Rise of the Runelords IC

[Erloas]

"Oh! Who has a rope? Adalbert I think you had one?" Once getting a rope from whomever is carrying one, Lebwen rush, as best he can squeezing through the now very small hallway, to the edge of the cliff to see what he can do to help Iris get back up.

[Ghostfoot]

Iris

A feeling of relief washes over Iris as Lebwen's face appears above. "Help!" she splutters, clinging to the rocks at the base of the cliff face. As the rope falls next to her she gladly takes hold and starts ascending.

Spoiler: actions

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Assuming a rope appears:

Cast Guidance
Climb (1d20+2)[15] vs DC5?

Is the dog still around? If so can I tie the rope around the dog and haul it up?

[Spore]

Let yourself float and stay away from the cliffs. Adalbert commands Iris, and the dog too.You are doing great. Do not panic.

Spoiler

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Inspire competence: +3 to swim checks, switching to climb as appropriate

[CasualViking]

Lizuga continues healing Justin, fussing over him until she's satisfied that he is entirely healthy.

[Ghostfoot]

Iris

"Here boy, come back. Here boy! Gah, stupid mutt!" Iris calls out to the dog in frustration trying to coax it over so it can be hauled up and they can be wet and miserable together.

Spoiler: Handle animal

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Handle animal (1d20)[5]

[u-b]

Enlarged Lebwen has no problem hauling Iris back into the cave while the dog swims to the beach. Iris is drenched, including the clothes and most of the gear, but at least her bow is dry, for what good it does.

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Further actions?

[Spore]

Adalbert approaches the drenched priestess. May I try to ddd....dry you off? the stout halfling stutters. With magic I mean. Adalbert incants his prestidigitation and taps on the least promiscous place he can reach to try and clean the holy woman.

Afterwards he goes to "wash" his face with salt water, more to cool off than to actually clean himself. He is pretty glad the bite wounds where magically healed.

I suggest we check the entire thing for obvious attack plans, any written recordings, wall murals depicting steps towards sacrificing people to a barghest, anything. If they agree, Adalbert parts the place into sectors and let's the search begin.

[Ghostfoot]

Iris

"Thanks, Adalbert" she says in gratitude as the chill of the sea is purged and she feels more comfortable. "Let's see what we can ascertain here. What secrets might Lamashtu have?"

Spoiler: actions

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Cast detect magic & detect evil again & inspect the sources.

[Spore]

Careful with your divinations, Iris. The evil seems strong in there.

Spoiler

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No really take care. The yeth hounds may have an aura strong enough to stun you. If the (greater) barghests were here, you are almost definitely stunned.

[u-b]

Iris checks the temple for presence of magic and evil. The fonts in the corners near the front doors radiate neither, nor do the brazers that illuminate the room, but in the west end there is a presence of both evil and magic. As Iris studies it further, the magic seems to come from the flaming kukris that the statue wields - one glowing fiery orange and the other cold blue, both have faint magical auras. The evil radiates from black marble altar. There are ashes and bone fragments on it's surface, but they don't shine anything. Iris walks around the altar to double check. Yep, the altar. Iris thinks about it for a moment. The only way for some non-magical piece of stone to radiate an aura of evil that comes to mind is there being an active divine connection.

Also, you find a door leading south out of the temple (at Q19).

Spoiler

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Know (religion): (1d20+5)[20]

[DrK]

Justin

Justin helps hauling the dog and Iris up to the cave again and then looks about. His eyes slipped and slid along the walls of the Temple, disturbed by the scenes. "Its a strange place this..." he mutters to the room at large stepping over the body of the yeth hounds again. "Are there secrets here or just a route to darkness and evil I wonder?". Standing by Iris he nods, "You feeling better Mistress Iris for your swim?"

Spoiler: OOC

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HPs 28/28
Saves +5/5/3 +2 Vs Death/Fatigue/Exhaust/Poison
AC 18 (FF 14 Touch 14)

Conditions:
Indomitable Presence: Adopt as Free (All allies within 30-ft. of his position gain the benefits of the Die Hard feat, and may add his warlord initiation modifier (+2) to Fortitude saves versus death effects, fatigue or exhaustion effects, or poison effects as a morale bonus.)

[Spore]

Permanent fixtures dedicated to a god are a direct connection to their benevolent or in this case malevolent energy. I am sure a talented conjurer could pull all sorts of despicable creatures from Lamashtu's part of the Abyss. Adalbert keeps his distance not because of respect but because he fears anything could jump them in here again.

I think if all is said and done, we need a cleric to hallow these halls to interrupt this mystical link.

[Ghostfoot]

Iris

Justin

Standing by Iris he nods, "You feeling better Mistress Iris for your swim?"

Iris glares at Justin but can't hide a small smile - for all the inconvenience and embarrassment of her plunge it was a tad funny.

"The altar bears the taint of evil. Beware of getting too close. These kukris are not evil but they are magical. Does anyone have a talent for the arcane?"

Spoiler: identify

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Sadly Iris does not have any Spellcraft ranks with which to ID these kukris.

[Spore]

Even if they are not obviously evil, the knives might be cursed. We should be cautious. Still, we should take them. I can identify them if I can get closer.

Because Adalbert is an adventurer and no rational scholar, he starts climbing the statue to get to the kukris.

[CasualViking]

Lizuga carefully watches Adalbert climb, fully expecting that she'll need to break out the bandages.

[u-b]

Adalbert climbs up the statue and gets both flaming kukris, which are not even warm. The weapons are sized appropriately to the large statue and lack proper handles, instead having straight shanks of steel to be inserted in the corresponding holes formed by statue's stone "hands". Adalbert proceeds to examine the magic on the kurkis. The orange-flaming kukri clearly bears a Continual Flame effect and nothing more. Adalbert does not gain a corresponding insight regarding the blue-flaming kukri.

Spoiler

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Orange-flaming kukri:
Knowledge (Arcana) (1d20+7)[23]
Spellcraft (1d20+7)[20]

Blue-flaming kukri:
Knowledge (Arcana) (1d20+7)[14]
Spellcraft (1d20+7)[9]

[Spore]

Mood lightning.. Adalbert murmurs. Should we return to Sandpoint? Have we forgotten something?

Adalbert thinks and scours the unholy chapel for anything else worthwhile or magical.

Spoiler

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Detect Magic on!

[u-b]

Nothing else in the temple is magical nor seems to be both particularly expensive and movable.

[Erloas]

"So you think we've seen what there is to see in this room? While the weapons may not be real, I wouldn't be surprised if they still have some magical or divine purpose, so I think we should take them with us rather than leave them here. Once we've made proper notes on the pictures and statues to get try more information back in town we should finish checking the area. I say we check to the north first."

Spoiler: OOC

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Note that while I've got pretty good knowledge arcane (9) and planes (8), and a spellcraft of 9, I'm not preparing detect magic, as that definitely feels like Adalbert's thing at this point. I do have read magic ready if there is anything to read.

[DrK]

Justin

Justin motions to the door leading from the temple "Do we take this worrying looking door?". THen seeing Adalabert with the flickering glowing kukri's he show's some interest. "They look curious Adalbert. Are they well made or just illuminated ?". Reading his less bright weapons he approaches the door and pauses waiting for the others.

[Spore]

The orange one is decorative only. I am unsure if the blue one is more powerful but I doubt it. Lamashtu is not known as a goddess of trickery.

[CasualViking]

Lizuga moves up besides Justin, and nods at the door.

[u-b]

The door leading south from the temple is locked. You have the key. Behind the door is a short stair leading down to another door. You open it too. Behind the door is a fairly large room of, obviously, a prison and torture chamber. The southern wall of this room is a bank of cells with iron doors, six in all. The rest of the room contains a rack, an iron maiden and a fire pit below a spiky cage dangling from a chain. There are two door leading out of thes room, one north and one east. The northern one, after a short corridor, leads to a smaller room, the norther part of which contains a dusty nest of rags, dog hides and straw, and the southern is occupied by a long workbench cluttered with pliers, hooks, tongs, saws and knives.

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[Ghostfoot]

Iris

"Nasty stuff. This shows a bit more effort and organisation than I'd expect from a tribe of goblins".

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I'm presuming that the torture implements, benches etc are sized for use by medium creatures not goblins...I may be wrong.

I'm ready to head south via Y23 if everyone else is.

[u-b]

All of the stationary equipment is clearly intended to be used by medium humanoids on medium humanoids. It's neither shiny nor new. The assorted tools of trade in the smaller room mostly look like they fall into the same category, but there are also smaller things, mostly of clearly goblin make.

[CasualViking]

Lizuga

Lizuga looks over the torture implements, and mutters to herself. "Lady, I know no-one is beyond redemption. Not even torturers. But they are going to need to surrender right bloody quick and beg forgiveness right bloody sincerely to get a chance from me"

[Spore]

Iris

"Nasty stuff. This shows a bit more effort and organisation than I'd expect from a tribe of goblins".

Adalbert demonstrates how most of the gear is slightly too high for the short halfling to handle.Remember what the mayor said. The goblins are just the cannon fodder to attack before an actual hobgoblin army is attacking. And those are - while technically just medium goblins - far better organized. Granted, Lamashtu is revered by almost all sentient races considered monstrous. I would assume they even have humans with demonic blood in their ranks. Their religion feeds of the rejection of the civilized world, as much as Asmodeus' rule feeds of the fear of their enforcers.

The small scholar looks around some more. I've known for quite some time that torture and blood fuels quite a few summoning rituals but seeing these chambers for real is such a different thing when it's not just a drawing in a book. He shudders and continues to investigate. He is most interested in the rooms that he hasn't checked yet, staying cautious at the entry ways and doors.

Spoiler

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Checking the door south of Y23, for traps, and picking a possible lock. Slowly scanning the room stopping to check for traps at places where it makes sense. Like doorways, before hidden bookcases etc.

[DrK]

Justin

THe young man pales at the selection of strange metallic devices. Eyes dwelling ona more more cruelly shaped ones that he didn't know the function of, but with a gulp of air he decided he didn't want to know. Looking up at Lizuga's words he nods. "Aye, this doesn't seem very goblin. ANd whoever is involved in this barbarism will get little in the way of mercy from me!" Looking about he motions at the way ahead. "Aye, lets move on from this room"

[Erloas]

Does it look like anything has recently been used? After checking for anything of note, Lebwen will pick up the best looking tool for prying open a door, in case we come across any stuck or locked.
"Lets keep going. I think we should burn this place down once we're on the way out. Lets keep looking."

[u-b]

Larger tools do not seem recently used and seem more like they are just stored here at the moment. Stationary ones even fancy a layer of dust. Smaller, goblin-made, tools are arranged in a manner appropriate for a corresponding workplace, easily accessible to a small person doing his job. Some feature more or less recent bloodstains. Lebwen picks up a handy metal stick, exact original purpose of which escapes his imagination, but seemingly suitable for prying doors open.

Leaving the dark prison, illuminated only by your portable sources of light, you head east. After a short corridor there is a locked door. You have the key. The door turns out to lead to the room through which you first accessed this level. It looks just like you left it. There remain two unexplored doors heading south. Adalbert checks for traps, again. None appears to have crept in while you were away. You open the nearest door. Behind is a dark 10-by-15 feet room with dozens of ratty cushions, lumpy pillows, and rumpled dogskin furs heaped in the southern part. The room smells of vinegar and rotten flowers. In the room there are four very female goblins wearing various re-makes of thrown away evening, theater and/or noble dresses, adorned here and there with various furs and pieces of colored glass. They seem to be unarmed and not surprised by your appearance... well, maybe except for Adalbert, who gets some particularly nasty stares, but so far nothing is said.