Mummy's Mask (IC)

[Farmerbink]

"Be cautious approaching it."

Grekka eyes the glass uncertainly, unsettled by the divergent 'reflections.' She turns towards Vershab, not taking her focus off the glass, and asks, "Do you think it's dangerous? I can probably put my morningstar through it from here, if you'd like. I can't imagine that we're getting that through the doors anyway, right?" She hefts the morningstar deliberately. "Perhaps a spear would be better...."

She returns the morningstar to the loop at her belt, and draws a short spear off her shoulder straps to replace it.

Spoiler: OOC:

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Does the mirror reflect our movement at all, or are our 'reflections' simply standing there expressing silent disapproval while I switch weapons and such?

[DarkOne-Rob]

"We are in a tomb guarded by magical constructs and deadly traps. Yes - it is probably dangerous. That said, I am loath to blatantly destroy a magic item if we can instead overcome it," Vershab responds, blandly.

[JWallyR]

Lehasti looks intently at the mirror. Blinking once, her eyes seem once again to reflect the sunrod's light with a more golden sheen than normal.

Spoiler: OOC

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Detect Evil and concentrate on the mirror as long as possible as necessary to gather all the information provided by the spell.

[Gwynfrid]

The four comrades look at the mirror at length, trying to analyze its magic in every which way possible, with Grekka sorely tempted to smash it. It is undoubtedly magic, but there is no evil attached to it. Moving about causes the reflections to move as normal for a regular mirror, but the severe expressions on the faces remain under every angle... Until, after about half a minute looking at them intently, they grow definitely angry. Vershab's reflection frowns at him with fury, Lehasti's image makes a sign to ward evil off, Grekka's reflection looks at her, leering and baring tusks, and the Calathon lookalike has a pained look on his face. All four feel a sudden, sharp pain to the forehead. Then Calathon turns to Vershab and says: "What is this on your face, son?", then as he turns to Lehasti: "And yours, too!"

Both the arcanist and the paladin now each have a painful, fiery hieroglyph etched in angry red over their foreheads. Calathon sighs, despondently: "It's Ancient Osiriani... and it means, Thief."

Spoiler

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1 damage for Vershab and Lehasti.

[JWallyR]

Lehasti looks inquisitively at Vershab's forehead, and reaches up gingerly to touch her own.

[Gwynfrid]

The pain is receding, but it does look like the skin has taken a new, reddish coloring in the shape of the accusatory hieroglyph. Vershab and Calathon recognize the effect of a branding spell, used to mark criminals so they don't escape while awaiting trial.

Spoiler

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See the Brand spell.

[DarkOne-Rob]

"Well, that's annoying...and painful," mutters Vershab. "The mark will last for at least a day, though it is unlikely to be a problem given our authorization to do this..."

[Farmerbink]

Grekka's eyebrows furrow, and a hand instinctively rises to her forehead, though she felt no pain. "Indeed, it looks unpleasant. Well, if that's the worst this particular mirror can do, let's move on. "

She carefully approaches the eastern door with a wide grin. "Still don't want me to smash it?"

Spoiler: Crunch:

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checking the door for traps & other threats:
(1d20+7)[14]

[JWallyR]

Lehasti lowers her hand, looking at the mirror in some irritation before shrugging. The illusion is obviously our altered reflections, and the transmutation... well, I don't think there's any need to do violence to the mirror itself. After nodding at Vershab's assessment, she moves forward with Grekka to search the door.

[Gwynfrid]

The fact that both sets of doors are left somewhat ajar attracts Grekka's attention, and looking down, she notices evidence of tracks in the dust, running across the room between the openings. A closer look identifies the tracks as those of animals of the vermin type.

[Farmerbink]

Grekka stops suddenly. "Anyone know of a vermin with the capacity to open doors? Last I checked, rats didn't have hands....

Be on your guards, everyone."

She steadies her grip on the spear and peeks through the cracked doorway.

[JWallyR]

Lehasti looks down at the tracks, and then up at Grekka. Shaking her head silently, she turns to the doorway, with flail in hand.

[Gwynfrid]

Pulling on the door, Grekka and Lehasti reveal a new room. Pillars line the walls of the rectangular chamber, interspersed with stone jackal heads extending from the walls. A stone altar, covered in a layer of dust, sits at the far end of the room. The altar is dedicated to an ancient Osirian deity, and again the Knights recognize Anubis, patron of embalmers and guardian of tombs. The funerary masks on the walls depict him, and can also function as torch holders.

Spoiler

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[Farmerbink]

"That," Grekka points at the altar, "has got to be magical.

....right? Vershab?"

[Gwynfrid]

The arcanist detects a definite absence of magic in the room.

[DarkOne-Rob]

"Nothing stands out as magical. Somber perhaps, but not magical," Vershab replies as absently rubs his brand with the back of his hand.

[CleverDragon]

Calathon stands at the threshold of the room, furiously jotting down notes in his journal about the treasures they've found thus far, the information about Akhentepi's life and triumphs found scattered throughout the tomb thus far, the more-than-a-little-disturbing magical mark on his son's and friend's forehead. A thought springs to mind and he turns to Grekka and Lehasti before venturing any further. "Do...do you suppose that temples or city officials still recognize that....mark thing?" He gestures to Vershab's forehead. "After we're done in here, I think it'd be good to make sure that we have no fear of some ancient law that's still residing at the bottom of some bureaucrat's drawer."

Calathon bears a look of consternation, as he just isn't familiar enough with local law to know for sure. He suspects that it's safe enough to walk around with that, especially since it's written in a language that so few people speak anymore. Plus, he'd rather not have anything more happen to his godson. It was bad enough that he'd already fallen to the tomb's lethal defenses already and that fact weighed heavily on his mind. "Vershab...I..." he starts, but then cuts off before finishing his question. Do you think it wise for you to be down here? he wanted to ask, but then remembered the childlike glee that he had upon learning of the lottery. And far be it from him to deny Vershab of that! "Sorry, nevermind. I guess this place has me a bit rattled," he says, looking critically at one of the jackal-headed torch sconces.

With a sigh and a roll of his shoulders, he shakes himself out of his reverie and continues to look around, still quite fascinated by the architecture and pure history down here but also quite aware that this Akhentepi fellow has pulled out all the stops in protecting his final resting place. He stoops down to look at the seams of the wall and floor, then stands back up to look at the sconces in closer detail. Provided he sees nothing of any interest or signs of any danger, he turns to Lehasti and puts a hesitant hand on her shoulder, "Wait here, just in case?" With that, he steps up to the altar and gives it a thorough inspection, trying to determine the meaning behind the altar in a couple different ways. Is it trapped, for one. And second, he casts his mind back through his studies, trying to recall if these sorts of alters were common in tombs or if this is more symbolic than functional.

Spoiler: rolls!

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Perception (along the walls/floor): (1d20+8)[18]
Perception (on the altar): (1d20+8)[11]
Knowledge - History: (1d20+9)[11]

[DarkOne-Rob]

"Do...do you suppose that temples or city officials still recognize that....mark thing? After we're done in here, I think it'd be good to make sure that we have no fear of some ancient law that's still residing at the bottom of some bureaucrat's drawer."

"The magic effect is no more powerful than a cantrip, but cannot be easily removed before it expires. It is a minor curse, so powers designed to remove curses should work, but it will also fade. For now, just concentrate on surviving, godfather. The traps down here are quite dangerous," Vershab replies absently as he watches the elf move into the room to inspect it for threats.

[Gwynfrid]

Calathon gets closer to the altar, a very dusty, squat stone slab on top of an ornately decorated base. Behind it, he discovers a nest, belonging to a pair of tan-colored creatures, which look like ten-legged spiders. Oversized jaws grind together slowly beneath beady eyes. He identifies giant solifugids, or sun spiders, a species of aggressive vermin common in desert environments. Disturbed by the human intruder, the two arthropods rise to attack.

Spoiler

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Round 1

Calathon and Vershab go first. Then, it will be the solifugids' turn.

[DarkOne-Rob]

Round 1

Spoiler: Character Status

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Vershab Fethi
Male True Neutral Human Blood Arcanist, Level 1, Init +3, HP 4/8, Speed 30 ft.
AC 11, Touch 11, Flat-footed 10, CMD 10, Fort +1, Ref +1, Will +2, CMB -1, Base Attack Bonus 0
Dagger -1 Melee/+1 Ranged (1d4-1, 19-20/x2)
Club -1 Melee/+1 Ranged (1d6-1, 20/x2)
Abilities Str 9, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 20, Wis 10, Cha 14
Condition 2/4 Arcane Reservoir Used
0/5 Grave Touch Used

From his vantage point in the back Vershab only gets a moment to act before the vermin, readying a spell when they move out of cover.

Spoiler: Mechanics

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I am assuming I can ready an action to cast Acid Splash when the vermin are both not behind cover and not in melee. If that isn't possible, he will shoot at the best opportunity he can to avoid penalties to hit.

Acid Splash (1d20+1)[6] ranged touch attack, (1d20+1)[13] (20/x2), (1d3)[1] damage

[CleverDragon]

Calathon is too caught up in his inspection of the altar itself to immediately notice the threat behind it. After a moment, he hears a strange noise to his right and swivels his head to see the large spider-like creatures adopting an aggressive posture. "Tira ten!" he exclaims as he jumps backwards reflexively, shouting in elven the command to be careful. "Sun spiders!"

He backs up quickly and decides that he thinks this may be a good opportunity to test a concoction that he's been working on. He reaches for one of the catalyst vials and a pinch of a strange powder in his pouch, mixes the two violently. As it begins to hiss, he lobs up and over the altar to try to burn out the critters!

Spoiler: Mechanics

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Moving back to G16. Lobbing a bomb at the solifugid in K16. No AoO as a result of 1) they haven't acted in initiative yet and 2) no AoOs possible when a cover bonus is applicable (assuming that the corner of the altar would give a cover bonus)

Attack roll versus FF Touch AC: (1d20+1)[11] (normally +5 with Dex and PBS, but -4 for cover bonus)
Damage: (1d6+5)[11] if hit, and 5 damage to the adjacent critter from the splash damage. Otherwise, you can determine the scatter roll if you prefer or I can, your call. :)
EDIT: Yay! I think I just barely hit, assuming a flat footed touch of 11 gets it, which it should by my calculations...unless these are special solifugids. lol

[Gwynfrid]

Calathon's explosive device disappears behind the altar, causing a large flash of flame to erupt against the far wall. A rattle of many instectoid legs is heard, as the panicked sun spiders scurry forward, one of them very badly burned and the other more lightly. Vershab's opportunistic ray of green liquid is unfortunately aimed right between the two. As their passage out is apparently blocked by a group of humanoids, they attack the first one they meet - the elf.

Spoiler: End of round 1

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Bite (1d20+3)[6] damage (1d6+1)[5]
Bite (1d20+3)[17] damage (1d6+1)[2]

Calathon takes 2 damage.

Round 2 begins.

[DarkOne-Rob]

Round 2

Spoiler: Character Status

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Vershab Fethi
Male True Neutral Human Blood Arcanist, Level 1, Init +3, HP 4/8, Speed 30 ft.
AC 11, Touch 11, Flat-footed 10, CMD 10, Fort +1, Ref +1, Will +2, CMB -1, Base Attack Bonus 0
Dagger -1 Melee/+1 Ranged (1d4-1, 19-20/x2)
Club -1 Melee/+1 Ranged (1d6-1, 20/x2)
Abilities Str 9, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 20, Wis 10, Cha 14
Condition 2/4 Arcane Reservoir Used
0/5 Grave Touch Used

Frowning Vershab whines, "Bugs? When are we going to find some undead?" before casting another spell. "If everyone would step out of melee, please, so I can have a clear shot for a moment..."

Spoiler: Mechanics

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Standard action to cast Acid Splash (1d20+1)[4] ranged touch attack, (1d20+1)[16] (20/x2), (1d3)[3] acid damage
Move action to avoid cover issues with the bugs, taking a 5-ft step away instead if they reach melee range with Vershab

[JWallyR]

Round 2

After shouting Calathon! Make way!, Lehasti steps forward to bring her flail to bear against the arachnoid pests!

Spoiler: Actions

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If Calathon moves out of the way, 5ft step into his space and POWER ATTACK/CLEAVE!

If he doesn't move for some reason, just attack the nearer spider and add 2 to AC due to not cleaving.

First target is the (most) damaged spider.

1st Attack: (1d20+4)[21]
CC: (1d20+4)[7]
Damage: (1d10+9)[17]
Crit damage: [roll1d10+9[/roll]

2nd Attack (if applicable): (1d20+4)[18]
CC: (1d20+4)[11]
Damage: (1d10+9)[18]
Crit damage: [roll1d10+9[/roll]

AoO if applicable: (1d20+4)[6]
CC: (1d20+4)[16]
Damage: (1d10+9)[11]
Crit damage: [roll1d10+9[/roll]

Spoiler: Stats

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Lehasti Gesmeha
F LG Human Paladin, Level 1, Init +1, HP 11/12, Speed 20
AC 14, Touch 9, Flat-footed 13, CMD 14, Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +1, CMB +5, Base Attack Bonus 1
Falchion Melee (2d4+str*1.5, 18-20, x2)
Flail, Heavy Melee (1d10+str*1.5, 19-20, x2)
Spiked Gauntlet 5 (1d4+str, )
Scale Mail (+5 Armor, +1 Dex, -2 Misc)
Abilities Str 18, Dex 12, Con 15, Int 10, Wis 7, Cha 16
Condition Cleaving: -2AC
Branded

[CleverDragon]

Calathon stumbles backward, somewhat surprised by Lehasti's emphatic shout (five foot to F16). A moment later, the paladin steps where he was and though his vision is partially blocked, he hears the distinctive crunch of carapaces crunching as the flails make contact. He winces at the sound. "Remind me not to get on your bad side, Lehasti..." he says, partially in jest and partially seriously.

[Gwynfrid]

As Calathon hastily moves out of her way, the Dawnflower servant steps in, and in a great sweep, the merciless flail ball crushes the carapaces of both sun spiders, throwing their broken bodies on the side and ending the battle even before Grekka has a chance to react.

A subsequent search of the room yields nothing but dust and insectoid refuse.

[JWallyR]

After grinning congenially at Calathon, Lehasti matter-of-factly kicks what remains of the spiders off to the side of the room to make way for a more thorough inspection. After the inspection fails to yield interesting results, she shoulders her flail, evidently unperturbed, and gestures with her free hand toward the untried door on the opposite side of the previous room. Shall we?

[Gwynfrid]

The companions move back into the chamber of reflections, to investigate the doors on the opposite side. Those are also slightly ajar. Opening them wider, the Relic Knights see a wide flight of steps gradually descending down a passage. Halfway down the stairs, small holes and burrowed tunnels riddle what remains of the passage’s left wall. Earth and sand have spilled over the collapsed masonry, covering the stairs with dirt and rubble. Stone doors, engraved with a golden scarab, its wings open beneath a golden sun, stand at either end of the stairs.

Spoiler

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The stairs are 10' wide and the passage is 30' or so long.

[Farmerbink]

Grekka steps forward just in time to watch Lehasti destroy the creatures from close range. Shouldering her morningstar, she extends her lips into a pout. "Hmph. " Without another word, she assists in the inspection of the chamber before following closely behind Calathon into the next chamber, a pensive look on her face.

Spoiler: roll

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(1d20+9)[21]

Spoiler: perception dc that roll

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Periodically, when she thinks no one is looking, Grekka sneaks a few glances at Lehasti, her expression an odd mixture of annoyance and grudging respect.

[DarkOne-Rob]

Vershab lingers in the room with the altar several seconds, looking around at the space and mumbling to himself, "Still no indication of any undead, even in the chapel of the tomb..." Finding himself briefly alone he hurries after the others, falling into place at the back of the party as they descend the stairs.