[IC] Bink's Dark and Stormy Knight

[Richter]

Halthus dashes over to Elaine as she is darted and moves to heal herself, helping to pull the darts from her skin. He probably approaches faster than he should have for a trap that has just gone off, not considering the danger zone as he hurries to try and assist his fallen comrade. "Are you okay? That was... Nothing here is just going to be friendly, is it? Can I help?"

[DarkOne-Rob]

"Unless you are hiding a healing potion in your pants, I think I am as well as I can be after that," Elaine responds. She gestures to the chest and continues, "Go ahead and look inside the chest - I suspect I have cleared the way and it is now safe..."

[Richter]

Halthus blinks for a moment and then looks rather embarrassed. "Not filled, certainly, but I do have one if it is of use to you. I assumed your talents were better suited to such tasks than could be bottled, but it is foolish of me to not consider that you must certainly feel the same strains in reaching out to your goddess that I feel when working my magics. If you tire and can use it, please, it is yours to take."

Offering the potion, whether she takes it or not Halthus will attempt to open the box to examine the contents.

Spoiler: OOC

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Just a potion of CLW, I know we just woke up from rest, so not sure if its worth you carrying or not. I figured Elowyn is more likely to go down being in a the front of a fight, and if Elaine is still conscious she can heal herself, so Halthus was going to hang onto it so he could dump it down someone's throat if need be. But, that can be up for grabs for anyone.

[DarkOne-Rob]

"You don't get any hints or entendres, do you?" Elaine says unhappily. Shaking her head, she continues, "No, you keep your potion - I was trying to make a joke, and you seem to be entirely oblivious to it. For now, it is better to ask for more healing from my goddess..."

Brushing herself off, Elaine stands and invokes more magic while looking expectantly at Halthus. "Well? What is inside?"

Spoiler: Mechanics

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Cure Light Wounds (using the slot for True Strike) (1d8+1)[9] HPs healed

[Farmerbink]

At first glance, the contents of the chest seem less impressive than the size of the container. A leather headband, studded with iron rivets, lies at the bottom of the box, beside a pair of pearls and a small pouch.

Spoiler: Loot

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Spoiler: Spellcraft, DC 16:

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The headband is a "Headband of the stout heart." It confers a +1 bonus on will saves to the wearer.

The pearls are natural semi-precious "gems." Valued at 100g each
The pouch contains 100 GP.

As Elaine approaches, and looks into the chest, she notes a pair of faint, suspicious markings along the interior. Feeling around the base of the chest, she discovers a small hidden compartment. A book lies within it, somehow protected against the passage of the centuries. Despite your best efforts, only the cover of the book will open- the pages remain stuck closed by some odd force.

Spoiler: Detect Magic

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The book gives of a faint aura of

Spoiler: know arcana DC 16

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abjuration

[Richter]

Looking through the contents of the chest, Halthus admires the pearls for a moment, taking in their luster, but then returns them to the bag and sets it aside. The headband receives more intense study, his eyes glazing over as he takes in the magic it holds. "This will help its wearer resist the effects of mental control, it isn't foolproof of course, but it will add to the strength of will one already has. It could be quite useful."

Even as he says that, he trails off, all thoughts of the headband forgotten when the book is presented. He hands the headband to whoever will take it, even if that happens to be Dae'reg, and gingery gathers the book in his hands. Seeing the magical aura, he is very careful as he examines it, knowing books are often protected. Opening the cover slowly, wincing as he does as if expecting it to explode in his face his brow furrows when he realizes he can flip through no other pages. "Now this... This is fascinating. Most fascinating. I would like to hold onto this, to study it further, if there are no objections. There must be a way to open it, though the spell probably releases by a command word or maybe even recognizes its Master... So curious. I could try and force it, but I must admit that was never my strong suit, and there can be great ramifications to failure. I once spent days repairing the classroom where I studied such things, after I came to of course."

Spoiler: OOC

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I'm not going to risk it, but you have no idea how much I want to try and UMD this book to activate it blindly and see if I can fake the command word to get in. Of course, I have a +5(go no charisma!) so I'd have to roll a nat20 to hit the 25 required. And if I rolled a 10 or less a mishap would occur. Halthus isn't that reckless, but man is this thing going to be calling to him.

Also, I'd recommend Elowyn take the headband. I haven't peeked at char sheets to confirm, but I suspect Elaine has a pretty solid will save. Halthus' wisdom isn't anything to write home about, but he is a will based class and I figure most casters are going to try and hit the fighter with a will save effect since they will assume its going to be lower than the other caster's. Plus, I'm pretty sure that Elowyn dominated equals Halthus dead immediately.

[MuffinMan]

Elowyn starts forward as the darts explode into Elaine, fearing the worse, but Halthus gets there first. Her heart is in her throat until she hears the priestess respond with an innuendo, at which point she breathes a sigh of relief. "You have pluck, priestess - I certainly cannot deny that. Your goddess must favor you, indeed - I am glad I did not have to carry you back to the camp! Are you well enough to go on?"

She takes the headband when Halthus offers it, tracing a finger around its circumference before trying it on for size. "Let's try it - the way things have been going down here we need all the defenses we can get." She looks on with polite interest as the scholar gushes about the arcane tome, but such concerns are clearly outside her area of interest of proficiency. "Yes, well, shall we continue? This-" she indicates the magical barrier of force that Halthus has conjured around her, "will not last all day, and I've rather face any more spiders and hobgoblins with it intact. If you need time to recover, Dae'reg and I will lead the way," she offers to Elaine as she refreshes the light orison upon her spear and prepares to move on.

Spoiler: OOC

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Good call on Elowyn having the headband - she's the only class with a "weak" Will save (although she does have Wis as a casting stat). Dae'reg remains the weak link in terms of Will saves, but now Halthus is a little less likely to be murdered by a dominated Elowyn!

Stealth/Perception modifiers if necessary:
Elowyn: +6/+8
Dae'reg: +14/+5