Brilliant Gameologists Forum
Playtime! => PbP Games => Play by Post General => Dungeon Star => : Kuroimaken April 23, 2010, 02:55:45 PM
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Teleportation doesn't leave your lot inside the farm. Rather, it leaves you outside what looks like a walled property, over which you can see a few treetops, but which looks unimpressively small for something that's supposed to supply food for an entire kingdom. The big plaque reads "Douglas Farm" above the entrance gate.
"Everyone in one piece? Check your equipment so we make sure we haven't forgotten anything."
@TML
[spoiler]You notice a big box with a dragon on top of it in addition to the other things that wasn't supposed to be there.[/spoiler]
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Kyx says through the comm "Oh my god, my body didn't teleport with us!" Then cackles with laughter at his own joke.
[spoiler]Any birds flying around? Or other signs of life?[/spoiler]
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Kyx says through the comm "Oh my god, my body didn't teleport with us!" Then cackles with laughter at his own joke.
[spoiler]Any birds flying around? Or other signs of life?[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Outside the dome, everything looks normal. You realize there's a fairly good chance the outside is an illusion to keep would-be sucker trespassers away. Still, there seems to be no wildlife flying OVER the farm.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]There's a dome?[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]There's a dome?[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Not that you can see, but you presume it's there nonetheless. The whole thing is on its separate, bigger on the inside demiplane, so it stands to reason that there's a dome.[/spoiler]
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"Now to see if ze place is full of ze danger." Paul says before he clucks a prayer.
[spoiler]Paul casts Omen of Peril (77% chance of success). Since the vision depends on his religion, he will get one of three visions: A healthy chicken (Safety) , a scared chicken (Peril), or a dead chicken (Great Danger).[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]Paul sees a healthy chicken.[/spoiler]
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"I sense no dangers in ze next hour. Let us proceed, no?"
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"So what's in the box?" Fistbeard asks, cracking his knuckles.
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[spoiler]Opening Treasure Chest. (1d100=5) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2491744/)
:D[/spoiler]
"Let me takes a look." Paul says. He opens the box up a bit and pulls out a frantic chicken. "Sophy? What were you doing in zere? Silly chicken. Back in ze bag you go!"
Paul pushes the chicken into a small bag about the size of an apple. After a moment, the bag stops moving.
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Did the box just... sneeze? A feather drops from the nose of the dragon sculpted on its top.
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Paul looks at his hands. Weird. Sophy had been covered in something sticky. Adhesive-y, even.
He looks at the box again.
"It is a nice box. Maybe I judge too soon. I think some of ze chickens would like it."
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"If you want it, you can have it. I wouldn't want to be known as a person who owns something so inelegant as a sneezing box"
Sabot tosses the box over to Paul.
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Paul* catches the box. He looks inside to examine it's contents.
*not Prime
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The top of the box is connected to the bottom by a hinge. The box itself... is empty.
{OOC: Still asleep}
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Paul puts a couple chickens in the box for safe keeping, and closes the lid.
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A coughing sound comes from the box. It gets louder as the box starts to shake.
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Paul quickly lets go of the box and steps back.
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The sculpted dragon on top of the box starts to shift. The box raises itself up on spidery legs which sprout from its underside. A voice comes from the dragon's mouth.
"Whuh? Who are you? Where am I?"
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"Well this is new. I think this is the first time the folks down at inventory have tossed in a mimic to go with everything. Gotta say, though, you look like a horrible fashion accessory." Matsuko offers with a slight hint of surprise.
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"At ze farm, box thing. I am known as Paul. Ze great Iron Chef Paul Trey." the chef introduces himself.
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"Well this is new. I think this is the first time the folks down at inventory have tossed in a mimic to go with everything. Gotta say, though, you look like a horrible fashion accessory." Matsuko offers with a slight hint of surprise.
The dragon rises up and puts its claws on its hips with a pouting expression.
"What's it to you, lady? I don't know how I ended up in your inventory, I just went to sleep and woke up here."
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Talon cocks his head to the side in puzzlement. "Ok, I'm not even going to begin trying to figure out what's going on with you people. We should be on our way now, right?"
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"Farm? What are you guys doing?" The dragon looks puzzled. "And I'm not a box thing, I'm Eren!"
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(Le gasp!) "Ze box is a girl? Still, she is not my kind of chick."
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"Farm? What are you guys doing?" The dragon looks puzzled. "And I'm not a box thing, I'm Eren!"
"What's an Eren?"
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"Farm? What are you guys doing?" The dragon looks puzzled. "And I'm not a box thing, I'm Eren!"
"What's an Eren?"
"About five pounds"
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Taking in the dwarf before it, the dragon raises an eyebrow. Real dragons don't have eyebrows, but she doesn't particularly seem to care.
"How much have you guys had to drink? That's my name."
Paul receives an image in his mind of a dragon sticking out its tongue at him.
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"Hey, an Elan's a creature as well as a name, isn't it?"
Fistbeard drains a flask of whiskey, tosses it in his backpack, and pulls another out of his vest.
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"The lack of feathers has already proven as much, Paul." Matsuko points out. "My best guess would be, someone mistook you for a magic item. You do have a rather peculiar air about you." A small visor flashes for a few seconds in front of her face. "And you look like you're carrying your own share of magic items too."
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A tendril extends from the chest bearing a bronze loop, and the dragon glances at it. "I've picked up a few things. But come on, what are you guys up to? You said this was a farm, but you don't exactly look like farmers."
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"I make my own whiskey, does that count?"
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"You are correct. I, for one, do not need a farm" Paul says.
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Talon speaks up. "There seems to be some trouble brewing here, and we've been sent to check things out. And, I imagine, deal with any problems we come across."
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"I would certainly hope not; this outfit was expensive."
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"Sounds like fun! Can I come along?"
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"Yeah, sure. It's our fault you're here in the first place anyway." Matsuko offered with a shrug. She didn't seem at all worried about "Eren"'s curiosity, disposition or anything of the like.
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"Sounds good. Now I can make us all boxed lunches." Paul says.
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Eren does not seem to realise the implications of what Paul just said.
The chest ripples and distorts, growing upwards into the shape of a female human with blue hair. And quite a, um, chest.
[spoiler]Alternate Form: varag, + Mimic Shape and disguise self[/spoiler]
"Right, shall we get going?" she asks.
"...but first," she points in the direction of Kyx. "The invisible guy's with you, right?"
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"You know," Fistbeard comments, "Among female humans, it is the custom to wear clothing, such as tight fitting pants made out of denim and shirts that show an improbable amount of cleavage."
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"I can help make a feather dress, no?"
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{OOC: Why do you assume that she's naked? ???}
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(For the lulz.)
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Talon takes this pre-expeditionary time to activate his draconic invocations again, laying down his Endure Elements effect again so their new companion is covered, as well as activating his Draconic Wings. Two large robotic-looking sets of parts extend from compartments on his back, forming large draconic metal wings, which then fold themselves so that they are ready for action, yet out of the way.
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{OOC: Eh, I suppose I'll roll with it.}
"Huh? Oh."
In an instant Eren is now wearing a dress, resembling something from Agita's stash of pics.
"Is that better?"
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"You best ask a human for that, box."
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"Suits you just fine, love." Matsuko offered with a hint of entertainment in her voice.
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Kyx says, with puzzlement obvious in his voice, "Yes, the invisible guy is with me. But how could you possibly know that?"
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Impatient sounding but with a smile on his face, Zane interrupts "Well the box must have magic eyes as well. Nevermind that, anyone got an idea of where to start looking for the targets? Since it looks like some people's talents wont be put to use for an hour or so..."
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"Don't get trigger-happy, Zane. Douglas Farm employs anywhere from 400 to 600 workers at any given time, likely more at this time of year. Since the demi-plane it's sitting on doesn't have variable time, they actually follow the cycle of seasons for harvesting crops and whatnot. Which means you could potentially have a whole crowd full of nonhostiles in there."
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"It would probably be best if we go speak with whoever's in charge, and get an idea of what's going on."
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"That'd be our first measure, yes. Shall we?" With that, Matsuko starts inputting the master codes for opening the gate.
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"Now wait just a minute.... Didn't they say that other teams had been sent to investigate here, and failed to even return? What do you think they did when they first got here? Probably went to talk to whoever is in charge..."
"You can call it paranoia or whatever you want, but I haven't lived longer than most countries by being careless. How about we just send my little invisible friend in here and let him tell us what he sees first?"
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"Doesn't change the fact we'll have to do it eventually, or that if they didn't so much as make it past the front gate, then all we'll not hear from your invisible friend are the screams of pain." Matsuko shrugged. "Be my guest, though you should know he probably won't be able to communicate with us once he's through."
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As always, it falls to the noble to lead the way for their lessers.
Sabot just walks on forward. Cowardice is for commoners.
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If Talon could visibly scowl at Sabot, he would. As it is, all he can do is stand around menacingly.
He turns to the others and says, "Well, looks like we've got little choice. Onward, then?"
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"I'm reminded of a famous dwarven saying: Let the elves charge into battle first."
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The crab stands tall, pointing through the gate. "Then let us be on our way. We have to find ze bātiment agricole, non?"
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"I am inclined to wonder the reason behind dwarven wisdom, Fistbeard..." Matsuko shrugs. The gate sliiiides open, to what looks like a hallway with beautifully arched trees at the canopy. They don't block the sun entirely, but they do provide a beautiful effect.
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They say "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread."
Lead the way, brave companions.
Kyx follows the others into the compound.
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[spoiler]Pulling Coin from pocket. (1d100=41) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2494616/) Chicken![/spoiler]
"Indeed. Ze brave shall lead ze way."
Paul tries to pull something out of his pocket. B'gok!
"Sorry, Helen. Better to cook ze bird than ze cook." he says, and throws the chicken through the gate, attempting to set off any traps that might exist.
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The chicken awkwardly lands past the gate, but does NOT explode in a mess of feathery gore.
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Paul claps his crusty hands together. "Se magnifique! Ze coast is clear."
Though, not willing to lead the way himself, he says, "I hear that ze farms make excellent moonshine."
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"If you're worried about traps, I can find them," Fistbeard points out.
Take 20 on Search with a +7 modifier yields a result of 27. If this is not possible, here is my roll.
[spoiler]1d20+7=24 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2494775/)[/spoiler]
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There appears to be no traps whatsoever on the way.
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Paul follows someone with more hit points than him.
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"Come on, let's go." Fistbeard leads the way.
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Eren follows cheerfully.
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Talon follows suit, attempting to keep his eyes and ears open... though honestly he's a bit distracted by the thought of being on his very first official mission.
[spoiler]Spot/Listen:
Spot: 1d20(10)+5=15
Listen: 1d20(5)+3=8 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2495338/)
[/spoiler]
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Smiling and trying not to laugh the whole way, Zane pulls the cloak shut to cover his weapons from sight, and follows the others. This group was at least the most fun he'd had in some time.
As soon as their on the other side, despite the smile and happy face, he's coldly checking the places he would go to snipe from, looking for the best spots, what appears to be the most hideable place, and the highest point. The wind rustling through trees is sweet, but he's more interested in sounds of movement, boots on grass, fingers on metal... if only the rest of them would shut up and stop throwing chickens around...
[spoiler]
Spot: 12
Search: 12
Listen: 15 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2495438/)
Wow, thanks for nigh-lowest fucking rolls possible IC, and on my best skills too. Did my dragonsight get dispelled coming through? If no, I've got 1/2 distance penalties on spot, and see 2x as far as normal, if it makes any difference...[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]
Spot: 12
Search: 12
Listen: 15 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2495438/)
Wow, thanks for nigh-lowest fucking rolls possible IC, and on my best skills too. Did my dragonsight get dispelled coming through? If no, I've got 1/2 distance penalties on spot, and see 2x as far as normal, if it makes any difference...[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Some spotter you are! :lol Don't forget you also have Blindsense out to 55 feet.
Kyx can sense anything with a soul out to 170 feet, and this also ignores line of effect and sight.
Spot/Listen for Kyx: 1d20+1=4, 1d20+1=2 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2495443/)
and the Invisible Stalker 1d20+19=35, 1d20+2=15 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2495447/)[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]Watch Kuro send some ethereal constructs just to spite the two of you.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]Watch Kuro send some ethereal constructs just to spite the two of you.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Nah, I can hear into the Ethereal Plane. :P[/spoiler]
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There are absolutely no traps or enemies of whatever kind as you proceed into the reception area.
Once you do, it's easy to notice the place is deserted (as the reception area is, literally, a small building, about the size of an office). There are no signs of confusion whatsoever either; it looks as if the place had been cleanly and calmly vacated of its own accord. In fact... on second glance, it's as if whoever was working there just up and disappeared. However, Kyx doesn't sense any souls, living or otherwise, in the building.
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Eren cups her hands to her mouth - they meld together into a megaphone.
"Anybody home?"
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"The lights are on, but nobody's home. I don't sense anyone at all in here, living or unliving.
Want to dig around in here and see if any clues as to where they went?"
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"Searching the area might give us some clues, even with how sterile everything seems."
Talon begins picking through things for anything of interest, anything that might lead to a conclusion of any sort.
[spoiler]Search:
1d20(20)+3=23 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2496396/)[/spoiler]
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Sabot goes up to the nearest Mys-Tech computer console and tries to pull up information. "Perhaps they left a message behind. I'm going to see if I can pull up anything"
[spoiler]UMD check 1d20+17=24 (http://www.hwx.it/wizards.com/dice.php?sid=3867#131090)[/spoiler]
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Sabot goes up to the nearest Mys-Tech computer console and tries to pull up information. "Perhaps they left a message behind. I'm going to see if I can pull up anything"
[spoiler]UMD check 1d20+17=24 (http://www.hwx.it/wizards.com/dice.php?sid=3867#131090)[/spoiler]
[spoiler]I would have also accepted Knowledge: Arcana if you have it, just as an FYI. :)[/spoiler]
No one answers.
Searching the place doesn't reveal anything outside of the ordinary. No bloodstains, no spilled coffee, no documents out of place...
According to the logs Sabot finds, there have been no entrants in the system in the past four days. There seems to have been logoffs and logons, but nothing indicates the previous party came through here in the first place. Matsuko helps by providing Sabot with some general-purpose admin passwords she was given by the Adventurer's Guild. The terminals don't appear to have exterior access to MagiNet, so using them to contact the outside is an impossibility (not that he finds evidence of such an attempt even being made). They only seem to have access to their internal network.
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"So there's... like a.... logbook... in there?"
Kyx looks confusedly at the computer.
"What's the last thing in it?"
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While the others search the computer, Talon re-activates his defensive programs, once again granting environment control to everyone (plus immunity to his breath weapon), his wings, and his ability to see the unseen.
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The last log notes: "Nothing out of the ordinary. Booooooooooooring."
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Boring. Almost... too boring.
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"Well, I doubt they went out for ale and whores. Let's spread out and search the place for signs of violence."
(I'd like to take 1o or 20 if possible)
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"Well, I doubt they went out for ale and whores. Let's spread out and search the place for signs of violence."
(I'd like to take 1o or 20 if possible)
Aaaand you still don't find anything at all.
On second glance, Sabot finds... a penis joke on the log of someone called Jake Harper.
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"Looks like it's about time to move on. Is there anywhere else that's obvious to check next?"
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"The fridge?"
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"Indeed. Perhaps it is something zey ate." Paul says. Then, looking at Fistbeard, adds "Or drank."
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"Hmmm. Scanner shows nothing in the coffee. And since we're talking divination spells here, evaporation is not an issue." Matsuko puts a fingertip to her chin as she seemingly debates something in her head. "I don't think there are enough clues to indicate what happened here. Anyone got suggestions? The workers were obviously not drugged, at least not by anything we can find here."
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"Place doesn't look like there was a fight... perhaps they were lured out?
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"Maybe if we check out ze animals and ze crops, there may be a clue?"
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"Hmm, and it's been far too long to tell if magic was used as a means of taking them from here. Maybe they all went on strike? Nah... Someone would've known. Well, we won't find out by standing around here. What other facilities are there around this building?"
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"Not around this building, no. Demiplane constructor's a minimalist - nothing but the bare essentials for making sure the place runs smoothly. Aside from the reception building, we've got the living quarters - all management is provided from there, too."
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"Well, it sounds like that's our next stop, then. Especially if there's literally nothing else here."
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"What does 'literally nothing else' look like, I wonder..."
Fistbeard will lead the way to the living quarters.
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Sabot attempts to bring up security cameras or something.
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There are none, apparently. The place just isn't high-profile enough to warrant it. It also doesn't house anything actually valuable enough to be stolen, in any case.
"That's where we're most likely to find the general manager for this place."
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"Sounds like as good an endorsement as we need. Let's go." Talon heads for the door.
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Paul follows Talon. Someone out there was depriving people of choice meats. When Paul found them, he would make sure they ended up well done.
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Paul's sense of justice never ceases to amaze. One wonders how personally he'll take a mission that doesn't involve poultry. :lol
The outside looked... VAST. Really vast. Even though the demiplane was small enough that one could conceivably see where it started curving around (apparently it was spheric), an educated guess would easily place it as taking about half a day to go back and forth between the extremes. The pathway the party was on didn't so much as have the luxury of asphalt, but the dirt seemed flat enough that none would have an issue traversing it with vehicles.
The fields look well-tended for having been abandoned for four days, however. Further, there appears to be absolutely no wildlife in sight, save for a few crows flying in irregular patterns above and around the fields, as well as a large-ish building resembling a country home that was obviously not meant for stocking equipment, animals or crops.
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Kyx says "Impressive... And to think that all of this is merely to provide luxury food for the wealthy. Imagine what lengths they'd go to for something that's actually important."
[spoiler]Do the crows seem "normal" to Kyx's Magic Jar senses? Low hit die living creatures (as opposed to undead, or constructs that lack souls, etc)?[/spoiler]
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"Hey, I'm going first, 'kay?"
Eren runs to the house. Unless something interrupts her, she will knock on the door.
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With a jarring creak, dead, twisted branches burst out of Sabot's back. Icicles sprout with a sound resembling windchimes, trailing down the ends. Within moments he takes to the air, light refracting through his frozen wings.
Spiraling upward, he scans the area for anything obviously out of place
[spoiler]
Spot check: 1d20+3=15 (http://www.hwx.it/wizards.com/dice.php?sid=3867#131209)
Yeah, other people can cast fly. But I make it look good. Specifically, 80', good.
[/spoiler]
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Chuckling lightly, the cowboy, tipping his hat up, watches the frosted fay take off. As the wings glimmer, peaked in the sky, one might hear Zane say "That's a nice trick..." before getting an evil look, squinting as though a hunter watching ducks, and finally speeding his pace to a non-stroll to catch up to Eren. He keeps himself back a bit, as if flanking, and takes his time watching the windows and the crows. He thinks to himself how it's odd that they'd be the only thing left on the plane, and especially where it's so easy to threaten the goods...
[spoiler]
Spot/Listen (taking 20): 30/30
Watching the surroundings closely, as if trying to pick out oddities, as well as watching the crows to see if they act odd. Windows to see how likely it is someone's hiding. Listen for much the same reason, to pick up sounds that might increase security if heard..[/spoiler]
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I believe I forgot to mention that the house is still off in the distance. At a strolling pace, you might make it there in 45 minutes to an hour.
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]The crows are more than 170 feet away. Should have probably mentioned that they're pretty high up, as well as far away. If you want a decent look at 'em, you'll have to go over the fence that surrounds the field.[/spoiler]
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The suit of armor says "I'm going to go check out those birds. Watch my "armor" please." Then it slumps to the ground.
[spoiler]
He then possesses the invisible stalker and begins flying invisibly towards the nearest bird. I just want to get within 170 feet of it to see if it has a soul and the appropriate amount of hit dice for a random crow or not.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]I'd ask for a move silently roll, but I doubt the average crow can make it. It does have a soul, as well as appropriate hit dice. Can you remind me of the specific info your vision gives? [/spoiler]
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Assuming he doesn't see anything out of the ordinary, Sabot starts flying towards the country house. Checking for an invisible dome or similar obstruction, he occasionally sends a blue faerie fire straight up.
[spoiler]We do have mindlink up, right? Or was that just discussed and never actually done? If we do:
Doesn't look like there's anything around the fields. I shall investigate the country house.
Faerie fire is unlimited usage, from WoL[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]You see no obstructions on the way. Looks as though unlike the dome that surrounds Douglas Farm, there are no domes around the buildings and whatnot.
Man, Faerie Fire is WEIRD. I'm not sure whether it's supposed to float down to the ground or stay in place if it has no specific target - after all, it has no weight. Description doesn't help either. Since it's unlimited usage, I'll just assume you shot it diagonally down and in front instead of straight up. Either way, you have no walls.
Also, even without mindlinks up, you'd still have communication equipment you could use.[/spoiler]
Matsuko replies, "Belay that, Sabot. We shouldn't separate unless absolutely nec--"
And then Eren deadruns towards the house.
"...*sigh* Wait until the rest of us get there to enter the place. Feel free to survey it from the air in the meantime."
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Assuming he doesn't see anything out of the ordinary, Sabot starts flying towards the country house. Checking for an invisible dome or similar obstruction, he occasionally sends a blue faerie fire straight up.
[spoiler]We do have mindlink up, right? Or was that just discussed and never actually done? If we do:
Doesn't look like there's anything around the fields. I shall investigate the country house.
Faerie fire is unlimited usage, from WoL[/spoiler]
Eren soon realises that Sabot is now outpacing her. That won't do. But fortunately, at shapeshifting she was the strongest.
"H-hey! Wait up!"
A pair of wings similar to Sabot's burst from her back and she flies after him.
[spoiler]Using Alternate Form to take the form of a dire hawkMM2 while maintaining a humanoid appearance.
(http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/9256/1200552555127tv6.jpg)
I freaking hate you ZUN.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]I'd ask for a move silently roll, but I doubt the average crow can make it. It does have a soul, as well as appropriate hit dice. Can you remind me of the specific info your vision gives? [/spoiler]
[spoiler]From the PrC in the Tome of Necromancy: For the purposes of this spell, any body he is possessing also counts as a receptacle, so he may use the senses granted by being in a magic jar receptacle and possess new bodies from this form
<SNIP>
Since bodies count as receptacles for this effect, the Stranger does not need line of effect to possess a new body.
From the Magic Jar spell:
While in the magic jar, you can sense and attack any life force within 10 feet per caster level (and on the same plane of existence). You do need line of effect from the jar to the creatures. You cannot determine the exact creature types or positions of these creatures. In a group of life forces, you can sense a difference of 4 or more Hit Dice between one creature and another and can determine whether a life force is powered by positive or negative energy. (Undead creatures are powered by negative energy. Only sentient undead creatures have, or are, souls.)
So I guess I can only compare their relative hit dice, and tell if they're undead or living.
I figure since I can also see with my "normal" vision, I should be able to pick which creatures to possess without the chance of randomness that you normally get with the spell, which assumes that's the only way you have to see the creatures you're targetting. I guess that's up to you, though, as it isn't spelled out anywhere.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]I don't have a problem with letting you do that.
Also, you notice that as soon as you come within range to determine what you can about the crows, they seem to become agitated and erratic. You manage to determine they're not stronger than you at a glance, BUT! I'm gonna need a spot check from you to make sure you glean further info.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]Spot check. lolzorz.
1d20+1=9 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500077/)[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]You COULD probably get closer to the crows if you tried, but keep in mind there's no telling what might happen.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]You COULD probably get closer to the crows if you tried, but keep in mind there's no telling what might happen.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Yes. No telling... :smirk
I possess a crow. Will save DC 19 (I think... 10+1/2 HD +Cha is standard for Su abilities, right?). It's as Magic Jar, but is supernatural. So "infinite SR" magic immunity doesn't work. Neither does immunity to mind affecting. They do have to have a "soul", though, and it is a necromancy effect.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]That's correct - at least it's how the binder works, although it uses EBL as a base to calculate DCs.
As it so happens, they DO have a soul. Let's see if it works...
Can he resist?! (1d20+4=23) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500223/)
And, by a miracle roll, it resists.
This is not good... for you.
------
The crows suddenly seem to caw between themselves, turning their heads straight towards you - some of which do so in a 180 degree spin. They flock together and fly in your direction.
Roll initiative.
Ahogarasu in formation! (1d20+3=12) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500234/)
[/spoiler]
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Kyx says "Ah crap..." into the magical comm system.
[spoiler]Initiative (+5 dex, +5 warning shuriken)
1d20+10=18 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500249/)
What knowledge should I roll to see if I know anything about these guys? [/spoiler]
"Well guys... they're not just crows..."
Kyx flees back to his metal body and leaves the invisible stalker to suffer the wrath of the crows.
[spoiler]Magic Jar back into the "suit of armor" on his turn.[/spoiler]
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And if you don't pose your actions soon, you also won't be just a possessed invisible stalker. :smirk
-
"Are they going to attack us?"
-
"That doesn't sound good..." Talon says as the distant view of murder grows ever closer.
[spoiler]Huzzah for puns!
Do we all roll initiative, or just Kyx/Kyx's invisible stalker? :P
If it's all of us then.... Init=3 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500265/). Oh dear. :o[/spoiler]
-
Nah, only Kyx and the crows... this'll be over soon. :smirk
-
Please don't molest the wildlife.
-
And if you don't pose your actions soon, you also won't be just a possessed invisible stalker. :smirk
I ninja posted my actions. (Edited them into the post with my initiative)
-
:lmao
For self-reference:
[spoiler]Dodge like the wind! (1d20+13=30, 1d20+13=30, 1d20+13=18, 1d20+13=14, 1d20+13=24, 1d20+13=31, 1d20+13=22, 1d20+13=33, 1d20+13=32, 1d20+13=25, 1d20+13=31, 1d20+13=27, 1d20+13=25, 1d20+13=17, 1d20+13=28) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500681/)
This is gonna HURT. (6d6=27, 6d6=20, 6d6=21, 6d6=23, 6d6=23, 6d6=17, 6d6=16, 6d6=14, 6d6=21, 6d6=23, 6d6=22, 6d6=24, 6d6=17, 6d6=20, 6d6=19) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2500689/)[/spoiler]
With a thundering roar, the crows explode in a mass of small, yet significantly powerful explosions, which send invisible bits of the invisible stalker flying EVERYWHERE.
-
Unfortunately, neither chickens nor crabs can fly, so all Paul could do was watch. When the crows blew up and the Stalker's mic became static, he said.
"Now I know why ze farms use ze scarecrows."
-
I told[i/] you about crows. I warned you, man.
-
Talon sees the burst of black feathers in the distance and says "Ok, that is messed up."
"Is that part of the farm's... defenses, or something? Just what in the world are we dealing with, here?"
-
Paul shrugs. "Maybe it is something zey ate." he says, as he walks to a tree and grabs an apple from it, and takes a bite out of it.
Exploding birds...I will have to remember that.
-
The suit of armor stands up and dusts itself off and says "Good thing I brought that spare suit...
I... have no idea what to make of that. They seem alive, intelligent even. They can see invisible creatures. And they explode."
[spoiler]Going to take 10 on Knowledge: Arcana to try and guess WTF is going on here...
That would give me a 21, or 26 for IDing a creature.
Also take 10 on Spellcraft (giving me a 23) because OOC I think that probably was an Exploding Runes... and since he saw them go off he might be able to identify them.
Edit:... 23 isn't high enough is it? I rolled and got a 17... which of course isn't going to hack it, either... [/spoiler]
-
The suit of armor stands up and dusts itself off and says "Good thing I brought that spare suit...
I... have no idea what to make of that. They seem alive, intelligent even. They can see invisible creatures. And they explode."
[spoiler]Going to take 10 on Knowledge: Arcana to try and guess WTF is going on here...
That would give me a 21, or 26 for IDing a creature.
Also take 10 on Spellcraft (giving me a 23) because OOC I think that probably was an Exploding Runes... and since he saw them go off he might be able to identify them.
Edit:... 23 isn't high enough is it? I rolled and got a 17... which of course isn't going to hack it, either... [/spoiler]
[spoiler]Yeah, I'm afraid I'll need a 28 for that. Ironically, if it were an ongoing effect, you could have ID'd it.
You're also not entirely sure what it was, exactly.[/spoiler]
"I'm not sure if they actually saw you." Matsuko responds. "You were fairly far away. What did you do that ticked them off?"
The feathers are floating slowly down, all over the place. It looks like a veritable shower.
-
"I tried to possess one of them..."
"They looked right at me after I tried it. All of them."
[spoiler]Nothing on IDing the "crows"? I have at least a +5 check for all the Knowledges associated with creature types, with another +5 from Collector of Stories. So I should be able to ID most low hit die creatures easily...
Or are they really just crows?... I mean... I don't get it.[/spoiler]
-
"And then they flipped you the bird?"
-
"Pretty much... "
-
Paul shakes his head. "Zat is what you get for underestimating ze feathered ones."
-
Quietly to the side, after hearing the panic, Zane placed the rifle back into the sheathe on his back. Viewing from the scope on it hadn't helped him much. The crows were interesting, but worrisome. This place was far too unknown to the lot of them. "So, Matsuko, judging by your reaction, this isn't a known defense of the area? Hrm, next time, someone might try sending something expendable over to see if it or they are hostile.... hmmmm....." Zane, without much subtlety, starts eying the chef, specifically the feathers stuck to him.
"Or, I suppose we could all go investigate the house..." Zane, again without much subtlety, turns and heads slowly for the house, after Eren. He'd prefer a not out in the open, raised place to be.
-
Eren suddenly appreciates the value of not being easily seen, and drops to the ground.
-
"I tried to possess one of them..."
"They looked right at me after I tried it. All of them."
[spoiler]Nothing on IDing the "crows"? I have at least a +5 check for all the Knowledges associated with creature types, with another +5 from Collector of Stories. So I should be able to ID most low hit die creatures easily...
Or are they really just crows?... I mean... I don't get it.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]That'd be because there is one tiny little detail you don't know yet... You're fairly sure there is no race of exploding crows that you know of, which would seem to indicate something ELSE is at work. But you're not entirely sure.[/spoiler]
Can everybody give me a spot/listen check? Don't worry, if it were a surprise monster, I wouldn't have asked.
-
"Well... they seemed to know the invisible stalker was there, and tried to stay away from it, even when it was still quite far away from them. I was trying to just get close enough to... feel their souls. I knew something wasn't natural about the way they kept avoiding me. Ordinary birds wouldn't have known it... I... was there.
So I thought I'd hop into one, and fly it back down here for everyone to examine. When I did get close, I could detect a soul which wasn't unlike one you'd expect for a bird, but couldn't tell you much more about them.
They certainly seem dangerous, though. So I'm not sure if we should disturb them again... That stalker was a fairly powerful specimen of his kind... and they blew him to bits easily enough...
So yeah... maybe checking that house, or whatever it is, is a good idea. At least at first. We can come back to these if we can't find any other clues as to what the hell is going on here."
[spoiler]Spotting and Listening aren't exactly my forte. :P
1d20+1=13, 1d20+1=20 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501386/)[/spoiler]
-
Fistbeard
Listen: 1d20+12=19 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501389/)
Spot: 1d20+12=18 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501390/)
"Shhh, I'm trying to hear something," Fistbeard says. "Nothing in this place is getting past me. I have the eyes of an eagle, and the ears of a fox."
-
Spot, Listen (1d20+8=20, 1d20+6=10) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501398/)
As Paul looks around, he says, "It's quiet. TOO quiet."
-
[spoiler]Spot: 12
Listen: 14 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501432/)
Oh COME on! I've got a friggin +10 to each![/spoiler]
Apparently, Zane is not paying attention at the moment.
-
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]You hear what sounds like ruffling paper falling down from above. You deduce it comes from the feathers, as there is no paper flying about. Which begs the question of why do the feathers sound that way.[/spoiler]
@SDK
[spoiler]You notice the feathers aren't falling down exactly like you'd expect them to. They seem to behave more like sheets of paper in the wind than actual feathers.[/spoiler]
@Solo, Flay
[spoiler]You notice that the feathers are producing sound, which they aren't supposed to.[/spoiler]
-
"The feathers be sounding!"
-
Kyx goes and grabs one of the "feathers".
[spoiler]Will save to disbelieve? :D 1d20+7=25 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501516/)
[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]away from sheet/roller. Take 10.
ED: Spot 13, Listen 12[/spoiler]
Sabot looks back over his shoulder.
-
[spoiler]Listen, Spot:
1d20(4)+3=7
1d20(14)+5=19 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2501715/)[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]The Will Save actually worked.[/spoiler]
As it turns out, the feathers are actually made of paper.
-
Talon wonders just what could do such a thing...
[spoiler]Knowledge: Arcana and Spellcraft trying to determine what's going on.
1d20(3)+12=15
1d20(18)+14=32 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2502011/)[/spoiler]
-
@Venn
[spoiler]You're fairly sure the explosions were caused by the Explosive Runes spell, though you know enough the spell is triggered by reading them.[/spoiler]
-
"It seems to be the work of explosive runes, usually a spell, which means we are up against one or more spellcasters... and most definitely one with a deranged sense of humor."
[spoiler]This is the point at which that dispel magic invocation could prove useful. "Hey, there's a herd of animals! Let's check it out!" "No, wait. Remember the crows? *Dispel Magic* *explode* "See?"[/spoiler]
-
"That's very strange... Why did I sense a soul in the bird, then? Are they some kind of living constructs? And what else is an illusion here?"
-
"Is there a chance you could be wrong? Or potentially deceived?" Matsuko asks of Kyx.
-
Paul suggests "As a culinary artist, it is my belief zat any artist puts his soul into his art, non?"
-
"This is more of a pragmatical question, Paul. Whether the birds had a soul or not relates to what kind of opponent we're dealing with."
-
He speaks to her in a slightly consecnding manner, as if stating the obvious. "Ze kind that like birds, of course! A fowl-minded person like myself should be able to understand zere inner workings. Moi would use my chickens to check for ze danger and to confuse, while I set up for ze main attack."
-
"Did you just use "moi" and "I" in the same sentence?" Fistbeard asks, confused by his companion's linguistic anomalies.
-
"Regional Dialect." Paul answers quickly.
-
And if you put your soul into your food, aren't you at severe risk against transformed devils?
-
"Nonsense! Psions put zeir souls into sandwiches all ze time, and ze worst zat happens is zat a Fighter eats zem - very good 'brain food lunch' if I might add."
-
Suddenly dead-serious looking, Zane comments finally, "regardless of art, it's something we should be careful to avoid, if we have to set one or all of them off from long distance. Now, if there is nothing else to blow up, how about we catch up to Eren. Think on the crows on the way, if anyone thinks there is an answer to be found."
-
"He has a point. It's not as if there are any crows left to try and get answers from anyway." Matsuko shrugged.
-
"What do you suppose the crows were doing? Perhaps they were guarding something?"
-
"If they were, why were they so spread out like that? I really have no idea what they were meant to do. If they were acting as scouts, we'd have opposition on us by now."
-
"Let's move on. We can be cautious, but we need to make some progress here, and that house needs investigating."
-
"Agreed. Onto the house. I'll take point."
(Let me know what rolls are needed.)
-
(As of right now, none.)
On the inside, the house looks like the hall of an apartment building... the EMPTY hall of an apartment building. There seems to be a reception desk as well, with a computer on it.
-
Fistbeard decides to take 20 on a search check of the room with his +7 modifier.
-
Eren attempts to Aid Another with her +2 modifier. Can you take 20 on aid another?
-
Sabot investigates the roof, looking for access from above.
-
Inside, Zane thinks 'They were spread out, but volatile, and no opposition was raised. So, they were either guards, or an alarm system with an alternative means of counter... this is bad, I better get to the roof fast.' Walking through the house slowly, gun holster open, he follows Fistbeard through the rooms, noting the layout. One thing he's looking for is stairs up, or some indication of roof access.
-
Just looking for confirmation: you guys are checking the house's roof from the outside, correct?
Eren attempts to Aid Another with her +2 modifier. Can you take 20 on aid another?
I'm afraid not, you'll have to roll it.
-
[spoiler]I'm looking for roof access from the inside, Sabot is flying overhead. In order to keep ourselves together and useful though, I'm essentially just following the dwarf, so I suppose aid another for myself as well... Aid Another (Search): 17 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2503303/), so Fistbeard gets another +2.[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]1d20+2=4 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2503304/)
:mad[/spoiler]
-
Sabot closely investigates the rooftop for anything of interest
[spoiler]Taking 20 on search for a 24. Theoretically he should have arrived ten minutes or so ahead of everyone else, but I imagine initial recon could take up that time[/spoiler]
-
There appears to be nothing of particular note in the reception note, except for the computer.
Nor on the rooftop, for that matter. With no computer.
-
Talon activates his Magic-detecting eyes. They fizzle on, and his eyes take on a yellow hue. He then spends a few moments checking the reception area, then moves procedurally through the house.
[spoiler]Detect magic, scanning each room he comes to.
Search: 1d20(14)+3=17
Spot: 1d20(2)+5=7 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2503449/)
[/spoiler]
-
"He has a point. It's not as if there are any crows left to try and get answers from anyway." Matsuko shrugged.
"Well... we do have this paper, which is what's left of them. We might be able to investigate it magically later. I don't have the proper spells to do so, though, nor the ability to call anything that might until tomorrow.
I... don't know how someone would fool my senses when it comes to souls, except for blocking it via things like lead." He turns his empty helm towards Matsuko as he says the last.
-
All clear up on the roof. Looks like there aren't any entrances or exits up here. I'll be doing recon from up here to keep an eye out for incoming enemies.
Sabot takes to the air again, circling and keeping an eye out.
@kuro
[spoiler]Activate Shadow Mask and Protection from Law SLAs.
Take 20 on spot/listen for 22/23.[/spoiler]
-
@TML
[spoiler]Remind me what those two do. I think I know what Prot Law does, but just making sure. :D[/spoiler]
@Venn
[spoiler]No clue flaring up on the magical spectrometer.[/spoiler]
"Paper, huh? Not much of a clue... But it's one nonetheless. I'm going to put in a search parameter for known outlaws using that kind of thing... but between the fact Explosive Runes is fairly commonplace and the delay in comm it will be a while." Matsuko responds.
"Roger that, Sabot. Come back in, we don't want to be separated in case you get attacked."
She turns to the others, "Might as well check the computers while we're here, too."
-
@Kuro
[spoiler]
Prot law: as prot evil but against law.
Shadow mask: 10 min/ level, personal, +4 bonus against light/darkness spells, or any spell that creates bright lights, like pyrotechnics, 50% chance to avoid gaze attacks. Also, I have a cool black mask on.[/spoiler]
-
"Gotcha."
Talon comes back to the main lobby, and begins rooting around in the computer for clues.
[spoiler]UMD to interface with the computer system:
1d20(17)+14=31 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2503668/)[/spoiler]
-
Paul finds a computer and loads up a screen. ACCESS DENIED. ENTER PASSWORD.
He enters "Chicken" as the password. Then "Poultry". Then "Fowl". And goes down the list of all the important words he knows.
Edit: A roll:
[spoiler]Profession (Cook) to interact with Farm Computer. (1d20+14=24) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2504173/)[/spoiler]
-
Talon got there first.
According to the logs Talon pulled, it seems there's been practically no change in traffic (insofar as the traffic hasn't changed; that is, the people living here appear to be working normally) in the past week, let alone the past four days. He DOES discover something interesting though - apparently, someone made it into the building but has yet to leave.
-
Where? Just don't say Detention Block AA23.
-
"Wait... so the... computer... log shows that everyone is still here and working normally? Isn't that strange? Has someone tampered with its perception systems?"
-
Paul turns to Matsuko, "Is zere a coterminous plane?"
-
[spoiler]
"Wait... so the... computer... log shows that everyone is still here and working normally? Isn't that strange? Has someone tampered with its perception systems?"
Do the logs have to be entered manually?[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]"Wait... so the... computer... log shows that everyone is still here and working normally? Isn't that strange? Has someone tampered with its perception systems?"
Do the logs have to be entered manually?[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Only in the front reception, as traffic is minor and entry is restricted only from that point onward anyway. In this building, everyone is recorded upon entrance/exit automatically.[/spoiler]
Where? Just don't say Detention Block AA23.
I'd have probably used Cell 666 if that were the case, but it ain't. You can ask the computer to pinpoint the individual's location.
-
"Does the computer say we're here?"
-
[spoiler]Is this going to take more UMD checks? If so, here's UMD: 1d20(3)+14=17 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2504402/)
Or alternatively, Knowledge: Arcana due to already being in the computer network, and to just root around for clues: 1d20(7)+12=19 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2504405/)[/spoiler]
-
You didn't need those checks, actually.
And yes, it does show your presences. Including Kyx.
-
Looking over their shoulder for a moment, and confirming the fact that they're all accounted for in the records, "So, can it find the others that supposedly are here? Otherwise, searching this whole place could take quite a while..." The question might have sounded impatient, but interestingly it wasn't; Zane wasn't good with modern magitek, only with older magic studies and inherent magical qualities. He had no experience with anything younger than twenty years old, and even those were a bit battered, dusty, and jury rigged.
-
"None of the workers are accounted for here at present. The only one that seems to be noted is... at the administrator's office."
-
"Then perhaps we should go there?"
-
Moving quickly behind the metal suit of armor, Zane brushes back the poncho and readies his hand near his holster. He didn't particularly have any fear of bursting into a room, but having a suit of armor you can shoot around made life a lot better. He nods towards the group, as if he's ready to go.
-
"Hmm, seems we ought to check it out, at least."
Assuming there is nothing more he can tell from the computer terminal, Talon readies himself to move on to the administrator's office.
[spoiler]Also, just as a reminder in case it isn't already obvious, but Talon also has See the Unseen active, just in case there are any... invisible things. You know. Things that are... unseen. :)[/spoiler]
-
"We'd have to go there in any case. Any particular way you all want to go about this?" Matsuko offered with a shrug.
@Venn
[spoiler]Duly noted.[/spoiler]
-
Are there any exterior entrances or exits? I would very much dislike it for an intruder to escape through the window.
-
"No. The drawback to the 'bigger on the inside than the outside' is that the windows are mostly for show."
-
"What can that thing tell us about this person? Is he or she a worker here? Is there a name and job position listed?
And can it tell us anything about this building? Especially what security measures we might run into as we mill around in here... Are there any scrying devices in place so we can see where we're going?"
-
"Whatever happened to kicking down the door and charging right into the fray?"
-
"If that's your usual mode of operation, I have just one question: How are you still alive?"
[spoiler]
Says the crazy kobold/dragon who thinks trap-riddled warrens and dragon lairs are normal.[/spoiler]
-
"If that's your usual mode of operation, I have just one question: How are you still alive?"
[spoiler]
Says the crazy kobold/dragon who thinks trap-riddled warrens and dragon lairs are normal.[/spoiler]
"An unnaturally high constitution and lots of luck?" Matsuko guesses.
"Unfortunately, the computer can't tell us much. The only thing we can make sure of is that whoever's inside is not a worker. It's not the chief of administration either, as the name is different. The only scrying devices around are in the hallways to protect the privacy of the workers, but the upside is that since the computer assumes everything is normal, the security system is inactive... not that the one actually in place is supposed to do much."
-
"What is his name? ...and what's the security system supposed to do?"
-
"Maybe ze person is from ze first team, non?" Paul suggests. "Perhaps we ought to check it out ourselves. Did anyone take a Dispel Bomb with zem? Best we not go in unprepared."
-
"I have Dispel Magic, if that's what you mean. I also have several shrunken boulders and enough lava to fill most of this room. I've found that copious amounts of boulders and lava can come in handy for all kinds of unforeseen needs...
Say... those chickens of yours might make a decent delivery system for that lava..."
[spoiler]Speaking of which... Can I find a random chicken on the Chef somewhere and possess it momentarily? This is just in case my body/suit gets destroyed. I automatically repossess the last creature I was possessing if my current body gets destroyed. And well... the last one I was possessing was destroyed... so that won't work.[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]Pulling out object. (1d100=25) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2508451/)[/spoiler]
"Use ze chickens as a delivery system? What a nice idea." he says, pulling out a chicken. "So Catherine here will deliver ze lava?"
[spoiler]You may try to possess the Chicken. I'll give it a Base Will of +0 and a Wis of 12.
Chickens Will save: Will save. (1d20+1=21) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2508455/)
Natural 20. The chickens overwhelming mental essence overwhelms your attempt!
Also, you cannot determine the exact number of chickens Paul possesses.[/spoiler]
-
Can you set up some of your chickens as lookouts? Given the lack of other entrances, we really only need to cover the front doors.
-
[spoiler]lol, wtf is up with the indomitable fowl of this realm? :lmao[/spoiler]Kyx says nothing for a moment, then clears his "throat" and says "Catherine? Oh, sure. Here, let me strap these little patches to her..."
[spoiler]I guess I'll stick four "squares" of lava on her, which when expanded are basically cubes of lava 4.6 feet on a side (and so take up a square each, including vertically). So when they expand, we'll say they fill four "squares" with lava, centered on the corner of a square that the chicken is in. IIRC being immersed in lava does 20d6 damage, and I'd say having the square you're standing in suddenly fill up with it to the top should count. Of course... a Reflex save would be fair. Sound good?
I guess they'd expand some after that, but I don't know how many squares that would wind up covering, nor how much damage it would do since that would no longer be "total immersion".[/spoiler]
-
"Unfortunately zey chickens be very shy and not eager to talk. Include zem in a mindlink perhaps and you will know if zey get frightened or if zey become someone's dinner." Paul suggested.
-
[spoiler]When we enter the Wish economy, I am so using Awaken on some of my chickens, and they can be the bosses for my chicken army.
Edit: Meant to post this in the OOC thread. Oh well.[/spoiler]
-
"What is his name? ...and what's the security system supposed to do?"
"Rudolph Abakana, or something to that effect. And not much, actually - mostly it'd lock the entrances and exits with walls of force. Since there are no windows, any would-be perpetrator would be trapped. Since anyone with actual ways around it would be someone with an S-class license anyway, it'd be fairly efficient." Matsuko responds. "Might I suggest that you withhold the chicken-bomb until we can make sure that whoever's in there is actually hostile?"
-
"Hey don't worry! I won't dump lava on anyone unless we're sure we want to kill them. It doesn't hurt to be prepared though, right? And who is going to expect a chicken that explodes into a giant puddle of molten lava?"
-
"Exactly! A traditional chicken would explode into ze fireball, non?"
-
"Just... make sure we're not in the blast radius." Matsuko tentatively warns.
-
"You don't think whoever's here is used to exploding birds?"
(http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a267/moskalel/sarcasm_detector.jpg)
-
"I get the distinct feeling whoever's in there is not responsible for the birds."
-
"Shall we go find out who ze person is?"
-
[spoiler]This game is actually sillier than my Silly Campaign with bhu, oddly enough...[/spoiler]
While the others make chicken bombs, Zane was busy trying to find the best way to the person involved. As if to answer the chef's question, at that moment one might notice the quiet, sane member of the party (the cowboy, not the chicken... that's the OTHER quiet, sane member) walking very determinedly down the hallway, fitting a crystal into a chamber underneath the hammer of his folding pistol. Snapping the secret chamber back down to the barrel, and spinning it a few expert times on his finger, Zane proceeds down the hallway, pistol at the ready, alert but taking initiative.
[spoiler]
Fits the least Crystal of Electricity Assault into his drawn revolver, and proceeds down towards the target... I assume he'd be able to see a route or something on the computer... otherwise he's just going down a hallway.[/spoiler]
-
@Flay
[spoiler]Correct. The administration office is on ground level after all.[/spoiler]
-
"Well, let's go check it out."
Talon leaves the computer and heads in the direction of the administration office with the others.
-
Temporarily distracted from his work on Poultry Incendiary Guidance Systems, he follows the pair to wherever this Rudolph guy was hiding out.
-
Sabot catches up with them.
-
The door seems to be... locked. No, locked is not the proper term. More like barricaded. Something is keeping the door from opening altogether.
-
Can the door be opened even a crack? Is there a keyhole?
-
There is a card key slot, and the door isn't locked, but it's jammed pretty heavily.
-
Paul steps forward and knocks twice. "Room Service!"
-
So, it opens inward, and is likely blocked from the inside...
"Looks like we may need to knock this door in..."
-
Or I could just open it from the other side.
-
[spoiler]Can Kyx sense the soul of the guy on the other side? I could try possessing him and opening it from the other side. :smirk[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]Can Kyx sense the soul of the guy on the other side? I could try possessing him and opening it from the other side. :smirk[/spoiler]
[spoiler]But what if he's a bird?[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]Eren might be able to change her shape to pass through a gap.[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]Can Kyx sense the soul of the guy on the other side? I could try possessing him and opening it from the other side. :smirk[/spoiler]
[spoiler]But what if he's a bird?[/spoiler]
[spoiler] :lmao :lmao :lmao[/spoiler]
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]Seems the door is lead-sheeted too. Mind, it actually makes sense, as otherwise spying on the admnistrator could be incredibly simple, and that's poor management.[/spoiler]
@Prime
[spoiler]That she might. She may need to change into a very small form, though, or at least open a larger gap before she slips in.[/spoiler]
-
@Prime
[spoiler]That she might. She may need to change into a very small form, though, or at least open a larger gap before she slips in.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]She can take the shape of Fine animals and humanoids, and can further modify them with Mimic Shape.[/spoiler]
"Or if you can open a gap, I can slip thr- UCK!"
Eren suddenly coughs up a live chicken.
-
"...Paul? Tell me that's not fucking contagious." Matsuko sighed.
-
"Ze chickens are picky when it comes to people. I put a couple in Eren's chest, but it seems zey did not like it zere for some reason. And if zey will not even stay in a Eren's huge and magnificent chest, zen you have nothing to fear." Paul answers.
-
Sabot picks up the chicks.
-
"Paul, I've seen people get shot for saying kinder to women." Considering the door for a moment, he thinks to himself, and answers Eren with "I might be able to blow a bigger hole in it, if need be, but no way of knowing if I'd shoot the guy or not. Still, if nothing else, it's an option. Is my gun the best way of taking the door down? I could also try aligning my shots with the hinges, see if we can't lift the door off it's frame and tip it open."
-
"Ze chickens are picky when it comes to people. I put a couple in Eren's chest, but it seems zey did not like it zere for some reason. And if zey will not even stay in a Eren's huge and magnificent chest, zen you have nothing to fear." Paul answers.
"You did what?" :twitch A handle appears on Eren's side. She pulls on it and her abdomen opens up, Bender-style, to release a small torrent of chickens. "And thank you." :) she says as she closes it. ~jiggle
-
Sabot continues to pick up all the chicks.
If I teleport across, I can transport two others as well. That should be sufficient to allow the barricade to be undone from the other side without excessive risk.
[spoiler]Alternatively, I just iron heart surge away the door.[/spoiler]
-
"Well, the teleportation option seems to be best. You never know what you'll encounter on the other side, though, so stay on your toes. Who will you be bringing with you?"
-
Eren raises a hand. "Me!"
-
"I could always go in, though close combat isn't really my forte..."
-
"I'm good at that stuff," Fistbeard points out.
-
Mister Fistbeard seems like the member most experienced in destroying tables, chairs, barstools, et cetera. As such, he seems most equipped to dismantle a hastily assembled barricade. The Bodiless Gentleman might be transportable without displacing anyone else, and could subdue our paranoid friend while allowing him to tell us what caused him to wall himself in. Madam Eren should be able to enter easily once Fistbeard creates a gap, so she would not be my first choice for this, though I would indeed choose her first in several different contexts.
He turns and looks over the unmentioned members.
The question remains which of you would be best in there first, and which should protect us from an attack from the rear. I don't trust the emptiness of this building.
-
Without hesitation, Zane responds, "I'll cover our backs. These hallways make the best use of my abilities; I'd be useless in a small room. At least if they have to cross the hallways to get to me, you'll hear about it fast."
He adds, shortly and proudly, "And damned if I don't get a shot of on one of them! If anyone else doesn't feel the need to enter right away, I'd love a barricade for backup, though really I don't see it being totally necessary."
-
"One of you may go first." Paul says, sticking to the Oath of Chickens."I will bless the one who goes with a bit of luck and the power to change their fate one time."
[spoiler]Casting Benediction on whoever goes in. 70 minutes.
Benediction: Subject gains a +2 luck bonus on saves, can reroll one attack roll, save, skill check, or ability check (doing so ends the spell).[/spoiler]
-
"Chime in over the comm if you need help. I can make sure the door isn't a problem if needs be."
-
"I think Sabot's reasoning is sound. Who wants to volunteer to let me temporarily inhabit them?"
-
"I'm not even sure this suit would allow you to inhabit it. Honestly, I don't know entirely how it works, myself."
-
"Interesting. So you must be someone else's experiment."
-
"No, not an experiment. I am an agent of the being Bahamut, tasked with fighting evil. This suit protects me from many dangers, though I don't know the extent of its abilities."
-
"I don't know why, but I keep getting the feeling we're forgetting something." Matsuko seems to be thinking hard.
-
"What, like doing what we came here to do? We really ought to get on with that."
-
"Ze team zat was here before, we should try to contact zem, non?"
-
"It's probably not that important. Never mind."
[spoiler]Whoever guesses it correctly gains extra XP. I'll give you a hint: it's not directly related to the game... at first glance, at least.[/spoiler]
-
"Did we perhaps leave a door open?"
-
So, go through the door via teleport?
-
Yeah, I'm kinda pondering what's keeping you people.
-
Who's the third going to be?
-
"Well, let's see if it blocks possession." Kyx says.
[spoiler]He tries to possess Talon, Will DC 19 if you want to resist.[/spoiler]
-
Talon's threat detection systems kick online. He and Kyx hear the suit say, "Warning! Foreign presence detected! Initiating Anti-Usurpation Sequences..."
[spoiler]Will Save: 1d20(17)+10=27 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2516184/)
I'm partly doing it to maintain character, and partly because Talon's not really a melee guy and might not be your best bet anyway. :)
I suppose you could always just keep trying. :P[/spoiler]
-
I suppose you could always just keep trying. :P[/spoiler]
I'm not sure I could, actually. The Magic Jar spell says:
[spoiler]Failure to take over the host leaves your life force in the magic jar, and the target automatically succeeds on further saving throws if you attempt to possess its body again.
[/spoiler]"Well... I guess that answers that question. It certainly seems like an advanced unit.
I could always just go in with this suit on. I'd like to have someone else as a fallback, in case it gets destroyed, though. So mind if I possess you temporarily, Sabot? Then if my suit gets destroyed, I will automatically go back into you, instead of... well..."
-
You could try, but I'm not entirely certain how likely it is that you'll succeed.
-
"Well... if you don't resist it would certainly make it easier..."
-
Not getting a reply, Kyx decides to just try possessing Sabot and see what happens.
[spoiler]It's time to take Leadership or something... Or retcon trading out the familiar, if you're ok with that Kuro.[/spoiler]
-
Sabot doesn't resist, but
[spoiler]nothing happens.[/spoiler]
Screw it, let's do this. Leeeroy jeeenkins!
Sabot fires off his dimension door, bringing the agreed upon two others.
-
Not getting a reply, Kyx decides to just try possessing Sabot and see what happens.
[spoiler]It's time to take Leadership or something... Or retcon trading out the familiar, if you're ok with that Kuro.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]What'd you trade it out for? I wouldn't mind, as long as it happened after you're finished with Douglas Farm. Have you considered using Planar Binding again or something? [/spoiler]
-
Sabot doesn't resist, but
[spoiler]nothing happens.[/spoiler]
Screw it, let's do this. Leeeroy jeeenkins!
Sabot fires off his dimension door, bringing the agreed upon two others.
[spoiler]You can bring Kyx too, if you weren't including him.
And how is Sabot immune to Magic Jar, if you don't mind me asking? Is he a half-raven? :P[/spoiler]
-
And once inside...
[spoiler]There's a huge rock and it's staring at you!
Kidding.
The place looks like a major mess. Mostly from the hastily assembled barricade. Inside, you see what looks like a blue-skinned orc and a man in a scientist labcoat over a suit. This guy is balding, and he seems to have a vicious-looking wound on his right arm. They're both unconscious, though the orc is leaning against the wall while the balding man is face-first on the floor.[/spoiler]
-
Talon asks the Away Team, "So... what do you guys see in there? What's going on?"
-
"The fact that I don't hear screaming is both a disappointment and a relief. Who set up the damn barricade, and how long to get it down?" He is rather relaxed sounding, probably a nice aspect from having been a paladin soldier. He's just looking down the hallway calmly, hand next to his pistol, keeping one ear open for his surroundings.
[spoiler]Eh, listen check, for the hell of it: 12
Meeeh![/spoiler]
-
Two guys here, some sort of blue orc and a scientist with an injury. We'll start taking down the barricade before we revive them; would be best to make sure we aren't helping an enemy up.
-
(What check is it to break down the barricade?)
-
(What check is it to break down the barricade?)
[spoiler]Eren can have up to 30 Str if necessary.[/spoiler]
-
(What check is it to break down the barricade?)
It's a STR check.
-
"Hey Ehren, shall we get this thing down?"
Since Ehren has higher STR, Fistbeard will just assist. (If we can take 10, we won't even have to roll for this one)
-
With enough people and enough strength, it's not that difficult to move the barricade out of the way. Apparently, whoever had the idea of setting this up meant to hold back considerably weaker opponents than seasoned adventurers.
-
"Well," says Eren, as she enters with a grin, "are we going to interrogate these gentlemen?"
Eren extends her hand and a fleshy mass starts to grow out from it, changing colour and shape until it becomes a pair of chairs.
"Sit them down, if they get violent I'll restrain them." She winks.
[spoiler]Dismissing Alternate Form, using Mimic Shape and hat of disguise to keep one part of Eren's body in humanoid appearance.[/spoiler]
-
They look too unconscious to interrogate.
-
Sabot stares at them for a couple of moments.
[spoiler]Using my at-will charm person SLA on both of them until they both fail the save - they're KOed, so it shouldn't be an issue.
Take 10 for a 16 on knowledge(local) to see if these humanoid dudes have any particularly relevant abilities.[/spoiler]
-
"Stand back, I know CPR!"
Heal: 1d20+7=27 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2532471/)
-
"Stand back, I know CPR!"
Heal: 1d20+7=27 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2532471/)
The orc looks like he's just out of it - a little nudging about wakes him up surely enough.
The guy in the lab coat though... Well, apparently he'd already lost a lot of blood before that wound on his arm did him in.
-
DM:
[spoiler]If the DM will allow, Fistbeard will be fortunately in possession of type O negative blood and be a universal donor .[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]
DM:
[spoiler]If the DM will allow, Fistbeard will be fortunately in possession of type O negative blood and be a universal donor .[/spoiler]
Sounds like he's dead, and no amount of blood transfer is gonna save him. I could be wrong, but "did him in" usually means he's done-for.[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]If he's dead, can anyone animate him or cast speak with dead?[/spoiler]
-
YOU AND YOUR CAREFUL READING OF POSTS!!!
-
He sure LOOKS dead. To Fistbeard, at least. And with a roll that good, he probably knows it for a fact. The orc though, he'll wake up with a nudge or two.
Ah yes, I forgot to mention the orc is a dragonborn.
-
"Hey, you coming around ok?" Fistbeard asks, handing him a flask of whiskey.
-
As soon as the door is open, Zane takes a half-step deeper into the room, staying over the threshold with an eye on the hallway he'd been watching. He didn't have any special talent in bringing back the dead or interrogating, so he figured he'd stand guard for a while, keeping his eyes and ears on the hallway. "Um, not to pick apart your tactics, but where I come from, we give guys alcohol to make them less coherent and conscious..." he states, seeing Fistbeard's offering.
-
"Then people where you come from should learn to take their alcohol like a dwarf!"
-
If a suit of armor could sneer, you're sure Kyx's "suit" would be sneering, as he says "You mean rectally?"
-
Ghiktibur wakes up, hurting all over his scaly body. It takes some seconds to realize he's surrounded by some people.
Looking into every one in the room, he says: ".... Who are you guys? Do you have any idea what's going on?"
-
"Nope. We were hoping that was something you might be able to fill us in on. Also, who you are would be nice to know." The cowboy speaks from the doorway, never turning his face back, a smirk from Kyx's comment still fresh on his lips.
-
Ghiktibur put his hand on his face, making an effort to remember.
"I.... was here with a group to investigate what is going on.... until I met him and we came here. He points to the admin. "That's all I remember..."
After some seconds, he realizes what's going on.
"You guys were sent here to investigate as well?"
-
The smirk widens to an almost manic grin. "We are a team thrown together at the last minute, sent to determine what happened to the first team sent to investigate the matter.
Don't worry, the irony isn't lost on us." All the while, Zane keeps a very good eye on the hallways, and his ears open.
[spoiler]
Listen: 25
Spot: 23 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2533760/)[/spoiler]
-
"So.... did you guys find anything to help solve this puzzle? And did you see the other members of the group I was in?"
Ghiktibur stands and keep speaking: "I could help in the search, if you wanted..."
-
"There's a dead man next to you, if that's what you mean by 'others in your group', I guess... but other than you two, no."
-
So, why exactly did you barricade yourselves in?
-
So, why exactly did you barricade yourselves in?
"Hrrr.... I... don' remember. I really don't remember... maybe I hit my head?" Ghiktibur starts looking for some wound on his head.
-
So, why exactly did you barricade yourselves in?
"Hrrr.... I... don' remember. I really don't remember... maybe I hit my head?" Ghiktibur starts looking for some wound on his head.
The woman standing by the side of the chair Ghik was sitting on leans closer.
"This smells fishy. Where were you on the night of the 25th?"
-
Having taken a while examining the dead body while the others were making jokes about dwarven suppositories, Matsuko offers, "The dead man in question is the director of this facility. He's not a member of the previous team." She continues to examine him for signs of any other wounds.
"Amnesia aside, the dragonborn's story mostly checks out. There WAS someone like him in the team."
-
"Ok... so even if he did come on the other team... why is he standing over the dead body of the director? And why does he have "amnesia"? We don't know if he killed the director, found him already dead, or got knocked out while defending him...
You have to admit that this looks pretty suspicious, right?"
-
"Is that a trick question?"
-
"I think in your case, the answer is yes."
-
"Then let me answer your question with a question: How did he get knocked out if he killed the only other person in the room?"
-
"That... is a good question. And given that Matsuko recognizes him as being on the other team, even if he did kill him, he was probably mind-controlled or possessed. That could explain his amnesia..."
-
"I'm not sure your mind control theory holds." Matsuko advises. "His arm seems to be the only place in his entire body that has been wounded... and it's festering. Even assuming our dragonborn friend hasn't brushed his teeth in months, it looks like the director died of some sort of infection, and not blood loss. Which means something or someone else bit him."
-
"Infection fever might have damaged the brain enough to trigger amnesia," Fistbeard suggests.
-
"An infection? Who dies from that? I mean yeah... back when I was a hatchling, peasants died from infections, but today? And why would he sit in here till he died, rather than getting it treated?
Unless it's some kind of especially potent magical infection... which sounds bad...
And an amnesia-causing infection sounds even worse..."
[spoiler]Taking 10 would give me Knowledge: Arcana 21, Religion 23, and Planes 19, to see if Kyx knows of some kind of magical infection that might act like this. [/spoiler]
-
Paul nods approvingly at the Orc. "C'est manufique! What nice wings you have! ...Pity zey have no feathers, non?"
Listening to Kyx's theories, he says, "Maybe ze cause is something he ate? I will have ze look-see."
[spoiler]Profession(cook) to identify ingested poison. (1d20+14=17) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2534360/)
With that roll, probably not.[/spoiler]
-
"Hmm, can anyone tell how long the Director's been dead? I'm no doctor, but I'd think he'd be a lot worse off if it had been before or around the same time as the last team's arrival. Figuring that out might give us an idea of how long our friend here's had his amnesia, and when this place was attacked."
-
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]It occurs to you that the zombiefication process begins with an infection. :D [/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]Missed the part about the injury. Infection makes more sense now.[/spoiler]
"I am afraid I am not familiar with ze infected people. I know more about ze infested people."
-
"I say we head back to the entrance and throw him through the antimagic screen. I want to know why the security systems spotted us coming in but not smurf here."
-
"What are you smoking? He was the whole reason we checked this room, remember?" Matsuko points out.
[spoiler]The security system at the entrance did point out that he was in here.[/spoiler]
-
"What are you smoking? He was the whole reason we checked this room, remember?" Matsuko points out.
[spoiler]The security system at the entrance did point out that he was in here.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]I thought you said only the director was in there. ???[/spoiler]
-
"What are you smoking? He was the whole reason we checked this room, remember?" Matsuko points out.
[spoiler]The security system at the entrance did point out that he was in here.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]I thought you said only the director was in there. ???[/spoiler]
[spoiler]It said someone was in the director's office, IIRC, and that it wasn't the director. The director, being a corpse, wouldn't be logged as a person, I guess. :P[/spoiler]
-
"Zere is no reason to stay here, non? We should continue our search. Zere may be more survivors in ze other buildings." says the guy who looks like crab, (but) talks like people.
-
After remaining uncharacteristically quiet for a few moments, Kyx says "You know... I think some forms of zombism can be spread through bites and infection..."
-
"Should I take a sample for analysis?"
-
Can you tell us the last thing you remember, and try to work backwards?
-
After remaining uncharacteristically quiet for a few moments, Kyx says "You know... I think some forms of zombism can be spread through bites and infection..."
"Great. Zombies? Those're the last things we need right now. Is there any way to tell right now if this is, for sure, a zombie bite? Because if it is we're gonna need to destroy this guy right now, before he gets up again. I can roast him, if it'll help."
-
"Hmm... I'm not sure. I'd guess the disease causing zombification would be supernatural in origin. So maybe..."
Kyx casts Detect Magic, catching both the corpse and dragonborn half-orc in the cone.
-
The Dragonborn is registering magic auras, though it will take you two more rounds to be able to identify them... and so is the director.
And then the director's body vanishes.
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]You see the faint outline of the body stirring and standing up.[/spoiler]
-
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]You see the faint outline of the body stirring and standing up.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Eren's senses can detect ethereal, invisible and incorporeal creatures as if they lacked those traits. (http://dungeons.wikia.com/wiki/Ghost_Hunter_%283.5e_Feat%29) She also has blindsense, if it matters. Does she notice anything?[/spoiler]
-
Zane, seeing the body vanish out of the corner of his eye, does something barely perceivable with his revolver, which is now in his hand, and cocked, and pointing roughly where the body was. "Can anyone sense if it's invisible or gone? If so, point it out to me." Zane's revolver stands steady at the spot the director had been, with Zane's character not becoming frantic or angry but somewhat colder. While his eyes check both ways down the hallway for the third time, his mind thought of how bad it would be if the hallways had invisible units as well.
-
Initiative, kiddos! And moving to a different thread.
-
...
-
Did the DFA still have our sight-granting stuff up?
-
Did the DFA still have our sight-granting stuff up?
[/quote
See the Unseen only affects me, not the whole group. You guys have Endure Elements and immunity to my breath weapon. Though, for what it's worth, Talon should be able to see the thing.
-
(encounter ends)
"Well, that was easy." Eren says, dropping the ghast and shaking off any blood. "But does this mean there are more of these things here?"
-
"I would guess that's a yes. It's also probably why this guy was barricaded in here..."
-
"Think the orc will turn next?"
-
"Maybe... does he have any bite marks on him?" Kyx walks over to the draconic orc and begins looking him over.
[spoiler]Does Kyx know what the disease is, and how long the incubation period might be for it? And do people have to die from the disease to be reanimated by it? If so, how long does that take? (I guess this would be a function of their Con and saving throws, though... ) And what are the symptoms?
Also, Knowledge: Religion to identify what flavor of undead the director turned into, since Kyx got to actually see him. Taking 10 gives him a 23.[/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]The director had turned into a fairly common ghast. You might be reminded of the fact that ghasts are intelligent, unlike zombies, and therefore not necessarily immediately hostile - you might have been able to get some information out of him had you all not jumped the gun and explodified his carcass. :D
Kyx is fairly sure this is a variant strain of a process that creates zombie-like creatures (usually not ghasts though). From what information he does have available, he would guess the incubation period is actually fairly long - possibly a day or so. It's not possible to determine post-transformation whether it was the process itself or the bite that killed the director (he looked somewhat old, mind, and there's a good chance the infection weakened his system too), but he does know that whatever the case, he was reanimated post-mortem, which could mean that even a still-living victim could go undead. Neither Ghik or the recently re-deceased would be able to turn up clues about any clues at this point, however (Ghik doesn't remember, and the corpse had already transformed).[/spoiler]
@Solo
[spoiler]The draconic orc seems to be in fairly good health for someone who likely spent perhaps a day unconscious in this room, and you didn't spot any bite marks on him.[/spoiler]
-
After examining the orc for a moment, Fistbeard declares that
"You, sir, have a clean bill of health as far as I can tell, Mr...?"
-
"Great, so now we're back to square-one."
Talon looks around the room, and also looks over the director for anything out of the ordinary.
[spoiler]Search: 1d20+3=16
Spot: 1d20+5=19 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2537525/)[/spoiler]
-
Zane finds his head in his hands. It wasn't as though he tried to tell them to restrain it, not kill it, but bullets to that plan. He just continues to keep watch outside the door.
-
So, any idea why the director turned into an invisible monster of loathsome scent? It seems a little odd.
-
So, any idea why the director turned into an invisible monster of loathsome scent? It seems a little odd.
"I have no idea.... and this might have something to do with the whole situation within this facility.... is there any places you guys didn't go yet?"
-
"Plenty. Our initial priorities were to find the director and try to find out what was going on." Matsuko pointed out.
"Kyx, you seem to be a bit more familiar with that process. Ever seen anything like it?"
-
"Yeah, I've seen something like it. Usually it produces zombies, not ghasts, though. And I've certainly never heard of one that produces invisible ghasts. That's just weird. With the invisible part thrown in, this place could be crawling with them and we'd never even know unless we got close to them. This would certainly be a nasty thing to let escape from this demiplane, also.
Just try not to get bitten. Normally clerics can cure this if they catch it early, and by the looks of it I'd say this probably has at least a 1 day incubation time, but with the oddities associated with this variety, I wouldn't bet on anything for sure.
Do you have any kind of supernatural healing, Ghik? I have no way of detecting diseases directly. If you've been bitten and then your wound has healed over, you could be infected and not even know it. I guess we could try seeing if you have a magical aura that hints at it, since it is a supernatural strain, but that wouldn't tell us for certain..."
-
"Maybe we should stick him in sunlight and see if he sparkles?"
-
"I'm sorry... is that a joke? I think I missed something."
[spoiler]
Neither I nor Kyx have seen any of the Twilight movies. :P[/spoiler]
-
Matsuko comically bonks Fistbeard's head. "Undead do not sparkle in sunlight. Normally, they explode." She adds. "Although... some vampires can walk under it."
Spot check to see if she blushed!
"At any rate. This means we should be considerably more careful from now on. It also means our priorities have changed." Matsuko announces. "Priority one is to find any survivors of this infection. If it seems like we have a greater problem in our hands... then we'll have to leave this place and come back with reinforcements. I am issuing a Level 3 Lockdown Request on Douglas Farm effective immediately. All forms of inbound and outgoing teleportation are off, and the Farm itself now has a secondary layer preventing anyone from going in or out. We can request extraction, but it will have to go through the system first... which means it could be a while. We simply CANNOT allow this infection to spread."
She sighs. "Any questions?"
-
As Fistbeard is not being threatened, he shall take 10 on the spot check for a result of 20 and notice that she blushes.
He will also raise his hand.
"What about voodoo?"
-
"I think it was pretty clear that the director was infected by the bite, so we can discard that." Matsuko replied deadpan.
-
"Is there a way of asking the computer to look up anything aside from locations of personel? Does it have simple cameras, or motion sensors in its system? We need to know a bit more about the locations of these things. So far, we have a SINGLE invisible ghast, which is frightening, a score of exploding crows, which is more frightening, and no idea where any of these things originated from. We need to find our next target. And this time, hopefully not kill it off the bat." This last bit sounds a bit irritated, and unsurpressed. With eyes scanning the hallways to either side, he hopes to notice at least a shimmer of an invisible creature. "Unless, Matsuko, there's a more specific idea we've neglected to attend to, but honestly, I'd be less inclined to think that all of them were killed by the equally butchered first team, save for a single one, and thus are no longer on this plane. We need to find a way to find our invisible army that, insofar as we've come, haven't bothered us. Is there a deeper underground to this facility?"
-
"Hmm... if only there was some way to upload my suit's Invisibility-negating vision protocols to the compound's camera systems... Regardless, the undead can not turn me, and I can see them. I think that puts me in a good position for searching for survivors, if anyone else is worrying about getting bit. Either way, while traveling I feel I should take one of the point positions, in case of attack. There's a good chance they won't know their bite can't affect me."
-
I can create faerie fire as often as necessary. The range is long enough for a cursory sweep, at least
[spoiler]If I cast faerie fire and there's something invisible between me and where I target it, what happens?[/spoiler]
-
I can create faerie fire as often as necessary. The range is long enough for a cursory sweep, at least
[spoiler]If I cast faerie fire and there's something invisible between me and where I target it, what happens?[/spoiler]
[spoiler]That depends on whether it should travel to its intended location or not. Is it a target or area spell?[/spoiler]
"For all we know the remaining members are in hiding. It seems the most likely, even if Ghik managed to escape with the director apparently by himself." Matsuko pondered. "Let's not forget that the ghasts are intelligent and could very well possess knowledge pre-turning. Therefore, they could use the cameras just the same. If anyone from the other team possessed knowledge of their breed, this would have come up. It's unlikely we'll find them with a camera sweep."
-
"I suggest we check ze other sites. We should borrow some hover-tractors to cover ground faster. And some industrial-strength acid sprayers from ze tool shed would help...I think the handheld pesticides would be rated for lesser undead." Paul says. This was not the first time he'd been on a farm. He'd visited a few in his quest for better ingredients.
-
"What if the ghasts are watching us?"
-
"Do you have any kind of supernatural healing, Ghik? I have no way of detecting diseases directly. If you've been bitten and then your wound has healed over, you could be infected and not even know it. I guess we could try seeing if you have a magical aura that hints at it, since it is a supernatural strain, but that wouldn't tell us for certain..."
"Sadly, I only know how to swing my weapon... even though I had enough time to learn a lot... If you guys feel better, please check me up..."
"We need to find our next target. And this time, hopefully not kill it off the bat."
"I didn't expect he would fall with only that. And I didn't hit it that well..." Ghik makes a disappointed face.
"What if the ghasts are watching us?"
"Then we have even more reasons to hit them hard as soon as they appear in front of us..." As he speaks, Ghik slides his hand through his ranseur, as if caressing it.
-
Let's do a sweep of the building for any other ghasts or corpses first, then investigate the rest of the farm once it's secure.
-
"If there had been any, I would have seen them when we searched the building earlier. We should move on, now."
-
"No records on the computer either. For all we know, the ones who used to live here are already undead... but there's still no explanation for why they're acting like everything is normal."
-
"Is it possible zey do not realize what has happened to zem?"
-
Let me take a look at what the security system picked up during the short period of reanimation. If it doesn't detect undead at all, that would be an explanation.
[spoiler]Should be able to make that UMD eventually.[/spoiler]
-
"The security system doesn't pick up undead. This is essentially a massive luxury food plant, they're not exactly expecting to deal with zombie chickens or anything." Matsuko pointed out. "Otherwise we might have known the workers were turned before we even got to this room."
She turns to Paul. "I don't know, really. But if it did, the infection was simultaneous on all the workers. There are no signs a panic took place, and the director being the only one here with Ghik, that means there's no one else barricading themselves in."
-
Well, there are only so many possible ways they could have been infected, correct? Inhalation would result in a relatively simultaneous infection; I doubt that injury or contact infections would act so quickly or subtly. A spell would have left lingering traces, which we haven't located. I suppose that ingestion is not beyond the realm of possibility, but timing would have to be extremely fine. I suggest we examine the ventilation systems and see if anything was planted in them.
-
"Even if we happen to find anything, we wouldn't know what to deal with it. We should stick to our priorities: find survivors and get out of here. There are specialists back in the guild who can deal with this much more efficiently." Matsuko put simply.
"Just so you know, there is on the upward of a thousand workers here... and I doubt the infection is selective enough to affect only humanoids. Ridiculous as it sounds, we might have greater concerns about the livestock... and then there are the crows we met earlier."
-
"Hmm, given those crows, I'd wager that the disease is magical in origin... possibly necromantic? It's clearly not natural. The two things must be connected, though it'd be great if we could only figure out by who."
-
"As great as finding out who and how to stop it is, we know there is something wrong with the people here, and we might be ruling out spells. So magical or no in origin, the delivery is something we should be worried about. If there's the possibility that it's airborne, we might wanna act a bit on the quicker side of things, as I've got no interest in being turned into a ghast.
If it's breathable, we need to get out and quarantined before a day's up. We've only been here, what, a few hours? I say we learn as much as we can in the next 18 to 20 hours, find any survivors, and then get the hell out and quarantine the whole wild bunch of us. Even those of us who don't breathe, cause damned if we know another way it might settle on your armor.
There's no need to go down with this ship when patience and a bit of support might win the day better."
-
"Even airborne contamination shouldn't be simultaneous. Kyx mentioned that this thing has at least 24 hours of incubation, right? Even assuming they had the chance to spread it all through the ventilation system, we're still talking about something that should take a few hours to spread. That means there would be at least one infectee who got hit first, that the rest would've seen. Unless..." Matsuko hesitates. "Unless he hit everyone in a small area at once, instead of hitting the whole farm."
-
"We should explore other areas to see if it's all the same. The guy didn't barricade himself in for nothing. and as long as we're doing it, I say we go quickly as we can while remaining accurate." His beliefs might have strengthened his resistances to a lot of things, but even so, he didn't want to trust his body's fortitude against a spell-like unknown transformative virus. "Where we should hit next is anyone's guess though. Where do people sleep when they work here? Where do they eat? Where do they work? Places of mass population during the day should be our next big find. Is this building the best bet?"
-
"This place is a combination of living quarters, mess hall, recreative center, sanitary facilities, infirmary... you name it. But even the infirmary is deserted during the day."
-
"Which of those facilities is the closest to this room? Maybe we can start there..."
-
"The infirmary. But the system didn't place anyone but you and the director here... and these facilities are huge. If we check everything, we might be unable to get out if the ghasts return before we're done. We should work on the premise that whoever has survived, if anybody, is not hiding in here - it's the only place where the ghasts are sure to show up."
-
"Any way we could reprogram the defense or surveillance systems to recognize the undead?"
-
"Maybe. There are practically no cameras on the outside though."
-
Frustratedly, Zane pulls his hat off, mussing his hair a bit to cool off. "Is there not a safehouse here, in case of emergency? I mean, did they honestly expect no fires or malfunctions?...." Remembering this place's purpose, the virus either must not have been intentional and come from within, or it must have been brought from outside. If it was invasive, brought as an attack against the folk eating these food stuffs, it could have been a bit more elegantly done, so he ruled that out. But then why did it come from inside?...
".... can the computer tell if any areas are sealed off, from the defense system? Also, are there any other buildings like this one?"
-
"No matter what, we can't just stand around here twiddling our thumbs. Answers aren't just going to fall into our hands!"
Talon taps his foot, clearly becoming impatient. Fueled by the grand powers of the Great Dragon or not, he's still not that different from the impetuous youth he was not all that long ago.
-
".... can the computer tell if any areas are sealed off, from the defense system? Also, are there any other buildings like this one?"
"Hmm... that's an interesting question. If someone has orchestrated this... attack... from the inside, they might be holed up here. And they might have left evidence of that in the security system."
"Matsuko said something else that's interesting. If all of the employees were infected at once, it could have been at some kind of gathering, like a monthly meeting or something. Could we check to see if there were any events recently that everyone would have attended?"
-
"This place has a curfew. Even given the number of employees, it'd certainly be more doable to infect them all at once when they're gathered in this building, all fast asleep. It would also explain why no one noticed being infected." Matsuko ponders. "An event like a monthly gathering would likely have had the director's presence too, and he would have been infected at the same time."
As for Zane's question, Matsuko replies, "The staff here could fix most kinds of malfunctions - the place is basically self-sufficient. As for fires, the plane is rigged so that it pours instantly if a potentially large-scale fire breaks out - you can thank the druids that helped build this place for that. And no one actually expected an attack on this kind of facility, as you all know."
-
"Hmm... yes, I had wondered why the director wasn't infected if it had occurred at some gathering... Spreading it through the ventilation system of their barracks while they were asleep could explain that. Does the director not sleep here, though? He has his own private quarters somewhere?"
-
"His private quarters are linked to his office by means of a device that only he knew how to activate. No one else would know how to use it or find it. That would explain why they didn't try to infect him at the same time as well. What's really bothering me, though, is that Ghiktibur's barricade was the only thing we've found out of place so far."
-
"Could it be helpful to see his quarters? We might be able to figure out how the device works, collectively. Otherwise, besides continuing on and searching other buildings, I'm running out of ideas."
-
"We should think of suitable, mantainable hidey-holes Ghik's team could be hidden in. Assuming they didn't try to bust through."
-
"If we haven't seen them, could someone be organising the ghouls for some purpose? Maybe whoever sent those crows?"
-
"Don't seem to be much point in it to me. This isn't a highly important place, you'd get more bodies attacking a village, and you'd have to plane shift in and out, which means you're powerful enough to do at least that. Unless there's more to this place than what we were told?"
-
"You're both overestimating the size of a typical village and underestimating the kingdom's regular defenses, Fistbeard." Matsuko points out. "I won't go into much detail, but let's just say orcs nowadays only raid villages if they have a serious death wish."
-
"Were zere any construct laborers? Maybe a Modron accountant? If someone is immune and zey say what happened, zen zey would know more than us, non?"
-
Ghiktibur looks for a moment at Matsuko due to her comment, then speaks.
"Does this place has any sort of emergency shelter? Maybe we could try looking into it... Did you guys get anything of the sort from the computers here?"
-
"Standard procedure for emergencies is to evacuate the premises and notify the system. Since this is all information we're uncovering only now, that means nobody managed to escape or notify proper authority. Again... this is a low-priority facility. Nobody expects it to be attacked in any way, shape or form."
-
"Let's try to get into the director's quarters, and see if we find anything there. After all, it seems he did resist turning longer than the others..."
-
"We won't find any survivors there. We found the director unconscious right here." She gestures about the room. "That means he wasn't even conscious when he got here, otherwise he and Ghiktibur wouldn't even have needed to barricade the door - they'd just go into the director's quarters. It also means he didn't pass the information along. Anyone who took refuge there would need to somehow hack the passage open, and that'd leave clues as to their arrival. Since the barricade WAS here and the two of them were unconscious when we came in, we can safely assume no one else came in after they set the barricade up."
Matsuko sighs for a moment and ponders, "Kyx, do you think this infection could have turned animals into undead? Ghasts are usually humanoid, aren't they?"
-
"Zat is easy to test." Paul says. "Ze disease is supernatural, non? As in Detect Magic can tell if ze animal has been infected."
He starts pulling thing out of his pockets. until he pulls out a chick. "We will test on zis one. Hold while I make Bonemeal." he said, giving the chick to Kyx.
Chopping off the director's foot, he mixes ingredients and within a minute or two has a fun, bite-sized snack for small animals (Patent Pending). He force-feeds the chick three pieces to be sure.
[spoiler]Disease: "When a character is injured by a contaminated attack, touches an item smeared with diseased matter, or consumes disease-tainted food or drink, he must make an immediate Fortitude saving throw."
Fortitude (1d20+2=19, 1d20+2=15, 1d20+2=3) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2544308/)
Success on the third one for sure, unless animals are immune.[/spoiler]
-
Talon makes a sighing gesture and turns to Paul. "Actually, even if it comes from a magical source, it would need to be of overwhelming strength to leave a trace more than a day after the magic was invoked. And if it's that strong, well... there may be little we can do against the source."
-
Paul simply shrugs. "Either way, at least we know zat ze ghouls can be de-feeted."
-
"Not necessarily. It could be magically bred in origin but not in nature. As in not the product of a single spell, but that of a ritual. We'd be able to find it then." Matsuko points out.
The chick is dead within minutes of swallowing the food. At the very least, it looks as though the contaminated food is extremely toxic for a critter that small. However, it does have traces of necromantic magic, which slowly spread through the chick's body... only to go dormant.
"I think it only kills animals, but doesn't reanimate them. That means we have a clue where to search next: the barn."
-
In that case, we should head there immediately. Though we should probably decapitate that chick, just to be sure.
-
"Let's move as quickly as possible. Like we've figured, this place was barricaded for a reason; they probably would have heard those crows exploding, and they'd come to the most obvious place first. if they didn't find enough remains. We should be quick." He didn't like staying here in the first place, and felt worse after loudly killing a creature that provided an idea of the problems ahead. This was all too loud; they needed to start moving, staying in one place for as short a time as possible.
-
"Alright, barn it is. Shall I take point?"
-
"Very well... let's go check the barn out. Maybe we can find other members from the first group as well..."
-
"We are in agreement then. Let's move." Matsuko led the group outside.
-
"I think it might be too soon to say it doesn't reanimate them. We know there is at least some delay between death and the onset of reanimation. The chick might still come back as a ghoul at some point. We should take it with us to check on it periodically. This might give is a better idea of how long it takes it to reanimate a corpse after they've died.
I'll take it, since I have nothing to fear from infection."
With that, Kyx picks up the chick corpse and heads towards the exit with the others.
On the way he says, "Maybe I should turn us all invisible before we head out, in case the noise we've made has drawn a crowd of ghouls outside..."
Unless someone objects, he draws a scroll of Circle of Invisibility as the group prepares to leave. "Make sure you stay near the rest of the team. If you wander off, the spell will fail and you'll be revealed."
-
Paul stays with the group, leaving the dead chick in the hands of Kyx. Hopefully the animals would be okay. It would be a shame if all the good ingredients were spoiled.
[spoiler]Just got a part-time job offer. Shitty hours, shitty pay. Gladly took it.[/spoiler]
-
There seems to be no problem getting out of the building. Or walking to the barn, which wasn't that far, all things considered. As with... pretty much everything related to Douglas Farm, the inside was bigger than the outside.
Everything looks normal at first glance. The animals are all in their pens, coops, stys and other assorted holding places. They don't even seem particularly disturbed by everyone's entrance, despite the fact that Ghiktibur is essentially covered in undead blood.
-
They don't even seem particularly disturbed by everyone's entrance, despite the fact that Ghiktibur is essentially covered in undead blood.
[spoiler]Unless it took more than X minutes to walk here, or there was some Dispelling effect in between, we're all invisible. I used a scroll of Invisibility Sphere (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/invisibilitySphere.htm) that I picked up as a consumable.
I put X because I'm not sure what the caster level was on the scroll I got... [/spoiler]
-
[spoiler]Spot:
1d20(16)+5=21 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2545156/)[/spoiler]
-
They don't even seem particularly disturbed by everyone's entrance, despite the fact that Ghiktibur is essentially covered in undead blood.
[spoiler]Unless it took more than X minutes to walk here, or there was some Dispelling effect in between, we're all invisible. I used a scroll of Invisibility Sphere (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/invisibilitySphere.htm) that I picked up as a consumable.
I put X because I'm not sure what the caster level was on the scroll I got... [/spoiler]
[spoiler]Thought the duration was longer... assume you didn't use it then. Wouldn't have lasted long enough to be useful.[/spoiler]
-
"Well well, they seem calm. Like they aren't even worried about anything like ghasts... might the disease have not gotten here?" He keeps a steady hand inside his loose poncho, on the handle of his pistol, just in case. "Can anyone examine these animals, or are we honestly limited to chickens?"
-
"If I had to guess, based on the reaction with the chick, the disease doesn't affect animals unless they're directly exposed to it. It must have targeted the workers, and since ghasts aren't so interested in animal meat as humanoid meat, the livestock haven't been infected. Hmm... we better still look around."
-
"We have no evidence of ghosts yet." Matsuko chimes in.
-
Talon begins scanning through the premises.
[spoiler]Not sure which might be most applicable, so I rolled them all. :D
Listen, Spot, Search:
1d20(2)+3=5
1d20(8)+3=11
1d20(14)+5=19 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2555781/)
[/spoiler]
-
The barn is fairly massive, so it will take quite some time to scan through it all. It will probably go faster if you guys split up and use some kind of method, i.e. checking haystacks first, leaving Paul to examine all the chicken coops while someone else checks the pens, etc..
-
"I'll do a quick "scan" to search for any undead. As long as they aren't mindless or sheathed in lead, I can detect them from pretty far away."
Kyx begins rapidly walking around the building in a spiraling pattern.
[spoiler]
Magic Jar senses
range 170'
detects whether a soul is powered by positive or negative energy, and differences of 4+ hit dice between individuals[/spoiler]
-
"I'll do a quick "scan" to search for any undead. As long as they aren't mindless or sheathed in lead, I can detect them from pretty far away."
Kyx begins rapidly walking around the building in a spiraling pattern.
[spoiler]
Magic Jar senses
range 170'
detects whether a soul is powered by positive or negative energy, and differences of 4+ hit dice between individuals[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Noted.[/spoiler]
Everyone else?
-
Fistbeard will search for hidden doors and the like in the building, taking 20 to be extra certain of finding something. (Total result of 27, I believe).
-
Common sense tells you there's no reason for hidden doors anywhere. There are console panels next to some of the walls, which open up into cabinets... which are all stocked with food. Either way none of them seem big enough to hold an adult individual - and since they seem to be airtight, it'd be an awful idea anyway.
-
Fistbeard pulls out some of the food and examines it.
"Hey, don't suppose any of this stuff is tainted?"
-
If there's room, Talon will fly up for an overhead view. Otherwise, he'll circle around and continue searching carefully for any clues.
-
Sabot takes a look around as well
[spoiler]
Spot 1d20+3=20 (http://www.hwx.it/wizards.com/dice.php?sid=3867#134186)
Listen 1d20+1=9 (http://www.hwx.it/wizards.com/dice.php?sid=3867#134187)
Search 1d20+4=14 (http://www.hwx.it/wizards.com/dice.php?sid=3867#134188)[/spoiler]
-
There's enough room for an overhead survey, but animals are all you guys find.
Sabot finds no evidence of anyone in hiding... or anyone in hiding, for that matter.
Matsuko walks up to Fistbeard at his question, and a visor flickers briefly in front of her. "Well, nothing registers as far as detect magic is concerned."
-
Fistbeard will sample some of the food just to be sure.
-
[spoiler]If it helps...
Search/Spot/Listen: 1d20+2=4, 1d20+2=21, 1d20+2=16 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2556370/)
Senses: 4x low-light vision, Darkvision 120ft, Blindsense 60ft, See in Darkness (Su), See/hear invisible/incorporeal/ethereal
[/spoiler]
-
Neither Eren nor Kyx detect anything out of the ordinary.
The food tastes good, for animal food that is.
For all intents and purposes, as far as any of you are concerned, the place looks clean.
-
Landing again, Talon says to the group, "Nothing seems out of the ordinary from my aerial sweep. Should we move on to the next facility? Is there a next facility, by the way?"
-
"I didn't detect anything unexpected, either."
-
"There's a granary." Matsuko pointed out. "Other than that, there are the nearby forests, hills and mountains. If the former group decided to hide there, we'll have one hell of a time finding them - assuming the ghasts haven't found them first. They're in a much greater number and are familiar with the terrain, after all."
-
"Hmm... If I were a panicked farmer, which way would I go?"
Eren scratches her chin for a few seconds, then points off to her left.
"If they were trying to hide, the forest is the best place to do it."
-
"Well, let's check the granary first. If there's nothing there, then those of us with the power of flight should head to the forest and attempt a quick sweep to find signs of life. I think Kyx can handle that best. Then we can all do a systematic search at ground-level. It might be our best chance."
Talon doesn't even wait for everyone to wait around; he simply starts heading to the door. Someday, this impetuousness could get him killed. Of course, that day could very well be this day, given the situation at hand.
-
"Sounds like as good of a plan as any... except that I can't fly... at least not while I'm stuck in this tin-can."
-
"I can carry you." says Eren cheerfully. <<Just don't get any weird ideas>>
-
"That would work." <<You know... given that I don't even have a body... I'm not sure what you're expecting there...>>
-
"Or you could simply possess one of us with flight, I suppose. Just this once, of course."
-
Guys, don't forget to remind me what your senses are. There's a lot of you and only one of me. :p
-
Paul checks the chicken coop to make sure all the chickens are healthy. He then makes sure they have enough feed. Upon leaving the coop, nearly half the chickens are gone and there appear to be more feathers on Paul's clothing. What can he say? The chicks love him.
[spoiler]Low-light and Darkvision 60 ft.
Listen, Spot and Profession(Cook) (1d20+6=12, 1d20+8=18, 1d20+14=30) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2556861/)
Listen 12, Spot 18 to notice anything unusual and Profession(cook)of 30 to determine the health of the chickens.[/spoiler]
-
Chickens are healthy as healthy can be. Seems they were VERY well-cared for, since theoretically it's been 4 days since anyone's been there.
Not that any of you can determine whether or not that's true, of course. However, it stands to reason that if the ghasts had been around, the animals would likely be very restless, even now.
-
"Ze Chickens are healthy. It is as if someone was taking care of zem all zis time. Zis section has no unseen servants, non?" Paul says, asking those with greater sensory abilities than him.
-
Guys, don't forget to remind me what your senses are. There's a lot of you and only one of me. :p
[spoiler]I has: "4x as well in low-light and 2x as well in normal light as a normal human (halves distance penalty for Spot checks). Also gains Blindsense of 5'/CL (so 55' for Kyx), and Darkvision out to 10'/CL (so 110')."[/spoiler]
"Hey Matsuko, there isn't an automated care system for these creatures that you know of, is there?"
-
"Nope. There's a great concern with making things as close as they could possibly get to 'old times'. Both magic and technological interference is minimal." The armor-clad woman explains.
-
"Well then, someone must hyave taken care of them, as I doubt it was the guy we just mashed back in the office... " Zane wasn't very fond of this place; so the food isn't poisoned, that's fine. "This just seems odd, if someone were going to use this place to poison the food, why not poison the animals and leave the people unaffected, to make it seem as if nothing happened. If this was an outside player, then either something went wrong, or they weren't interested in anything outside of this place.
"I suppose we should try and scout the next area..."
-
"If someone is taking care of ze animals, zen we should set up an Alarm once we leave ze building. Zen if ze Alarm goes off we can come back and see who is still here." Paul suggests.
-
Ghik turns to his friend with exquisite accent. "Can you do it? This is a nice idea... provided we can get here before the thing that triggered the alarm leaves..." Then turns to Matsuko. "Since you said this place was made to be like the old times, I doubt this place might have any area that might resemble a lab, or anything where they could do experiments with the food created here, right? If there's such a place, maybe we might find something about the infection..."
-
"Nothing like that. I'm getting more worried about our link to headquarters." She notes. "Granted, the demiplane makes the transmission distorted, but it shouldn't take this long for us to get a response."
-
"Don't suppose there's a well or water reservoir around here?" Fistbeard asks.
-
"All the water comes from the mountain spring and is then led through a series of channels to the main distribution facility. From there, it's distributed to the rest of the farm... but the distribution facility has its own treatment plant, it would've detected an infectious agent like this one."
-
"What if the plant was sabotaged?"
-
"Ze animals drink ze same water, and zey are not infected."
-
"Beat me to the punch, Paul."
-
Paul looks confused. "Zere is punch? I thought zere was only water...perhaps zey punch was contaminated."
-
Restraining the action/comment option of showing Paul what he could do with his punch, Zane picks up on Matsuko's cue, "Is there a transmission tower somewhere? They must have a communications center of some sort.
Otherwise, who wants to scout the mountains and forest from above?"
-
"What are you talking about. There has not been such a thing as a transmission tower for 500 years now." Matsuko points out.
[spoiler]Of course, Flay had no means to know that, but anyone with a good Knowledge: Arcana mod knows that magic travels mostly through leylines. Even when it goes airborne, there is no need for retransmission. Unlike radio waves, which require contact with the ionosphere to travel, magic can establish a channel between two or more spots directly.[/spoiler]
-
"Not in cities, no, but out on the frontier we made use of them when magic wasn't as readily available, from leyline activity being unchecked and unknown. In any case though, either they've quarantined us inside here, or there's interference; are we even sure the message got sent?"
[spoiler]Aaaaaand excuses! :p But yeah, good to know...[/spoiler]
-
"Interference seems more likely. Which means whoever started this was expecting us." Matsuko taps a few commands in her console. "According to my equipment, the level 3 lockdown is in effect. But I can't reach HQ." Her face glooms with a new possibility. "I think... they have us surrounded, right now."
-
"We should consider our escape options. But first, I will check ze threat level..." Paul says, before casting Omen of Peril.
[spoiler]77% success rate that you roll. Options are more or less "no danger, a little danger, or lots of danger."
Failed roll = false reading.[/spoiler]
-
If we pump in enough energy, we could probably send something in Morse too strong for anyone to jam. Or, if it's being fully absorbed, give them a nasty shock.
-
"We could also find the interference and try to fill it full of holes, if all else fails." Zane says with a bit of a joking, sly smile on his face.
-
"Surrounded, huh? Doesn't sound like good odds. Looks like we'll have to find some way to turn the tables on them. Anyone have any ideas how we could draw them out?"
-
"I could go out and start insulting their mothers," Fistbeard offers.
-
"Well shooting at them usually helps too. We might be onto a plan here."[spoiler] [/sarcasm][/spoiler]
-
"Well shooting at them usually helps too. We might be onto a plan here."
"Finally something I can contribute to! Any way to pinpoint our unknown enemy?"
-
"We should consider our escape options. But first, I will check ze threat level..." Paul says, before casting Omen of Peril.
[spoiler]77% success rate that you roll. Options are more or less "no danger, a little danger, or lots of danger."
Failed roll = false reading.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]First, the chicken dies. Then, it is spitted through by a tree trunk. Then, it gets up and murmurs something like "BRAAAAAAAAAAAAINS" at you.[/spoiler]
-
"Well, if there's no way around the ghouls I could turn into a dire badger and dig a tunnel underneath them... We'd need to figure out where they are first, though, so we don't pop out right in front of them."
(This is where you say "Hey Eren, can you turn into anything with a good nose?" :p)
-
"If it were just a matter of tunneling, then I'm all set. But we need a solid plan here, a luxury we can't seem to afford. It may be up to the First Rule of Adventure. 'If at first you don't succeed... just wing it and hope that fate's in your favor.'"
-
"You could do that, but you might get thrown off while tunnelling away. This section of the demiplane is one of dilated space - that's how things are bigger on the inside rather than the outside. If you're not careful, you won't get far."
-
"Wasn't the First Rule of Adventure 'kill it with fire'?"
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"Well, if there's no way around the ghouls I could turn into a dire badger and dig a tunnel underneath them... We'd need to figure out where they are first, though, so we don't pop out right in front of them."
"This badger form of yours.... can it smell our enemies? We could use that to try something before we get overwhelmed by them... or even manage to attack them first..."
[spoiler]
There! I did it, Prime! :lmao[/spoiler]
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Holding up a crystal, Zane gives something constructive, his suicidal nature tamed a bit. "If I can shoot them, we can all see them. I can sense them to start with, but not from very far thanks to my new spell-eyes. So yeah, who is the advanced warning; even if I only have an idea, so long as I can shoot in basically the right direction, I can reveal from a ways away." He notes this, tapping the wrapped item on his back.
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"...Eren. If you're able, please change to a form with a good nose." Matsuko seems to be feeling increasingly worried.
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Sabot starts flinging faerie fire at the entrance.
"Anything invisible will have to go through there first, and they'll be lit up like a Christmas tree."
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Talon tries to wipe some of the excess faerie fire off of his arm, some having been flung in his general direction while holding position at the doorway. Unfortunately, it only seems to spread across his armor.
"Hey, watch where you're slinging that stuff around!"
[spoiler]Senses: Low-Light Vision, Darkvision 60 ft, See Invisibility[/spoiler]
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"I could Teleport some of us away, but I couldn't take everyone. I could also make us all invisible, or try and reveal enemies if I have a hint of where they are.
But if they're close enough to smell, Zane, Eren, or I should have detected them already..."
[spoiler]Magic Jar senses, detects souls out to 170 feet. Does not need Line of Effect or Line of Sight.[/spoiler]
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"...Eren. If you're able, please change to a form with a good nose." Matsuko seems to be feeling increasingly worried.
She nods, and crouches on all fours as she shifts into the form of a wolf.
[spoiler]Well, technically it's the form of a shifter, but she can use Mimic Shape to change what it looks like, and it seems weird to take a humanoid form for this.
Does she smell anything?[/spoiler]
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"I could Teleport some of us away, but I couldn't take everyone. I could also make us all invisible, or try and reveal enemies if I have a hint of where they are.
But if they're close enough to smell, Zane, Eren, or I should have detected them already..."
[spoiler]Magic Jar senses, detects souls out to 170 feet. Does not need Line of Effect or Line of Sight.[/spoiler]
@Phaedrus
[spoiler]I keep forgetting about that. You feel a concentration of souls some 50 feet from the door, right outside (assuming you are close to the door).[/spoiler]
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"Ok, I sense them now. They're just outside. Let's turn invisible and hope they can't see us. Then we can observe what they're doing here. Gather close, and don't move away." Kyx readies an action to cast Invisibility Circle when everyone is within range.
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Zane steps in range, and lightning-fast swaps out crystals so the revealing crystal is in the mysterious chamber beneath the hammer of his pistol. He looks suddenly very calm, but focused, not smirking and care-free. Could have something to do with the invisible undead.
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Talon moves from near the doorway, and joins the others.
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"Just like that holoflick about the zombies, eh?" Fistbeard asks, getting within range.
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Can you give me exact coordinates first? I can spread glitterdust onto them.
[spoiler]Sabot reenables his protection from Law[/spoiler]
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"They're not in the building yet, as I said. They're just outside the door."
[spoiler]Are they powered by negative or positive energy? And are any of them 4 or more hit dice higher or lower that each other, or any of us?[/spoiler]
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"If you can keep them together, I can run in and try to disable as many of them as possible."
[spoiler]Returning to varag form if scent is unneeded.[/spoiler]
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"They're not in the building yet, as I said. They're just outside the door."
[spoiler]Are they powered by negative or positive energy? And are any of them 4 or more hit dice higher or lower that each other, or any of us?[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Negative energy. A lot of it.
As in, there's a wall of negative energy outside.
That said, none of them are four hit dice or higher than any of you.[/spoiler]
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"Oh yeah, and in case you're wondering: They're all undead. And there are a LOT of them.
So... invis and try to sneak away? Or start blasting? I can layer some nasty stuff in front of the door, if we're staying to fight. And you guys who like to stab or shoot things can pick off whatever gets through it.
Frankly... there are so many of them I don't think we're going to get away without Teleportation or fighting. I guess I could Teleport out a few of us, and Sabot could take a few more. I'm still not sure we can get everyone out without a fight, though... "
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"Could we lure them in, activate the security system and trap them inside?"
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"I can hit a few of them at a time, and possibly help keep them rooted in place, but I'd have to get pretty close to do it. I might be able to take them on from the air though, but then that leaves those of you who are vulnerable to the disease to get eaten up. I'll probably stick to the ground, at first anyway."
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[spoiler]
That said, none of them are four hit dice or higher than any of you.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Oh yeah, I can detect the chickens and other animals, also. So are the undead within 4 HD of the chickens, other animals, or PCs? I can tell if they're 4 HD or more higher or lower, but not exact hit dice.
I'm thinking we're up against a bunch of ghasts here. I'm just trying to be sure. If they're within 4 HD of the chickens and also within 4 HD of the PCs, that pretty much confirms that suspicion, at least as far as I can tell within my perception capabilities.[/spoiler]"The security and surveillance systems seem to not notice them, remember?
And what do you mean trap them inside? We're inside. Or did you intend to trap them in here with us? I don't think that sounds like a very good plan..."
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"We'd get out first, obviously."
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[spoiler]That said, none of them are four hit dice or higher than any of you.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Oh yeah, I can detect the chickens and other animals, also. So are the undead within 4 HD of the chickens, other animals, or PCs? I can tell if they're 4 HD or more higher or lower, but not exact hit dice.
I'm thinking we're up against a bunch of ghasts here. I'm just trying to be sure. If they're within 4 HD of the chickens and also within 4 HD of the PCs, that pretty much confirms that suspicion, at least as far as I can tell within my perception capabilities.[/spoiler]"The security and surveillance systems seem to not notice them, remember?
And what do you mean trap them inside? We're inside. Or did you intend to trap them in here with us? I don't think that sounds like a very good plan..."
[spoiler]Your assumptions are fairly correct. They seem to be ghasts. Or at least as far as HD is concerned, they're quite similar.[/spoiler]
"Teleportation is out of the question due to the level 3 lockdown. Even as far as plane shift is concerned, we'd need to establish an outside line first. It'd take more time than we have right now, though - especially if they decide to break in." Matsuko taps a few more things into her console. Then she starts up her voice commands. "Shifting vision mode to deflection nullifier. Disengage ammunition locks 1 through 10. Disengage environmental safety. Physical security network online. Lock-on Iron Maiden protocol. Password:[silence]"
At her commands, the visor closes itself in something that resembles a humanoid-esque face-like mask with a valkyrie's helmet layer above it, a unicorn horn sprouting off its forehead. Several energy lines appear throughout her armor, pulsing bright red. From her back sprout a pair of what looks like metallic, angel-like wings with rocket thrusters. On her hands, two oversized sub-machineguns appear, connected to what look like ammunition strips. The lenses in her helmet flare alive in a bright yellow. With a minor hum, Matsuko begins to hover slightly above the ground.
"Prepare to break through."
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Eren just stares at Matsuko for a few moments, then asks "...where can I get one of those?"
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"I suppose it's up to the dwarf to stand in front of the door and stop them from pouring on through. Very well..."
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"First, do we have any idea where the interference is coming from? Some of us might be able to sneak out. Second, how hard is it to disable the security system if it's activated? Third... I don't suppose any of you have a spell which blocks scent?"
{OOC: Major image would work}
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"We're not sneaking out. We're breaking through to the entrance, and taking as many hostiles as possible with us. You have 18 seconds to offer questions and get ready."
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[spoiler]Looks like she almost has a angelic/valkyrie-themed suit similar to my dragon-themed suit. :lmao[/spoiler]
Talon stands perfectly motionless for a few brief seconds, and few bleeps and bloops signal the subroutines that are activating. The dim, blue glow in his eyes grows brighter as it fills the entirety of the eye sockets, and a pale blue glow is noticeably emitting from his throat, and within the hand mounted repulsors of the suit. The dragon wing-shaped jetpack pops out again, and blue flame ignites, lifting the Dragonfire Adept a couple inches from the ground before the jet recedes slightly and he settles back onto his feet. Finally, the studs lining his gauntlets pop out into larger spikes, shaped like dragons' claws, and several large plates emerge from one arm as they lock into place, forming the shape of a dragon's wing.
"Alright... Let's do this!"
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"I'll go out first, and hope that a few of them try to hit me and get stuck (if any of you can boost my endurance first, I'd appreciate it). If they wise up, I want Fistbeard to set me on fire so I can take out the ones who were already trapped faster."
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"Alright, I'll be right behind you with my trusty bottle o' scrumpy."
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"12 seconds. Open the doors on my signal. Ready?"
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"Green light."
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[spoiler]Give everyone a chance to post first.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]Initiative: 1d20(17)=17 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2562953/)
I've only got level 1 cleric spells, so there's not much I can help with. If anyone fails a save or something though, I can cast Resurgence twice.[/spoiler]
Talon takes a forward position, and charges up his breath to lay down a suppressive cone of entangling flame when the ghasts pile through.
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Set me on fire now. I can take it.
Sabot readies an action to glitterdust the hell out of the guys once there's line of sight.
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(Fistbeard will proceed to set him on fire.)
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[spoiler]Give everyone a chance to post first.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Are we missing anyone besides Risada and Phaedrus?[/spoiler]
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"Alright, we're doing it the crazy way, I guess. I can do that. Let me go first, and I'll try hopping into one of them an inciting a riot by layering them with offensive spells. Then you guys come out and mop up.
I'm going to leave a narrow line just along the front of the building. So just circle to one side or the other as soon as you come out. Don't rush out straight ahead, or you'll be stuck in the nastiness with them! This will keep them from flanking and surrounding us. We can just focus on the ones that make it out of what I lay down. OK?
If they kill my host, I'll just be kicked back into this metal shell, anyway. Let me toss up a few buffs first."
Kyx begins casting, and you all feel yourselves begin to move faster (Haste, 11 rounds). A blue shimmering field also appears around him (+4 Deflection to AC and Resistance to saves from Divine Companion). He says "That's good enough for now. Let's do this!"
[spoiler]
He attempts to Magic Jar into one of the undead life forces he senses. One just outside the building would be his optimal choice. DC 19 Will save to resist.[/spoiler]
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Pistol in hand, Zane silently flings off the poncho, revealing the leather suit with the elaborate, thickly belted apparatus holding onto a clean, odd looking rifle. He nods, a faint smile at Matsuko's leadership qualities. Taking a position slightly behind the melee fighters, Zane's pistol is ready to go. "I suppose we can't try talking to these ghasts before mashing them, neh?" His smile turns playful fast, though his eyes reflect something a bit more frighteningly killer-like than anyone in the path of that pistol might feel comfortable with. Nodding in appreciation of Kyx's spell, Zane calls to mind his own arcane energy, ready to unleash it when the need arises. He pops three regular rounds into his pistol, three rune bullets from his bag, then snaps his pockets shut, tightens belts, and nods once again to Matsuko, confirming his readiness.
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"That would be a ghastly idea."
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"I'll try to chat them up after I possess one, before I destroy them, to see what they're up to. OK?" Kyx says half-jokingly, just before he leaps into the body of one of them.
[spoiler]I'm not planning on waiting for Matsuko's command to "charge". I'm going immediately, which should be at about 6 seconds into her 18 second count-down, since it only took me one round to throw those two buffs up (one was a swift action). I figure I might need a few tries if the ghasts roll well on their saves.[/spoiler]
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"So, we hit only those that manage to enter? Got it!"
Ghiktibur stretches his wings, grabs his weapon strongly, before siding with the other melee guys.
OOC:
[spoiler]Activate Leading the charge stance - +6 dmg on charge to me and allies - forgot the range and I'm AFB.... if someone could check it to me ;)[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]It's a 60-ft radius centered on you.
Too bad I'm not a melee-fighter. At least not until I can get my hands on some Divine Power. :P[/spoiler]
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"So, we hit only those that manage to enter? Got it!"
"I'll leave a little space just in front of the building, for those who want to go out. Just don't rush forward blindly out the door and you'll be ok."
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It is not until the doors roll open that you all realize just how many ghasts there are outside.
Let's put it this way: a fuckton might be considered perhaps what the people merely keeping Detect Magic up can see. Those of you who can see the invisible cannot see where the mass of undead ends and the ground begins anew.
[spoiler]Will save for the first ghast. (1d20+6=17) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2564244/)[/spoiler]
The ghast Kyx attempts to leap into almost manages to resist the invasion, but by the time the spell is complete, Kyx can see the look on his companions' faces as the doors open.
Six seconds later, Matsuko flies out of the barn and opens fire. Where some of her bullets land, massive fireballs bloom. She manages to partly clear the path ahead with those massive explosions.
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Kyx thinks to himself <Great. They'll probably mow me down before I even get to cast anything... > He begins casting Evard's Black Tentacles alongside the "path" that Matsuko cleared, trying to keep the ghouls alongside of it from pouring into it and clogging his companions' escape route.
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Encounter thread.