Adventurers' Guild Team Badger IC

[SithLackey]

Victor

At Matthew's comments, Victor shifts uneasily, but does not protest, instead stringing his bow and glancing anxiously at the palace again. "This city has seen times as bad as those it sees now before, albeit long ago, but these end tonight. Let us get on with this."

[MK Kilmarnock]

Zan groaned, taking in both any comments and the solace he got from Berwin before making up his mind. One thing of note was that he either completely ignored, or simply did not hear Victor's comments of formidability... there were a few things the cleric simply did not want to remember.

"Fine. I-I've made my decision then, and I'll sway to Matthew. I'll go as Argos, but I still think I should be leading a group of... um, I don't know... guards and prisoners? And h-how would I have gotten the staff?"

He looked ahead at the gates, knowing he was in for a rough ride.

Let us look on the bright side. I love theater, regardless of my skill.

[DavidByron]

Matthew:
Very well my lord, how about this: the staff is supposed to have been with a kobold so perhaps Ioth could join us as a prisoner? If Klesha or Verona have the right spell prepared they join me as guards, so we are six.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Matthew, to Zan
I think you will only need a few moments of uncertainty on the guards part. This is a time for boldness so I suggest the Argos disguise but I leave the choice to you.

Maghlemuel
"We will need only a moment. And we will have no reason to fear the guards once the job is done. Any disguise or obfuscation that will cause the guards to hesitate in loosing their bowstrings as we approach the gate should be good enough."

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Magh is ready for however the team wants to do this. Casters, go ahead and do whatever spells you want, and anyone who is walking up to the front doors give me Bluff checks if you are doing it out in the open and Hide checks if you're doing it sneaky-like. I wouldn't recommend trying to sneak across the wide open street unless you are a super-ninja or something.

[MK Kilmarnock]

"For the love of..."
Glancing at the gate one final time, Zan sighed and opened the scroll.
"Okay... Disguise Self. H-Here we go...."
With whater pomp, cirumstance and fanfare came thereafter, Zan looked to the group.
"Well, then... how do I look?" The cleric took the opportunity to look himself over as well, to see if he truly did resemble Argos.
"Now I just have to act like him... D-did I mention I really need a drink right now? About... half the flask?"

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[roll = bluff check]1d20+0[/roll]
I messed up the roll, I'm going to the OoC to give it to you.

[DavidByron]

Matthew considers a random face but then decides to imitate the older guard he saw in the underport the previous day. A risk if he is at immediate hand, but a benefit if he is not...

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Ironically Matthew isn't good at bluffing but here we go:
Bluff - (1d20)[16]

Matthew:
Ready.

Let's see how you look my lord... Hmm. Still looking too nervous really... but it will have to do. I'll go ahead by a few feet; the Doge would have someone going ahead of him.

Remember: you're the boss. Everyone here is afraid of you.

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The spell allows Matthew to change the appearance of Fiona too but I think it will be easier to just tell her to stay back with the rest of the group initially.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Hearts pounding, Matthew, Zan, and Maghlemuel step out from the building and starts to cross the street toward the front gates of the palace, striding briskly.

Tower Guard
"Halt! Who goes there? Stand fast or I shoot!"

Matthew
"Open the doors for the Doge Vanorious!"
(Matthew knows they don't actually need the doors open, he just figures it's something that it makes sense to say at a time like this.)

Without looking up, the three impostors continue to walk, expecting a bolt in their throats at any moment. Their comrades who stayed back watch carefully from behind some stacks of peat - the guards do not shoot, but they do not take their bows off of the approaching trio either.

A few seconds seem like an eternity, but the three reach the other side of the road. Matthew steps to the side and back. The doors have not budged.

Maghlemuel (to Zan)
"Now, plant the staff on the ground, pointing it towards the palace, and no matter what happens, hold it there!"
Maghlemuel starts speaking in what must be the Druidic tongue.

Voice from the Tower
"That's not the Doge, you mumbling peat-hauler! Shoot them down!"

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Adventurers have initiative if you want to take some sort of protective/evasive measures. If Zan plans on holding the staff to the ground as Maghlemuel finishes his Speak With Plants, I need a Concentration check from him. The guards in the towers and the adventurers behind the stacks of peat have a good amount of cover, but not the three in the open.

[DavidByron]

Matthew, throwing himself in front of "the Doge" and covering him as much as he can with his illusionary shield yells,
TREACHERY! Treason! To arms! Defend the Doge!

[SithLackey]

Victor

Finally... "For the Doge!" Not my battle cry of choice, but whatever. Victor moves to where he can get a clear shot of the wall, nocks an arrow, and fires at the head to which he has the best shot.

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Attack - (1d20+5)[21]
Damage - (1d8)[5]
Not like I'll need the second one...

[MK Kilmarnock]

The words spoken by Maghlemuel found their way to Zan's ear. He was wary enough to not give any sort of indication as to whether or not he listened, besides planting the staff to the ground as instructed...

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concentration - (1d20+7)[8]
Whoever has the voodoo curse directed at my rolls, I would like for them to point it elsewhere. Anyway, does Zan really need the concentration if he won't be hit, thanks to Matthew shielding him?

"Audacious fools! Just what do you think you're doing!?" 'Argos' shouted, his heart sinking when they didn't buy it. He just hoped that he wouldn't get shot in the face with an arrow...

Sparing the ability to look over to Maghlemuel as Matthew covered him and Victor prepared himself, Zan wondered just what the druid was trying to do.
I perform the actions, but he's obviously going to do something involving the staff. I wonder if I'll need him to help me unlock its secrets...

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maghlemuel finishes his Druidic incantation with a shout. Zan suddenly feels the staff grow warm and start to shake in his hands, and he struggles to keep it firmly planted on the ground. Maghlemuel sees him struggling and quickly turns to help support his arms, also shielding him the same way that Matthew is on the other side.

Victor's arrow flies true between the battlements to strike a tower guard. The guard does not go down, but the sudden attack from across the street causes some of the tower guards to turn their bows away from the unprotected trio, shooting instead at Victor. The long shafts of the arrows show that trained warriors skilled in the deadly longbow have been assigned to guard the towers now.

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Attack - (1d20+3)[7]Dmg - (1d8)[1]
Attack - (1d20+3)[18]Dmg - (1d8)[2]
+4 to Victor's AC from Cover provided by stacks of peat.

The two arrows lodge in the peat and Victor is unharmed.

Another shaft flies toward Matthew, and two toward Maghlemuel.

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Attack - (1d20+3)[23]Dmg - (1d8)[3]
Attack - (1d20+3)[16]Dmg - (1d8)[5]
Attack - (1d20+3)[9]Dmg - (1d8)[5]

Matthew cries out as an arrow strikes him in the shoulder, and Maghlemuel gasps as one of the arrows aimed at him finds its mark, lodging in his thigh. He drops to one knee but continues to help Zan stay on his feet as he holds the staff to the ground.

The earth starts to tremble and the guards stop shooting. Zan opens his mouth in a soundless cry as he suddenly feels the raw, ancient, wild power of Nature coursing through him. He feels himself changing somehow, as the foreign essence permeates his every fiber, and he struggles to hold on to control, to hold onto his identity as Zan Morseworth.
All the while that he fights his mental battle, he also directs all his might on the simple physical task of holding... the staff... to the ground...

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Will Save in OOC

Suddenly, vines shoot from the ground at Zan's feet. They leap up high over the battlements, casting a net of spring green. The vines then dive down and churn their way into the ground on all sides of the palace. As they fall upon the towers and the walls and the roof, they pull taut and begin to thicken, growing from less than an inch in diameter to as wide as a man's arm, the spring green changing to brown, then silver as a coating of bark appears. Guards shriek in fear as they shrink back from the monstrous vines. Townspeople come out of the buildings nearby and gasp in horror. Then the network of vines - now branches, really - starts to twist.

Matthew and Maghlemuel try to pull Zan back to safety, but Zan resists them, his mind barely aware of what is going on around him. Victor leaps over his fortifications and runs to the street to help them, Zan finally letting the staff free from the dirt and falling limp in their arms. They drag him back just in time, as a large chunk of masonry falls from the palace and smashes onto the street where they once stood.

The ground shakes even more violently as the palace is churned into pieces by the silvery wooden branches that twist about each other and fuse together, reaching for the sky. The townspeople run back as pieces of masonry explode under the pressure. The adventurers can only watch in shock as they try to wake the now-unconscious Zan behind the protective pile of peat squares.

Finally the earthquake stops and dust settles. Where the palace once stood, massive roots spiral up from the ground into the silver-barked trunk of a tremendous tree. Its girth is almost as wide as the palace once was, and its branches reach so high as to seem surreal to those craning their necks below to see the spring green leaves at the top, which surpass even the highest point in Bridgeport, the bell-tower of the cathedral of Pelor close by.

Looking again at the base of the tree, the adventurers notice that one part the castle was unscathed - the original Old Tower. But it is now mostly hidden from view, the tree grown around it much as an ordinary tree might grow around a fencepost. The tower remains accessible only by one window, which looks as though it may be reached if one were to scramble ten feet up the slope of the base of the tree trunk.

Zan regains consciousness. He feels uninjured, but tired, and... different.

Maghlemuel
"You are changed, Zan. I warned you. There is something of the wildness of the Ancient Ones about you."

Zan nods in amazement. He feels the staff grow cool in his hands, and senses that all magic has departed from the hard, twisted wood... yet lives on in himself in some manner.

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New stuff for Zan's character sheet:
-1 Constitution (from the shock to his system)
+1 Charisma
Resist Nature's Lure (Ex)
+4 Diplomacy with Fey creatures
For all effects related to race, Zan is considered to be a Fey creature
**(does not gain Sylvan language or anything else though, outward appearance pretty much unchanged)
Staff is now just a plain old non-magical masterwork quarterstaff.
From now on Zan will feel uncomfortable if people around him are cutting down live trees or otherwise causing harm to green (uncured) wood.

[MK Kilmarnock]

Zan stood to his feet but wobbled. The energy flowing through his veins... he had no idea, initially, what it was. He looked to the group around him, wondering what had happened.... had he passed out? Everybody looked fine except for Maghlemuel, who appeared to have been hit. He set the staff down for a moment to walk to the druid.

"C-cure Light wounds!"

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He's sacrificing his Comprehend Languages to use this.
(1d8+2)[6]

He dusted his robes off conciously, and grabbed his flask. "You say the spirt of the Ancient Ones... I-I think I know what you're talking about, I feel l-like I did when I held..." Ale interrupted him by pouring down his throat.... he drank half of the flask in one go. "Ugh... the staff. B-but.... I just feel so..." Zan blinked, and turned around quickly once the flask was stowed away. He had almost forgotten the staff, as the strange feeling it gave him was now all his. He rushed to pick it up, but felt nothing.

"It's... it's worthless!?" Without warning, he held the tip of the staff to his forehead and clenched it tightly. "Damn it, damn it, damn it, NO! This wasn't supposed to happen!" He sighed, allowing the once wonderous item to hang free in his fingertips, his arms now limp.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

"This wasn't supposed to happen!"

Maghlemuel
"Actually, Zan, it was. That was the true purpose of the heartwood - to perpetuate the existence of one of the Ancient Ones, the original mighty trees which were came into being during the infancy of this world... but I suppose I am seeing these circumstances through the eyes of a follower of Obad-Hai, and I now see that I should apologize to you, a disciple of Boccob who has been deprived of a powerful magic. I am sorry, Zan."

[DavidByron]

Matthew holds still while Ioth pulls the arrow out of his shoulder.
Matthew:
Augh! Watch it! It hurt less going in!

Well that could have gone better but at least we're all still alive.

I wonder how tall that thing is.... some sort of birch...? it could be over a thousand feet.... if the roots go down as far then it must have burrowed right through the underport too.... if this thing ever falls over it's going to take out half of New East Bridgeport....

I wonder how the Old Tower didn't collapse. I guess they really did build things better in the old days....

Matthew, unaware of any of Zan's internal changes:
You did great Zan. You did fine. But this isn't quite over yet. Argos and the portal may be still somewhere in the ruins or inside that tower that is still standing.

To Maghlemuel:
Is this Ancient One going to get mad if we climb up it to search for survivors? I'd rather not, but the remains of the palace masonry look unsafe to stand on.

Fiona lands on Matthew's good shoulder.

[Thymin]

Dravck:

In the aftermath of the wondrous events that just occurred Dravick rushes to the aid of his friends, seeing the arrow pulled from Matthew's shoulder, Dravick chants an incantation and places his hand over Matthew's wound. "Feel better, my friend."

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Cure Light Wounds - (1d8+2)[4]

[DavidByron]

Matthew, to Fiona:
What? No your wing isn't really hurt. You're just feeling the pain from my shoulder. You're fine. Now look: I need you to fly around the rubble and see if you can spot any survivors. There were probably a lot of people in the building when it collapsed.

Dravick heals Matthew's wound.

You see? All better now.

Thanks-- Wait! Dravick, how did you do that? You're not a cleric are you?!

Matthew prods at his arm where the arrow wound had been until seconds before.

[SithLackey]

Victor

Victor dusts himself off and gives an impressed shake of his head at the tree. "Sorry to interrupt, but I think we may have more immediate problems than why Dravick can make the hurt go away. Like, for instance, the Doge. Argos and whatever guard remains his will not have taken lightly to the way we just... Removed the palace proper. Where go we next?"

[MK Kilmarnock]

Zan shuddered, appearing to be sulking. "You d-don't get it... Victor, Matthew, Magh... I needed that magic for... ... Maghlemuel, I need to talk to you later, after... we get things out of the way. I-Is that alright?" He stood up and listened to his back crack.

"Alright. I-If we're going to find Argos and the portal, let us go. B-be careful around the tree, though." This last comment somewhat strange coming from him, he reached slowly behind him, and began to undo the scythe from his back.

I feel more in touch with nature. This must be part of the effect of that staff..... and that's what Linda was trying to say? This is where I almost lost myself? But.... perhaps I've found myself even more! Thaghor always told me that mother was a druid, and that's what the portrait suggests. Druids are usually solitary, but.... but maybe Maghlemuel will know something? I'll ask him later.

[DavidByron]

I'll take that as a 'yes' to climbing up on the tree then....

Matthew:
There! That big fat root doesn't look too bad to clamber up and it goes up to that window into the Old Tower.

Matthew switches rapier for crossbow and loads a bolt.

Ready.

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where necessary:
Climb - take ten if possible = 10 if not Climb - (1d20)[17]
Spot - (1d20-2)[2]
Listen - (1d20-1)[18]

Fiona:
Spot - (1d20+7)[20]
Listen - (1d20+5)[8]

[Thymin]

Dravick:

Hearing Matthew's question, Dravick looked stunned for an instant. "What do you mean... no, I'm not..." Then as Victor's words found their way to Dravick's ears, he realizes that Victor is right. "Right then, up we go. Let's get up there men."
As he begins to climb carefully up the tree, Dravick keeps his eyes and ears open to spot anything out of the ordinary.

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Climb - (1d20)[18]
Spot - (1d20+1)[2]
Search - (1d20+2)[12]
Listen - (1d20+6)[26]

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maghlemuel
"I will help you in any way I can, Zan. But let us speak later."

Dravick leads the team up the slope of the tree to the window of the old tower. They squeeze through the window and onto the circular stair. The twoer is empty above them, but below them there is a floor with a trap door on it, and Dravick leads them down to it. There is a padlock holding the trap door shut.

Dravick
"Shh! Listen!"

From the other side of the trap door comes a faint voice...

"Help me!"

[DavidByron]

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This is where we could do with Kyte - or anyone else with Open Lock

Matthew examines the trapdoor briefly for traps or some sign of how to open it.

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Search - (1d20+8)[21]
Search - (1d20+8)[18]
Search - (1d20+8)[21]

Matthew:
Who's down there?
Berwin, perhaps your pickaxe....?

[ubersquid]

Berwin

Without showing any sign of agreement or disapproval of Matthews idea, Berwin barely waits until he clears the way and smashes his pick against the lock.

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do i need to roll here? attack: (1d20+1)[2] damage: (1d6)[5]

hey and uhm... i'll be on holiday for a week starting tomorrow, i doubt there will be internet. have fun!

*edit* ouch... i suppose berwin is better off if someone else rolls for him anyway.

[MK Kilmarnock]

The cleric nodded. "Talk later, y-yes.. We're busy now, aren't we?" He followed the group obediently, still making sure he had a full and strong hold of himself. When they stopped at the door, he scratched his head.

"Ah, force! Force is good... loud, but.." He held the scythe steady, unsure if they were about to be getting in trouble.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Matthew sees only a simple trap door, held shut by a padlock through a ring in the door and a ring on the floor next to it. The only reply to his question of who is below is another "Help me!"

The adventurers stand back as Berwin takes a swing with his pick. He misses the first time and has to wrench the cutting edge out of the wooden floor. He swings again and again and finally hits the padlock straight-on, sundering it. Dravick raises the trap door, and in the dim light filtering down through the tower stairwell the adventurers can just make out a haggard-looking old man shackled to the wall in the room below. Steps lead down to where the man is, and the smell of filth wafts up from the cell.

[DavidByron]

Some sort of high status prisoner, but put here by the old or the new Doge I wonder? Can this much filth accumulate in only the few weeks Argos has been in power?

Matthew, starts to go down the steps:
Oh that really is bad!

Prestidigitation!
The foul smell is covered over with a strong (very strong) smell of galdioli.

I might have over done it.

Matthew cautiously heads down the steps. Another place where it would be useful to know a little bit about basic locks.

Does anyone have any water for this guy?

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Just on the off-chance does Matthew recognise who this person might be?
Local knowledge - (1d20+6)[25]

I am assuming here that prestidigitation can do the ol' air freshener routine. It specifically says it can put flavors into food as well as clean or soil items so that sounds reasonable.

[SithLackey]

Victor

Victor wordlessly passes his waterskin down through the trapdoor.

[DavidByron]

Matthew tries to give the chained up old guy some of Victor's water. Then,

Matthew:
OK, who are you and why are you chained up down here?

Not a regular prisoner that's for sure. A political prisoner? I don't fancy hanging around in here much longer. There may be guards still around and for all we know if the wind blows hard from the West the tree will bend and knock this tower down. Besides the portal to the Broken Mountain may still be out there somewhere....... if we did have to free this guy how would we do it?

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Matthew does not recognize the man, but once he drinks some water he gets his voice back.

"Praise Boccob! I am Jerris, and I have been a prisoner here for a long time... the guards told me there was a new doge, and then they forget about me. I thought I was going to die, and then there was the earthquake just now."

Berwin takes some time to smash the chains connecting the shackles with his pick while Matthew tells Jerris that there was an earthquake because a giant tree just emerged from the ground here, destroying the rest of the palace. Jerris' eyes grow wide and he takes another long pull from Victor's waterskin.

Jerris
"Amazing! Well, we don't need to worry about this tower - it may look like it's about to fall down, but it is magically protected from all sorts of physical damage. Does that mean the new doge is dead, then?

When the adventurer's tell him that they don't know where the doge is, Jerris suddenly stands up straighter.

Jerris
"The portal! On the roof of this tower! The last doge used to have emergency drills where he would go there if the palace was about to fall, in order to escape. Perhaps the new doge would have done the same thing? If you hurry,the portal might still be open and you could follow him!

All this time, Ioth has been analyzing the supposed prisoner.

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Sense Motive Take 20

Ioth
"I think you're telling the truth, old man - now tell me, have you seen any kobolds in the past few days, or heard of them being imprisoned elsewhere in the palace? Quickly!"

Jerris
"N-no.... I think prisoners are almost always kept in the City Prison; I have been the only person in this dungeon for a very long time."

Ioth (turning to the others)
"Look, I know I'm running blindly into this, but my mate and my youngling and Argos are either somewhere swallowed up by this giant tree, or they've gone to the top of this tower. I'm going to find them!"

Ioth sprints up the stairs toward the ceiling, several stories up in the dark tower.

Verona
"Come on, let's go!"

Verona and Klesha follow Ioth.

[DavidByron]

Praise Boccob? Probably not Boccob's doing since he is known to not care about human affairs... although under the circumstances I can see why this guy Jerris would be a bit excited. I wonder if he recognised Zan's holy symbol and figured it wouldn't hurt to butter us up? Hm. Let me see. Where was Zan standing....

Matthew:
That's all very well about the tower Jerris, but you still haven't told us why....

Jerris:The portal! On the roof of this tower!

And then everyone starts running up to the top of the tower.

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Not "everybody" but about half the party at least including Ioth, Klesha and Verona as named

Detect Magic. Matthew shares the spell sense with Fiona, his familiar. "Stay close Fi, we're looking for a large magical source... although it will probably be obvious even without the spell... but this will be good practise for you."

Jerris says the whole tower is magical although I don't have time to study it's aura... it must date back to the time of Old Zarif... I wonder what it was used for back then...

Matthew glances at Jerris before he runs after the others; checking that Jerris was not the subject of a spell or using magic is his main reason for using Detect magic. Who is this guy really? Is it safe to let him free? But Matthew has other things to worry about.

Wait for me!