silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
Seamus puzzles over the levers on the the side of the altar. "Are you an ordinary death trap? Or will you merely lead to a new and creative way of dying?"
Geth roll 2d20k1+6 for Seamus's History (Stonecunning) check
This temple (the room you're in right now) is kind of like a control center for this elaborate mechanism.
This elaborate mechanism basically floods the barrow with lava.
These levers control that mechanism and have to be operated in a certain order.
First, you need to pull the lever that seals the entrances and exits. Second, you need to pull the lever that opens the vent tunnel (which, you surmise, opens in this very room). Third, you need to pull the lever that starts the lava flow.
If you choose to follow this course of action, you'll basically need to keep the brain-spiders from getting up to high ground long enough for the lava to flow in and destroy them. Then you'll need to escape through the vent tunnel before the lava gets high enough to destroy you.
silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
The vent tunnel is how the lava is going to flow into the room? How would it be possible to escape against a lava flow? Or is the vent an escape route of sorts, and the lava flows in via other channels?
The vent tunnel is where air escapes so that the lava can flow into the barrow. Without it there would be a vacuum and the lava wouldn't fill the barrow. It just so happens to be big enough for a party of medium creatures to fit through.
silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
edited November 2014
Got it, thanks Denada. Does anyone want to stay and take their chances with the brain-spiders? I vote for the "burn it all down with lava and escape" plan, myself. All good dungeons have self-destruct mechanisms that impose a timer for escape anyway. It's more dramatic that way.
well, looks like the orb was fine, other than the possible horrible mental ramifications of seeing into a mind flayer's mind.
Also, how do you presume we get ourselves and a bunch of dead weight out of an impending doom? do we have a lot of rope? because i can burning hands some brain spiders if someone promises to pull me up before lava.
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
Well, I'm about to put on my conductor's cap and climb aboard the crazy train (pulling levers). I was waiting to see if you ( @melding ) or @am0n@mallenellam or @nealneal had objections, since it's most likely a collapsing castle style event.
Sophia and Theresa would be happy to have their corpses burned by the lava that was used to kill a horde of foul abominations. I'm sure of it. Also I don't want to try to carry them out.
Sounds good to me. I still think they would be proud to be part of the foundation that sealed in these monsters...though. I mean they're dead now, who could possibly know what they would want?
Nealneal on
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
All aboard the lava train then
Seamus moves over to the levers, and begins operating them with Dwarven finesse. He pulls the lever to seal the room. Then he attempts to open the escape vent with a second lever. Finally, after ensuring those two are in operation, he glances at his conscious companions and says "everybody grab a body or two, we're getting out of here." He then pulls the final lever, hoping to trip the self-destruct sequence.
You hear a series of very loud noises echo throughout the temple. The walls and floor rumble as ancient dwarven machinery comes to life. The wall opens up behind you, about five feet above the highest platform.
Being professional adventurers, you don't have much trouble rigging up some kind of apparatus to get everyone up and into the vent. The slope of the vent is steep, but still climbable. Below you, the brain-spiders have fully entered the room and are clumsily clamoring over each other to try to reach you. Any that do make it up are quickly dispatched by a blast of fire from Jelenneth's hands, but an unfortunate side effect of that is the quickly forming hill of dead brain-spiders leading to your position.
The brain-spiders keep coming, undeterred by the prospect of a fiery death, and soon they manage to make it onto the first raised platform in numbers great enough to make you nervous. At this point all of the bodies (alive, dead, and other) are in the vent, with Seamus hauling them up as fast as his dwarven muscles can manage.
Jelenneth, you're going to need to summon up a pretty big blast of fire if you're going to buy yourself enough time to retreat into the vent.
Jelenneth, the heat of your burnings hands sears a good chunk of brain-spiders, buying precious seconds to get yourself into the vent. As you do so, you can see the lava beginning to flow into the room. It's flowing a lot faster than you might have expected, and will probably fill the temple in only a few minutes, which means it will also be entering the vent once there's nowhere else for it to go.
Halath, Seamus, you need to get moving and Jelenneth needs to rest after that last spell. One of you will need to pick up the pace while the other covers the rear.
@Nealneal and @silence1186 , one of you roll me a Constitution (Athletics) check with advantage. Note that I said Constitution, not Strength. This is a matter of high exertion for an extended period, not just a quick show of brute force.
The other one of you roll an appropriate skill check (also with advantage) for how you plan to keep the brain-spiders from following you up the vent.
Halath will break the two flasks of oil from his Burglar's pack on the landing at the base of the ramp after everyone else has moved up. This should slow the spiders a little and incinerate them as soon as the lava touches the pool of oil.
I have no idea what skill check I would use for that, but I'm going with Dex.
Geth roll 2d20k1+3 for Spidery Oil Bath
Spidery Oil Bath:
2d20k1+319 [2d20k1=[16], 13]
Nealneal on
+1
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
Seamus's breathing begins to labor, but he grunts and keeps marching. "Huff, puff, something like... this... *pants* is nothing compared to carrying back students who accidentally summoned ghouls and got paralyzed in necromancy 103 at the college."
Halath, you deftly manage to coat the entrance to the vent in oil while avoiding getting any on you or your companions. The brain-spiders try and fail (repeatedly) to get through it, but they're far too clumsy to make any progress.
All of you can hear the sizzling sound of the lava rising below you, which is accompanied by a sudden and very intense pressure on your minds from hundreds of creatures telepathically crying out in pain. This is bad enough, but a moment later a wave of heat slams into your bodies as hot air is pushed out of the vent. With all of your armor, and the dead (or sort of dead) weight of the fallen, and the steepness of the climb, it almost seems like you won't make it out.
But you do. Seamus, your muscles burn as hot as the lava rising beneath you, and your fingers feel as though they may be permanently bent in a rope-clutching position, but by all the gods - even the ones you don't like - you make it out of there.
For once, the cold rain is a welcome relief, as it washes away the heat and sweat, cooling your aching bodies. You lie there for a moment on the side of the hill, catching your breath for at least a short rest, and then you see it: sunlight. The rain dries up as the storm-clouds begin to dissipate, and within a few minutes the only wind you feel is a gentle breeze drifting over the hill.
silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
"Praise the gods! I hope that's the last we see of that stinking hell hole. Can we camp now for gods' sake? Or does something ELSE want a piece of this dwarf?"
"I'm going to catch my breath and then head into town to get a horse and wagon. As much as I like Sophia, I am not about to carry her all the way back to town."
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
And that was the last we ever heard from Halath... (don't split the party!)
silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
So @denada we got out of the vent. Is the lava flowing out of the vent? We are on a hill of some kind, resting from over-exertion. Is there anything else in the area or scenery of note?
The system seems to have been very carefully designed such that the lava stops before spilling out of the vent.
The hill you're on is one of the hills surrounding Barrowtown. You're probably on the back side of the hill where you found the entrance to the barrow. Other than some wet grass and a few trees, there's nothing much here.
The walk back to town shouldn't take more than about 15 minutes. The terrain of the hill isn't particularly treacherous now that the rain has stopped and it's light outside.
Then he wakes up from "catching his breath" to find Halath nudging him with the end of a bow.
Apparently, once the rain stopped, some of the townspeople were brave enough to venture outside and start looking for who was responsible. A search party was formed, and they found you here on the hill. The incapacitated have been loaded into a wagon, thankfully one with enough room to keep the living separate from the dead.
You're free to hitch a ride back to the inn if you're ready to go.
"So, I guess we need to figure out a way to get the fallen restored, at least the living ones. Not sure we have the means to return the dead."
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
"There's always True Resurrection, or Wish, if someone knows a extremely capable caster. I'd ask the Archchancellor from the college, but he owes me 100g from when I beat him at dice and he has been avoiding me ever since."
"Well...my father is Magister Sintos Khaelan of Rosehaven. He could probably help us. I am loathe to return home and ask him for anything, but I will gladly do it for my friends."
The townspeople don't offer much in the way of conversation on the short ride back to the inn. You can tell they want to celebrate the end of the storm, but seeing the heavy price that has been paid seems to have put a damper on their mood.
Back at the inn, you meet with the mayor who nearly collapses from the relief of seeing her sister alive. She thanks you profusely, offering anything within her power to give as a reward for your help. She also grieves for your fallen friends. "I will pray to every god I know of," she says to you solemnly. "I hope you can find a way to bring them back."
Over the next few hours, preparations are made to keep the bodies of the fallen clean and stable. The town cleric, a young woman by the name of Mina, casts a few spells to preserve Sophia and Theresa in their current state, should you ever find a way to bring them back to life. There isn't much she can do for Tal and Lakor, but she can at least keep their bodies healthy until you find a way to restore their minds. Healing Rhyna is a simple task, and soon the faithful hound is awake and well, though she refuses to leave her master's side.
These preparations take most of the day. As evening stretches into night, and most of the citizens have returned to their homes, an old man approaches you. "Everyone has heard about what you did in that barrow," he says. "I'm sorry about your friends. Truly sorry. I don't know if there's a right time for this, but I wanted to tell you that I think I might know of a way to help them. It's not for certain, but it might be something."
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Geth roll 2d20k1+6 for Seamus's History (Stonecunning) check
First, you need to pull the lever that seals the entrances and exits. Second, you need to pull the lever that opens the vent tunnel (which, you surmise, opens in this very room). Third, you need to pull the lever that starts the lava flow.
If you choose to follow this course of action, you'll basically need to keep the brain-spiders from getting up to high ground long enough for the lava to flow in and destroy them. Then you'll need to escape through the vent tunnel before the lava gets high enough to destroy you.
The lava flows in from somewhere else.
Also, how do you presume we get ourselves and a bunch of dead weight out of an impending doom? do we have a lot of rope? because i can burning hands some brain spiders if someone promises to pull me up before lava.
Seamus moves over to the levers, and begins operating them with Dwarven finesse. He pulls the lever to seal the room. Then he attempts to open the escape vent with a second lever. Finally, after ensuring those two are in operation, he glances at his conscious companions and says "everybody grab a body or two, we're getting out of here." He then pulls the final lever, hoping to trip the self-destruct sequence.
Geth roll 1d20+5 for Seamus's Athletics (hauling bodies)
Being professional adventurers, you don't have much trouble rigging up some kind of apparatus to get everyone up and into the vent. The slope of the vent is steep, but still climbable. Below you, the brain-spiders have fully entered the room and are clumsily clamoring over each other to try to reach you. Any that do make it up are quickly dispatched by a blast of fire from Jelenneth's hands, but an unfortunate side effect of that is the quickly forming hill of dead brain-spiders leading to your position.
The brain-spiders keep coming, undeterred by the prospect of a fiery death, and soon they manage to make it onto the first raised platform in numbers great enough to make you nervous. At this point all of the bodies (alive, dead, and other) are in the vent, with Seamus hauling them up as fast as his dwarven muscles can manage.
Jelenneth, you're going to need to summon up a pretty big blast of fire if you're going to buy yourself enough time to retreat into the vent.
@Melding, give me an Arcana check with advantage.
and this is how we fuck it up.
geth roll 2#1d20+5 for Arcana
c'mon big money no whammies.
or right i forgot the keep syntax, but that still works, right?
Halath, Seamus, you need to get moving and Jelenneth needs to rest after that last spell. One of you will need to pick up the pace while the other covers the rear.
@Nealneal and @silence1186 , one of you roll me a Constitution (Athletics) check with advantage. Note that I said Constitution, not Strength. This is a matter of high exertion for an extended period, not just a quick show of brute force.
The other one of you roll an appropriate skill check (also with advantage) for how you plan to keep the brain-spiders from following you up the vent.
Wide-eyed being about all he be right now.
I have no idea what skill check I would use for that, but I'm going with Dex.
Geth roll 2d20k1+3 for Spidery Oil Bath
Geth roll 2d20k1+5 for Constitution (Athletics)
All of you can hear the sizzling sound of the lava rising below you, which is accompanied by a sudden and very intense pressure on your minds from hundreds of creatures telepathically crying out in pain. This is bad enough, but a moment later a wave of heat slams into your bodies as hot air is pushed out of the vent. With all of your armor, and the dead (or sort of dead) weight of the fallen, and the steepness of the climb, it almost seems like you won't make it out.
But you do. Seamus, your muscles burn as hot as the lava rising beneath you, and your fingers feel as though they may be permanently bent in a rope-clutching position, but by all the gods - even the ones you don't like - you make it out of there.
For once, the cold rain is a welcome relief, as it washes away the heat and sweat, cooling your aching bodies. You lie there for a moment on the side of the hill, catching your breath for at least a short rest, and then you see it: sunlight. The rain dries up as the storm-clouds begin to dissipate, and within a few minutes the only wind you feel is a gentle breeze drifting over the hill.
The hill you're on is one of the hills surrounding Barrowtown. You're probably on the back side of the hill where you found the entrance to the barrow. Other than some wet grass and a few trees, there's nothing much here.
The walk back to town shouldn't take more than about 15 minutes. The terrain of the hill isn't particularly treacherous now that the rain has stopped and it's light outside.
"If one of you carry the girl, and one the dog, I'll handle the remainder."
Geth roll 1d20+5 for Athletics
Everyone dies.
Then he wakes up from "catching his breath" to find Halath nudging him with the end of a bow.
Apparently, once the rain stopped, some of the townspeople were brave enough to venture outside and start looking for who was responsible. A search party was formed, and they found you here on the hill. The incapacitated have been loaded into a wagon, thankfully one with enough room to keep the living separate from the dead.
You're free to hitch a ride back to the inn if you're ready to go.
"I'm still alive. Saaaaaave meeeeeeeee."
Back at the inn, you meet with the mayor who nearly collapses from the relief of seeing her sister alive. She thanks you profusely, offering anything within her power to give as a reward for your help. She also grieves for your fallen friends. "I will pray to every god I know of," she says to you solemnly. "I hope you can find a way to bring them back."
Over the next few hours, preparations are made to keep the bodies of the fallen clean and stable. The town cleric, a young woman by the name of Mina, casts a few spells to preserve Sophia and Theresa in their current state, should you ever find a way to bring them back to life. There isn't much she can do for Tal and Lakor, but she can at least keep their bodies healthy until you find a way to restore their minds. Healing Rhyna is a simple task, and soon the faithful hound is awake and well, though she refuses to leave her master's side.
These preparations take most of the day. As evening stretches into night, and most of the citizens have returned to their homes, an old man approaches you. "Everyone has heard about what you did in that barrow," he says. "I'm sorry about your friends. Truly sorry. I don't know if there's a right time for this, but I wanted to tell you that I think I might know of a way to help them. It's not for certain, but it might be something."
"If'n ye think ye has a way to help our friends, now be frankly the best time to fill us in."