Shannara: The Ragnarok Foundry IC

[Celticbear]

Gallador was about to raise an indignant finger at Breman's last comment, but Lari's bark of laughter was contagious. Gallador gave out a little chuckle, and went back to brooding in the corner.

[Arzanyos]

Master Stor


In an effort to get the discussion back on track, or at least away from rampant Druid bashing, Master Stor points out the unusual actions of the cat in the room. "Time is of the essence in matters like these. I suggest we adjourn, and make ready for departure. Bremen can help you with any last minutes supplies you might need, then meet Archer at the north wall. That is, unless Aurum here knows something about that skull we don't."

[Ramsus]

Larimarle Starle Elf Time Mage HP: 56/56 Conditions: -- Concentrating On: -- Only at Master Stor's noting of it does Larimarle notice Aurum's position by the skull. "Sorry!" she says to the druids. Then to the cat she says, "Aurum, what have I told you about play with skulls?" she chides as she picks the cat up.

[Tymeister]

Tasir Krie

"Well, I don't need any supplies per se, but I do have a suit of chain mail that is severely in need of a home," Tasir pipes up, raising one shoulder to kind of express the bulk of an admittedly overpacked backpack. "Beyond that, where are we being sent off to first? And do we have any clues as to... say, any visual cues that might point to the project? I understand these curios are related to it in some way, but they're not exactly uh, unified in their visual direction."

[Arzanyos]

Archer Parn

The elf has already started out the door to prepare, but throws a few comments over his shoulder to Tasir. "Nope. I'll be dropping you in the Eastlands, near where the curious were found, and they you just have to figure it out."

[Diceomancer]

"Is there a village in the area? If not, I'll grab some more provisions before heading out."

[Arzanyos]

Bremen

"There may be, but don't take chances. I'll take you to the stockroom." He leads Fabien, and anyone else who wants to last-minute shop, away to the stockroom.

[Celticbear]

Gallador grunts, and begins to move out of the room. Assassins in the shadows, that's what his sword was telling him. Can never be safe, even in the hall of the druids itself... but wait. No, that's stupid. There are wards- ASSASSINS CAN OUTCLASS WARDS, BETTER BE ON THE MOVE AND SAFE THAN NOT, SHUT UP SWORD.

AGGGH! Gallador hisses, hitting the side of his head. He shakes it, putting away his thoughts for later like the druids had trained him to do. He sighed, and walked back to the group. He looked to Larimarle specifically, and quietly said, I am sorry for treating you with distrust. Some of us came upon magic... in untoward means. Mine has affected me more than others. It makes me act against my character.

[Ramsus]

Larimarle Starle Elf Time Mage HP: 56/56 Conditions: -- Concentrating On: -- Larimarle laughs a little and smiles back at Gallador and gives him a nod, "I understand. My introduction to magic in such a way too. Thank you for letting us know it's not personal." Then as a stage whisper she adds, "Mine tries to do that kind of thing too." with a tone that seems to be aiming at comforting and playful, even though the kind of thing that kind of tone should really be paired with.

[Arzanyos]

Archer Parn

As Gallador and Larimarle talk, Bremen leads the others on an uneventful shopping trip. Tasir is able to both acquire the desired rations and find a home for her unneeded chainmail, which has now been given to a freshly recruited guard troll named Ert. Fabien finds all his requested supplies easily as well.

When the group arrives at the north wall, the first thing the notice is two massive eagle-like birds, large enough to carry two many at least. The larger of the pair is black-feathered tail to plume, and is currently carrying a familiar elf on a saddle atop its back. The other is dark gray with silver highlights and talons, and bears a similar saddle, but no rider. Archer Parn greets you with a grin from his seat. "At last. Let me introduce you to Orion and Andamir, our rides for this venture. We will ride three and two, for no Roc can bear five. Don't fear though, Andamir is a trainer's Roc, you will need no great skill to guide him."

Two of you guys will ride behind Archer on Orion, while the other two will be on Andamir, one piloting and one passenger. Decide amongst each other who goes where. The pilots won't be able to fight if combat breaks out, and the two riding on Orion will be kind of cramped, so they won't be able to make fancy sword sweeps or use bows.

Lastly, whoever is piloting Andamir, make an Animal Handling check to see if you start lagging behind. You won't lose your way, but you might be a little behind if say, a fight breaks out.

[Arzanyos]

Tasir finds the roc remarkably responsive, and has no trouble at all keeping pace with Orion. The flight goes smoothly for the first leg, but soon after they group enters the Eastland they notice dark spots on the horizon. The spots grew and spread as they approaching, eventually revealing themselves to be a cloud of winged statues scouring the skies. It's not far now to the landing point, but the gargoyles are blocking your path.

Roughly a dozen of them break off from the main cloud to confront you, including several carrying vicious-looking halberds. There's a little time before they come into range, enough to make a quick plan, but nothing too complex.

[Ramsus]

Larimarle Starle Elf Time Mage HP: 56/56 Conditions: Mage Armor Concentrating On: -- "If we can get them to bunch together I have a spell that should work very well for this!" Larimarle calls out to the others while casting a spell on herself that gives her invisible armor. Spoiler Show Casting Mage Armor

[Diceomancer]

"I expect they'll have to group up to attack once they get close to us. Maybe we could swing in close so that they group up and then turn away to put a bit of distance between them and us before you cast your spell." Fabien replies.

[Celticbear]

DRAW ME THEY COME FOR YOU DRAW ME- STOP

Gallador shakes his head, and scowls at the gargoyles. He doesn't notice it, but his sword is already in his hand. It's a wicked black blade with red lines like veins coursing through it. The red pulsates, almost like blood, and it seems to quietly screech as it reacts to the air. Gallador scowls again, and raises his free hand in the air. Three more Galladors suddenly appear to shimmer around him on the saddle of his white roc, each one holding a pulsating, shrieking sword. Gallador rides ahead of the group, and says in a voice that seems to match his sword's, I shall draw their attention

Spoiler: OOC

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Casting mirror image

[Arzanyos]

Gallador's ploy works. As he and Tasir shoot forwards, a full eight gargoyles change tack to meet the four mad swordsmen, including two halberdiers. The other four are still advancing on Orion and Co. but at a decidedly slower pace. As the frontrunners of each faction have come within ~120' of each other, combat is assumed to be joined. The rest of the groups are about one to one and a half movespeeds away from their allies, diagonally.

With how the initiatives shook out, tell me if you guys want the rocs to do anything, because they both won initiative. Then it'll be the first wave of gargoyles, then y'all's actions. By the way, don't get to worried about posting your actions in initiative order, just post when you can and I'll remember the initiative for when I resolve them. If this ends up with you attacking a dead guy, don't worry, I'll work something out.

[Diceomancer]

"Archer, put us between Andamir and the group of four, closer Andamir but not so close that those eight end up on top of us."

As soon as the group of four are in range, Fabien sends two bolts of silver energy, crackling and shimmering like water, lancing out into the nearest member of that group.

Spoiler

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Casting Eldrich Blast
(1d20+8)[9]
(1d10+4)[12]

(1d20+8)[17]
(1d10+4)[8]

[Arzanyos]

The two rocs shoot forward, with Orion lagging behind slightly, until the gargoyles flock to Andamir, and then rushing ahead, ending up behind them.

The gargoyles have clearly been stirred into a frenzy. They unleash a torrent of claws, teeth, and blades upon Andamir and his riders. However, while quantity is present, quality is somewhat lacking. Gallador's duplicates are struck down like paper, but the only attack to actually guess correctly slashes pitifully off target, leaving the warrior unscathed. Tasir is less lucky, being dealt a vicious bite to the shoulder, but avoiding the ensuing claws. Finally, Andamir takes multiple wounds, but while he's hurt, its not enough to stop him.

As the group recovers from the torrent, the second halberdier approaches, seeming less to fly than to walk along the air. Instead of bringing his weapon to bear, he thrusts his other hand out towards the silver roc, and a magic pulses out from it, accompanied by a horrid, ringing cacophony.

Tasir and Gallador, Constitution saving throws, please.

[Ramsus]

Larimarle Starle Elf Time Mage HP: 56/56 Conditions: Mage Armor Concentrating On: -- Seeing that they've gotten a bunch of the gargoyles all bunched up together, Larimarle holds forth the crystal pocketwatch to use as an arcane focus. She whispers something into it and the whisper echoes a bit louder and higher pitch in the direction of the gargoyles. And then echoes a bit louder and higher pitch more a bit closer. And so on until the echo is right atop of them and so high pitch it can no longer be heard but shakes the air so violently that it is visibly shaking the air itself around them also like a rather chaotic shimmer of heat over a paved road in the summer. And as that rips into the gargoyles, Larimarle clutches the pocketwatch and there is a little crackle of electricity that is echoes as a burst of lightning around the closest bunched together gargoyles. Spoiler Show Casting Shatter so that it hits Fast Gargoyles and Regular Gargoyles. (Sadly not enough range on this spell to reach all the way over to the slow ones.) DC 17 Con save, at disadvantage for all the targets in a 10 foot radius. I'm hopefully able to angle it to not hit any allies. Save for half of (3d8)[12] thunder damage. And then, assuming there are any survivors (I'm sure there are), aimed at the most clustered together group of gargoyles she uses Fira on a central gargoyle and all within 10 feet of it. They take (3d8+4)[19] lightning damage. Edit: Sorry this damage was the wrong amount of dice. Rerolling in OOC thread. Correct number is 15

[Tymeister]

Tasir Krie

A lot of Tasir's concentration is taken up with keeping the poor roc carrying Gallador and herself uncomfortably close to this flock of bite-happy gargoyles calm and airborne - which isn't a difficult affair, considering that Andamir seems to be of a reasonably calm temperament, but aggressive claws and sound explosions are not a great experience for any animal, and there's not much she can do beyond attempting to keep them both within harrying distance and reasonably out of getting-killed-distance.

Doesn't really save them all that much from that other spell going off that didn't come from Larimarle, though.

"I don't like the sound of that spell," Tasir hisses through gritted teeth, ears still ringing from the explosion. "You alright back there, Gallador? What say you and I make life a little more difficult for those casters, eh?"

[Arzanyos]

As the wave of magic washes out from the gargoyles hand, Andamir and Tasir feel a momentary slowness, but are otherwise unaffected. Gallador, on the other hand, starts to stiffen dramatically, with patches of his skin and clothing turning a dull gray. He's in the process of turning to stone!

On the other Roc, things are going better. Larimarle's spell catches all six gargoyles, with only one of the halberdiers being able to partly resist it. Furthermore, several of them are caught by the accompanying blast of lightning, for even more damage. Despite all this, the group seems half-dead at best, with a couple of them mostly healthy. The halberdier that was casting flinches momentarily as his body is wracked by magic, but he keeps his concentration.

[Arzanyos]

Eastland Skies: Gargoyle Battle

The second wave of gargoyles start their advance. The two in the lead hurtle forward, slamming into Larimarle and Fabien.
The final four devote all their energy to movement, winging their way towards Orion, and settled themselves in a position unlike their fellows attack Andamir. Instead, the larger Roc finds himself surrounded, but with all gargoyles close at hand.

As they close in, Fabien's bolts of magic lance at the Halberdiers. The first is off the mark, but the second strikes a solid blow.

EDIT: Larimarle and Fabien, please make Athletics or Acrobatics checks to avoid being pushed off.

[Diceomancer]

Fabien casts fly on himself, then flies back up next to Orion.

[Arzanyos]

Okay, I'm going to assume you guys don't want Orion to move, since Fabien still needs to get back on him.

Eastland Skies, Gargoyle Battle

Unwilling to abandon Fabien, Parn instead spurs Orion to attack, the roc's talons lashing out and finding both halberdiers within range, although the effect is blunted somewhat by the enemies' stony hides.
On the other side, Andamir spins suddenly, dodging in a flurry of feathers through the horde, and ending up behind the casting gargoyle. Gallador deals it two savage blows, his enchanted blade slicing right through the stone, but the beast grits its teeth through the pain, and the spell continues.

Seeing the danger to his fellow, the last halberdier roars, signaling another charge against the Andamir-mounted party. This time, they attack in a more orderly fashion, with moderately improved results. Tasir is hit twice for minor damage, Gallador is scratched by a claw, and, although his fellow gives him an opening, gargoyle 3 manages to not hit Tasir or Andamir. Things change when the halberdiers make their moves. One swings twice with deadly precision against Gallador, striking with earthshaking force, and then again with a more manageable damage. His fellow, although dripping gravel ins several places, redoubles his chant, sending another pulse of magic outwards.

Tasir and Gallador, Con saving throws again. Gallador, Sword Curse procced twice, so two wisdom saving throws as well.

Gallador and Larimarle are up.

[Ramsus]

Larimarle Starle Elf Time Mage HP: 56/56 Conditions: Mage Armor, Float Concentrating On: -- Noticing that she and one of her new friends almost fell to their maybe deaths and that they're surrounded by spread out enemies, Larimarle does two things. The first is that she subtly performs a bit of magic that should help lessen the impact if she falls and can't otherwise handle it for some reason. The other is that she smirks at the enemies who think they're safe from all getting attacked at once just from spreading themselves out more and she holds her crystal pocketwatch above her head as streaks of fire pour out of it at all of them. Spoiler Show Bonus action to use Float. Action to use Firaga. (1d20+9)[17] vs all enemies within 120 feet. damage: (2d10)[7] fire damage. Half on miss. if crit: (2d10)[6]

[Arzanyos]

The petrificating magic courses through Andamir and Gallador, but ignores Tasir once again. The roc is finding it hard to move, trying just to stay aloft, and Gallador has become a statue. It doesn't look permanent, but still, someone should probably deal with that caster.

Larimarle's fire blackens the gargoyles. Three of them look close to crumbling away now, but there's still a lot of them at half health or better. Someone must really want you out of the air.

The gargoyles surrounding Orion unleash a flurry of attacks against him and Larimarle, with Fabien being ignored for now. Orion is struck once each by his attackers, being dealt a nasty looking bite for a surprisingly low 6 damage, and then a claw for 3 damage. All the attacks leveled at Larimarle either miss, or are repelled by her mystical barrier.

[Tymeister]

Tasir Krie

"Mm, I don't like this." Tasir mutters a few words and reaches down around Andamir, feeling for the sections where the gargoyle's petrification is taking hold. Mustering up some of her own gifts, she pulls at the bits keeping the spell together and casts Dispel Magic.

Spoiler

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Dispel Magic: (1d20+4)[20]

[Arzanyos]

Tasir's spell shatters the stone growths on Andamir, leaving the roc able to move once more. He gives a low cry in response, signaling that Tasir should keep on fighting, and leave the steering to him.

As Fabien flies back onto Orion, the two halberdiers near him forgo their attacks, rising into the sky above the battle instead. All four halberdiers roar as one, a sickly looking grey aura surrounding the tips of their halberds. Something big is coming.

[Celticbear]

Gallador is stone. He can't really do anything, and because his brain is petrified as well he can't think either. Not much to write here.

[Arzanyos]

Eastland Skies: Gargoyle Battle

"Watch out, something big's coming!" Parn calls, then says something in what appears to be Roc. Orion and Andamir lash out against the nearest gargoyles. Orion's talons don't hit their mark, but Andamir manages to hurt two of them, for 6 and 4 damage, respectively. Both Gargoyles 1 and 2 are in real bad shape.

With Gallador out of the way, the four gargoyles surrounding Andamir focus all their efforts against Tasir, trying to bring down the troll. From their combine efforts and eight attacks... Tasir only takes 7 damage. Behind them, the accompanying halberdiers jet upwards to join their brethren, paying no heed to defense. At the apex of their flight, dark magic surges from their hands upwards, starting to coalesce into a grey orb.

Larimarle, it's your turn, and Tasir gets to make opportunity attack against one of the halberdiers.

[Ramsus]

Larimarle Starle Elf Time Mage HP: 56/56 Conditions: Mage Armor, Float Concentrating On: -- Larimarle looks around at the chaotic goings on and finds herself wishing the gargoyles had stayed conveniently clumped together and would stop petrifying people. Taking a moment she identifies a spot she can smash apart at least a few without hurting any of her allies (or herself) and once again creates a smashingly loud sound amongst them. Spoiler Show Casting Shatter at N5 (I think) to hit Gargoyle 1, 2, and 7. DC 17 Con save for half, at disadvantage because they're gargoyles, for (3d8)[9] thunder damage.