like sewage, you're heading in the right direction.". The merc turns around to point over her shoulder down the hall she came from as she speaks. "Didn't see anything else alive here.Few dead things, but they looked long dead, so no need to worry about those."

[Creed]

"They probably had, at some point. However, there's a literal hole in the wall between here and a lift up. Follow your nose, if it starts to smell like sewage, you're heading in the right direction.". The merc turns around to point over her shoulder down the hall she came from as she speaks. "Didn't see anything else alive here.Few dead things, but they looked long dead, so no need to worry about those."

"I've been back there, didn't see any holes in the wall. Guess I'll have to get someone to check it out," he says. Then he sits back down on his stool in the doorway, taking another sip from his glass bottle.

[Ramsus]

Laughing Spider crawls along the walls over to where the man is, likely crowding Merca a bit as she passes by where she's standing, and asks, "Do you take requests? I want to hear the one about the freed birds."

[Vesth]

Harbek starts to look a little worried. "Eh? What if the rooms move? Could be when we get back there, the hole ain't there no more."

He paused, and he shares a look with the spectre floating near him. "Send someone? How many are with you?"

[Creed]

Laughing Spider crawls along the walls over to where the man is, likely crowding Merca a bit as she passes by where she's standing, and asks, "Do you take requests? I want to hear the one about the freed birds."

The large man flushes a bit, "I don't sing often, and certainly not for audiences," he stammers out, embarrassed.

Harbek starts to look a little worried. "Eh? What if the rooms move? Could be when we get back there, the hole ain't there no more."

He paused, and he shares a look with the spectre floating near him. "Send someone? How many are with you?"

"There's a temple a few rooms away," he says, gesturing to the North door, "I'm down here to make sure nothing wanders up this hallway. The numbers vary from day to day, but there's usually five of us and the priest here, at least. We've barricaded most of the exits out of the Hall, keeps most of the wandering monstrosities out, but we have to keep a few paths open to let visitors and pilgrims come from their various locals."

[Sol]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Slinking out of the shadows, Aodan returns his bow to his shoulder, and the quiver vanishes into a fold of his cloak.

"Hail, stranger. What sort of temple, what sort of monstrosities? And who might you be?"

[Creed]

Aodan Greensleeves Wood Elf Ranger|Seeker

Slinking out of the shadows, Aodan returns his bow to his shoulder, and the quiver vanishes into a fold of his cloak.

"Hail, stranger. What sort of temple, what sort of monstrosities? And who might you be?"

"How rude of me," the man says with a laugh, "I am Sonregin, and I work for the Temple of Tempus. As for what creatures, well, the dungeon is crawling with them in all kinds. I guarantee that you passed at least a few on your way here, and if you didn't see them they probably still saw you. Some you might not even recognize as a threat until they're stealing your death-rattle."

[Ramsus]

Laughing Spider chuckles at "death-rattle" and quietly comments, "Taken from the hands of baby Death."

[Rakaydos]

The gnoll in the party entered the room, leaning quietly against the far wall as he smiled toward the singer.

[Creed]

Sonregin lets out a grunt in response to the joke(?), unsure of how to react. He takes another sip from his bottle.

"You're free to go inside, if you'd like," he says, gesturing towards the door at the north end of the hallway, "Just take a right once you get into the Hall."