The day was long and Simon had been on his second wind for quite a while. He walked like a purposeful zombie to the room he had claimed as a bedroom. Items were tossed aside. His pack emptied. His ever-present helm discarded. He laid against his bedroll and felt his arm go numb as he fell asleep in a position distantly knew he would regret.
Four hours later ago his eyes opened and he shot awake. "The scroll!" So much had happened that he had completely forgotten that he had seen Gruush pocket a scroll with the Wytch-Knight symbol! He jumped out of bed, not even bothering to don his helm.
He rushed over to Gruush's room(after asking at least one person where that might be) and attempted to politely (furiously) knock upon the door.
"You have a scroll belonging to the Wytch-Knights!" He spat at the masked man in excitement.
"Apologies I....". He trailed off as the need to look positively anywhere but the person he was speaking to reasserted itself.
"I have studied. But so far I can't do the magic. I was left some tombs by my great-aunt but no matter how much I studied... I memorized all I could understand. I thought perhaps Arthur could help me understand. I was going to ask him...." He knew he was rambling at this point.
"Anyway, can I borrow it? I have nothing to trade for it but I swear I will return it no worse for wear."
Suddenly one of the books in Gruush's room caught Simon's eye. "Chain law?"
“Hrrm.”, he eyes the longsword, “No time for this tonight. Soon perhaps.”
But a shield? That seems to be a different matter. Ben nods and tears the helm to pieces with his bare hands.
“Good deep metal. It will make for worthy material.”, he smiles, “Do you know? I have long had an idea for a special shield indeed. Mm.”
Besides the helm, Ben will need any old weapon for more material to work with.
That’s all Ben can forge during this long rest. That’s a warhammer for Kirina and a shield for Solomon.
If you end up deciding to really dig into having a whole week of downtime he may have time for more.
—
Alzav
Ben thinks, “I will go hunting soon. I will not eat with you today.”
No malice in it, he just does what he wants to do.
Take that 4.
The gold buckler is purely for show. You could hang it in your bedroom!
You have attuned to the gauntlet! You’d have to drink the liquid in the bottle to find out, or you could pour it out and test things on it, but you’d lose its use in the process. The cat…
Make an Arcana check
—
Arthur
You know the design of the attire you’re after. Perhaps there’s a seamstress out there somewhere…
I’m taking it you’re up and about for now, so say when you’re off to bed.
Solomon hands his greatsword over to Ben. "This weapon has been with me for many years. It's a humble blade, no magic or legend to speak of, but a trusted companion nonetheless. It's fitting that it remain at my side, albeit in a new form."
I'll give up my greatsword for the shield crafting.
Alzav rises from his seat on the floor of the library and makes to exit in search of the snail-sage. He stops in the doorway of the library, still for a moment--then turns, walks over the the shelf where he had set the glowing bottle, unstoppers it, and slugs the entire potion in one draught. "Why did I do that?"
I have these gems and potentially bejeweled items available if anyone wants to use them for crafting, they are all (y)ours:
-5 small gems from Fenwing (aventurines?)
-some dyed cut glass gems
-5 ordinary pieces of jewelry
-tiara (300gp)
Alzav will hang the solid gold bucker on the door of the fledgling armory.
It feels wrong to level up and take a level in fighter without putting any effort into RP'ing the need to go that way (came back with axe, now a fighter doesn't work).
It feels wrong to level up and take a level in fighter without putting any effort into RP'ing the need to go that way (came back with axe, now a fighter doesn't work).
At one point during the night, Solomon approaches Arthur. "Arthur, that old journal you found. The one with the mostly unused pages? Did you have any plans for it? I was thinking we could, perhaps, use it to document our experiences here. If there is some way that we could leave, the knowledge we've gained would be of great importance. And if we cannot leave, then perhaps that knowledge could help those who find themselves here after us."
My idea is that Arthur can write in the journal about the places we visit and the things we encounter and Solomon will illustrate on other pages. Just a neat thing to do on downtime.
A huge smile crosses Arthur's face as Solomon approaches him. He quickly rummages through his bag one handed, pulling out the old journal, flipping it open to the first page that has been started with the story of how the group met fighting the undead. "I started it!" he says excitedly.
He uses his free hand to pull out his personal book, flipping it open past a few pages, lots of notes written haphazardly and in various shorthand. It's a drastic difference in penmanship between the two, the journal contains the exquisite script that he was granted due to his ring, while his own notebook has much faster scratches, signs of writing while they were walking. "I have so much of my own notes I need to go through to continue, but I would love if you could help out. There's so much about this place that is unknown or just wrong from what I've read, I want to have the best summary of it!"
He pushes the journal towards Solomon. "Please, read the start and let me know what you think. And if you have anything to add, we can add it right now!" Arthur is probably the most excited that Solomon has seen him so far to this point.
I'm just going to assume Arthur doesn't find a magic button to release himself from the axe and keep on moving with it attached.
When the others awake and leave their rooms, Kirina broaches the subject of where to head next. "I mentioned it before we headed to Oudru, but I still think the Drossmire remains a good place to travel to next. It sounds like it may have a more established society, and we do have items of value to trade now..."
Feel free to ignore this if you wanna still do nighttime/evening stuff from before, but putting this out here for whenever people are ready for the next day.
Also, probably the only gem I can contribute to Ben (last night) is my 50-gold Emerald.
Just gonna assume that Gruush was cool with me borrowing the scroll since Mrpaku ok'd it out of character.
Simon, clutching the scroll to his chest, then rushed to where Arthur and Solomon were looking over their new journal. For a moment he is quiet as they continued talking about their plans for the scroll. When finally there is a moment of silence he tried to sneak into the conversation.
"er Arthur, can we speak? I have this scroll? Could you help me translate it?"
@kime I have a warhammer that should be fine to take now that I can summon my ball and chain.
Gruush finally leaves the easy-exits-and -escapes of the stone hallway deciding to finally put down “roots”, and attempt to eke out an existence in one of the Belfry’s bedrooms. He finds what must have been a dormitory situation at one point in one of the chambers, although nearly all of the loft bedframes have long ago collapsed in on themselves, and what remains of the curtains and bedding have been moth eaten to near transparency. The single window slit gives only dim light, facing as it does to the north. A large rat, peeking out from one end of a sagging mattress that is weeping hay, sees the stranger and steps further into the room, sitting up and sniffing in defiance as pink, hairless newborns meep in the infested bedding behind her.
Satisfied, the Mask finds his way through spider webs and half fallen fabrics to the one standing loft bed. Thumping a few foul smelling blankets into a rough nest underneath it, the man stretches out onto the floor. As he observes the rotted and moldy ceiling overhead, he stretches out his arms behind his head and spine to an obscene angle until his back and neck give strong pops among a couple dozen vertebrae and joints. With a sigh of deep and utter satisfaction, Gruush now takes off his mask and lays it by his side. A single glance back at the door, the man begins reading from amongst his rough newfound library, starting with the text on simple botanical healthcare…
He comes to in the near-dark to the find Simon the Wytch-Knight violently shaking him awake! The man, wide-eyed and manic, begins to babble about magic and the boy, roughly demanding the scroll! Gruush, dazed and still one foot in the land in dreams, fervently nods his head in an attempt to calm the Knight, moving subtly to replace the knives he had just grabbed out of instinct back into their holsters.
As Simon takes the scroll and darts back out of the room quick as he came, Gruush sits up in the bed and let’s himself breathe. “Man’s a bloody lunatic!,” he tells the surrounding dark. Gruush moves to rub the sleep from his eyes and finds no resistance, and he discovers to his sudden horror that the Mask was still laying upon the floor nearby this whole time!
After refreshing himself and shaving in the nearby lake, Gruush goes back to his room, digging out a secretive nest for the stash of gold and the ruby he’d discovered within a ruin-laden corner of one of the sunken bedframes. Afterwards, the Mask finds his way inside the Belfry to the Nan and the Snail. “Ere’,” he says, pressing 20 gold into Nan's palms. “Fer’ keeping an eye on thur place. Ain’t much, but it’ll ‘elp trade fer what ye’ need, should anyone ‘appen to come through here bearing goods. Course,” he follows discretely. “Should ye’ see anyone come through or by, I would mighty appreciate it ye' let us know…”
Later, Gruush attempts to ingratiate himself in the same way with the Giant, but finds himself flummoxed when Ben turns down his offer of gold. Grumbling, the Rogue considers for a long while afterwards. Suddenly stumbling upon a thought, he briefly excuses himself back to his room, and returns shortly thereafter with the Navigator’s Tools he had found. “Alright, alright….ye’ ain’t interested in gold. But, yer’ a man of no small craft….what ken’ ye’ tell me about this contraption right ere’?”
Afterwards, Gruush finds the others of his group, and siddles up next to Kirina at the morning fire as she tries to plan out the next leg of their journey. “Drossmire seems like er’ best next stop! Now that we got ur’ foothold going, best we step forward safely so we ken’ take another.”
Evil-Eyed Gruush strokes his beard, watching the fire. “…might not be a bad bet to do some hunting ere’ fishing long the way, keep our stores up. Not sure what the vittles situation might be, out Drossmire way…”
Black Dragon Kite Shield
A shield dyed black, it depicts a dragon breathing fire. Surprisingly heavy for such a style of shield.
While holding this shield you have +2 HP.
As an action, you can slam this shield into the ground. When you do, you cannot be forcefully moved, but your speed is halved. You can return to a regular stance as a bonus action.
—
Kirina
Ben seems overjoyed with his own work, though in a simple way, he’s not one to boast.
Eventide
A sturdy warhammer, built for purpose. It is dark blue for most of the time, but subtly changes to orange at sunrise and sunset.
1d8+1 bludgeoning damage.
Versatile (1d10+1)
When you roll a 1 on an attack action with this warhammer, you may deal 1d4 piercing damage to a creature in range.
Gruush! I’ve nicked your ruby for this.
Alzav! I’ve taken two daggers from you for this.
Actually, Simon’s own warhammer makes much more sense.
The axe is cursed. There’s gotta be a way to break the curse. Could this be an executioner’s axe? If so…
The contraption is quite puzzling. It takes some time to open, and when you do you find it empty. But then it hits you. It absorbs a spell cast into it, and when you throw it at a hard surface, the spell will be cast out from it. An arcana bomb! This’ll need testing! Theory is not enough!
—
Alzav
You rise early and before you can meet with the snail, you—let’s charitably say due to fatigue—just down a random bottle you found. Tasted like mint.
You have resistance to cold damage for the rest of the day.
It is a scroll imbued with the Arcane Eye spell. As an action, anyone may cast the spell by reading the scroll. It cannot be copied into a spellbook, and burns away upon use.
This, perhaps, tells you something of their methods, at least in the past. But how did this scroll end up in Oudru? Was there a spy in their midst, or were the Wytch-Knights aiding them?
Requires concentration. 1 hour duration.
You create an invisible, magical eye within range that hovers in the air for the duration.
You mentally receive visual information from the eye, which has normal vision and darkvision out to 30 feet. The eye can look in every direction.
As an action, you can move the eye up to 30 feet in any direction. There is no limit to how far away from you the eye can move, but it can’t enter another plane of existence. A solid barrier blocks the eye’s movement, but the eye can pass through an opening as small as 1 inch in diameter.
It takes work but as Arthur explains the mechanics of the scroll and the spell it contains Simon almost feels like he begins to understand. He was certainly closer than he ever been.
"Would you show me more? I memorized a few spells. I know the words but the meaning the eludes me."
Simon grasp about in his mind for something he could offer a true mage. "Perhaps... I could show you how to use the axe?"
Unfortunately I am off to work. Updated sheet tomorrow or tonight if I can manage.
Simon would flat out reject the Wytch-Knights doing something untoward but he will have to think on this mystery another day.
You have earned a Stab Somebody Die, which is a d6. Add it to your next attack for doing a big post.
Ben very gently takes a few select pieces of the navigator’s tools between his finger nails and looks them over. He hands them back.
“For sailing. Rr. Hmm. To chart a course and stay it true. Not an art I have a hand in, mine own self is far too heavy. Giants are a people of the earth alone. You? Ahh. Full of water.”
He gives you an inscrutable look.
“Hrm… You could learn to use it. Pity there’s none to teach you. But, just as I once held a hammer for the first time if you keep it with you and make your best attempt to utilise it… Well, mm, you’ll get the knack.”
He goes on to say it might be useful even on rivers, that Drossmire should be avoided by all, but yes, it has many lakes, and lastly, that to the west of Drossmire is a sunken place, a veritable inland sea.
Together Gruush and Kirina agree that some extra rations and, if possible, anything to stave off poison would be wise. Neither are quick and so, you must be spending the day in this area.
One of you make a Survival check, the other Nature.
You reach the snail sage, who, along with the old, blind lady are sat on a rock gazing at nothing.
“Sunny day!”, she says, turning the wrong way to greet you.
The show the cat statue to the sage, you waxes poetically about a bygone age and the craftsmanship of the past.
“Indeed,” says Gebinon, his eye stalks working independently, “This is a superb find. I believe it to be the work of the Celestial Aerie. A gift no doubt, to bring fortune. Cats are thought to be most lucky creatures. It is enchanted, that is plain to see. Subtle though, yes, quite subtle. I would be pleased to research it further, if I may? Would you put it in the main hall, next to where my dear friend makes her home?”
“Now please, ask me a question. I will answer it truly.”
Simon spent hours(either alone or with Arthur) struggling awkwardly through the first few steps of spellcasting. It was hard and tedious work. It turned out not to be just one thing that had held him back but instead dozens of small things that could only be communicated face to face. The shape of his sword swing, the perfect and precise pronunciation of words, a great and more perfect understanding of what you we're doing. For lack of a better description you simply had to know what you we're doing. He spent more than an hour performing the steps to casting booming blade over and over.
He was outside the belfry in the view of the giant going through the moves with Mordwyn. Was Ben still working at the forge? What strange person would still be at work this time of night? No matter. He faced the stump he was using as a target. He did the simple movements and set his will against reality. A simple flick. No, that was too much to the left. Legs too far apart. The timing was wrong. Suddenly something clicked. Hit sword struck the stump and then as he pulled it away something happened. The air surrounding the stump began to change. It was as if he was looking at it through steam.
He fell to his knees. That strange shimmer was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Someone was laughing. Oh, it was Simon! He felt it deep in his chest. A weight lifted. His great aunt Hildegarde had left town when he was still a boy. She had told him that he could become a Wytch-Knight like her. A large chest had been left behind with notes and tombs. They were all gone now but he had memorized them long ago. It hadn't done him any good though. The magic he remembered Hildy using in his youth could not be rekindled. Simon had struggled with learning anything really. He would discover specific interests where his understanding blossomed but for the most part he had struggled.
Hildy had shown up on their doorstep one day. Simon didn't know if she was really his great aunt. He supposed they must have been related what with their strong family resemblance. It had been just Simon and Simon's father for a long time. Simon still didn't know what had happened to his mother. His father had demanded her silence whenever Hildy had tried to speak of her. Simon's father was a gentle man to all and the fervor and vitriol that had come over him when Hildy tried to tell Simon about his mother had been shocking. He hadn't asked again. When she had arrived she'd come with a small fortune in gold. It was a godsend for a poor tailor and his son that couldn't do anything right.
When he started seeing and hearing illusions Hildegarde had suggested that becoming a Wytch-Knight could be the key. He had tried and tried and doubled his efforts after she left but to no avail. The visions seemed to get worse. They didn't fool him much anymore. He was good at telling the difference between what was real and what was illusion.
If there was anyone with him he recounted this story to them as he brushed tears from his eyes and laughed with uncontrolled abandon.
As a bonus action, you can enter a wide stance, estoc raised with both hands. When you do, you instead deal 2d6 piercing damage when you attack with this weapon.
Once per long rest, you may cast the Heat Metal spell as part of an attack action with the estoc. The spell must target where the blade is aimed, limiting the spell’s range.
Simon! You learn the Find Familiar ritual. However, you cannot choose the shape of your familiar. Now, and any time hereafter, roll on this table:
Wytch-Knight Familiar
Body:
1. Yellow Slime
2. White Raven
3. Six Legged Greyhound
4. Snake Skeleton
5. Winged Goat
6. Blood Red Wolf
Head:
1. Elderly Man
2. Barn Owl
3. Tusked Monkey
4. Featureless Porcelain
5. Delicate Furred Moth
6. Horned Imp
Personality:
1. Mean Spirited
2. Babbling Riddle Spinner
3. Violence is The Only Way
4. Gentle and Slothful
5. Witty
6. Extremely Lawful
Arthur wakes up the next morning, eyes opening slowly. His arm is stiff, he grunts as he realizes how uncomfortable it is. He goes to raise it and stretch, and hears the clank of metal clicking off stone. Helps eyes open wider and he looks down, the memories of the previous day returning, and seeing his hand firmly wrapped around an axe. "Oh, this is going to be annoying."
He sits up, careful to not knock the axe on anything. As he looks around, he sees his notebook open to a section he knew hadn't written in yet. With a confused look in his face, he pulls it over. Looking down in the page with a furrowed brow, he reads the passage, looks up in confusion, then reads it again. Understanding breaks across his face as he looks down at the ring on his right hand, but then he reads the passage yet again. Pointing to certain words with his finger, a look of concern appears across his face and he slams the book shut, looking around. After a minute of sitting upright in his bed with the book on his lap, he gets up to leave the room, leaving the book behind. A few steps out the door, he shuffles back in, grabs the book and taking it with him.
Allowing some of the concern of the previous event to pass, Arthur realizes this his own study wasn't enough. He seeks out the Snail Sage.
"Yes, uh, Hi." Arthur sheepishly raises his hand that is holding the axe, shaking it around a moment to display the problem. "I seem to have a bit of a problem with a curse, and my study of it last night didn't get me very far. Might you have any ideas as to how to unlock myself from this?"
Solomon accepts the shield from Ben. "Splendid craftsmanship. You have my thanks, Ben." Solomon spends the morning familiarizing himself with his new shield, getting used to the shape and weight of it on his arm. Once he feels comfortable using the shield, he returns inside the Belfry to make himself useful. The building is old and worn, but Solomon tries his best to clean up and make it more hospitable, even in the slightest.
At one point during the day, Solomon enters one of the vacant room in the Belfry, just to have a moment of solitude. He finds a broken piece of wood, or a stick, and just begins drawing in the collected dust and dirt. He'd never really been an artistic person before, but after his experience back at the castle of the Oudru, he now seemingly had a small desire to create, to make shape of his experiences. It's a little rough at first, he'd never really done it before, but quickly Solomon is drawing forms and figures with what would be considered by many a long practiced skill. Thinking back on finding the easel and the painting, Solomon remembers his unpleasant experience with the spirit. You left something of yourself behind, spirit. I hope that's the only thing. Once he's confirmed his new skill, Solomon erases his dirt canvass by shuffling it with his feet.
During the evening, when he is eating his rations, Solomon looks over what Arthur has entered in the journal so far. Solomon plans on adding illustrations to add to Arthur's writings, the recounting of their experiences here in the Beyond. But before that, Solomon turns all the way to the last pages, all blank. He finds the last twelve pages, he leaves every other page blank, for when Arthur reaches that point in the book to add his notes. But for the illustrations he begins to draw his companions, one per page. No matter what happens, you all will be remembered. The first person he draws is young Arthur, a bright eyed young man with an insatiable curiosity with a quill in hand. Before returning the journal to Arthur, he makes an illustration at the beginning of the fallen knight on the rocky outcropping, with shambling undead around the base.
Thought it'd be a nice touch for Solomon to leave space at the end of the journal for the party itself. That part is a surprise so he doesn't say anything about it. He did the other drawing at the beginning to make it look like that's all he'd done during that time.
As the group takes their rest and leisure about the Belfry that morning, Gruush fishes with hook and string into the nearby lake. In the afternoon, amongst nearby grassy paddocks, Gruush hunts small game. In the evening, the Mask clears wreckage and refuse from his new room and lays it upon the common burn pile. And as the night begins to close in, he finds another book from his library and tucks into his nest. Making sure to keep his mask close by this time, he hungrily delves into the new tome....
After his fishing and foraging for the day, Gruush would like to read the book "Passing the Hammer", wondering if it may help him to understand the situation they had encountered at Ourdru
Posts
Four hours later ago his eyes opened and he shot awake. "The scroll!" So much had happened that he had completely forgotten that he had seen Gruush pocket a scroll with the Wytch-Knight symbol! He jumped out of bed, not even bothering to don his helm.
He rushed over to Gruush's room(after asking at least one person where that might be) and attempted to politely (furiously) knock upon the door.
"You have a scroll belonging to the Wytch-Knights!" He spat at the masked man in excitement.
"Apologies I....". He trailed off as the need to look positively anywhere but the person he was speaking to reasserted itself.
"I have studied. But so far I can't do the magic. I was left some tombs by my great-aunt but no matter how much I studied... I memorized all I could understand. I thought perhaps Arthur could help me understand. I was going to ask him...." He knew he was rambling at this point.
"Anyway, can I borrow it? I have nothing to trade for it but I swear I will return it no worse for wear."
Suddenly one of the books in Gruush's room caught Simon's eye. "Chain law?"
A moment before your speech…
“Hrrm.”, he eyes the longsword, “No time for this tonight. Soon perhaps.”
But a shield? That seems to be a different matter. Ben nods and tears the helm to pieces with his bare hands.
“Good deep metal. It will make for worthy material.”, he smiles, “Do you know? I have long had an idea for a special shield indeed. Mm.”
Besides the helm, Ben will need any old weapon for more material to work with.
That’s all Ben can forge during this long rest. That’s a warhammer for Kirina and a shield for Solomon.
If you end up deciding to really dig into having a whole week of downtime he may have time for more.
—
Alzav
Ben thinks, “I will go hunting soon. I will not eat with you today.”
No malice in it, he just does what he wants to do.
Take that 4.
The gold buckler is purely for show. You could hang it in your bedroom!
You have attuned to the gauntlet! You’d have to drink the liquid in the bottle to find out, or you could pour it out and test things on it, but you’d lose its use in the process. The cat…
Make an Arcana check
—
Arthur
You know the design of the attire you’re after. Perhaps there’s a seamstress out there somewhere…
I’m taking it you’re up and about for now, so say when you’re off to bed.
That's basically the only thing I still have to do before I'd go to bed.
I'll give up my greatsword for the shield crafting.
Edit: Not the one I really needed to learn about there Geth....
Geth, roll 1d20+5 for Arcana (Axe)
Geth, roll 1d20+5 for Arcana(Contraption)
Geth roll 1d20 for cursed
e: haaaaa
Alzav rises from his seat on the floor of the library and makes to exit in search of the snail-sage. He stops in the doorway of the library, still for a moment--then turns, walks over the the shelf where he had set the glowing bottle, unstoppers it, and slugs the entire potion in one draught. "Why did I do that?"
I have these gems and potentially bejeweled items available if anyone wants to use them for crafting, they are all (y)ours:
-5 small gems from Fenwing (aventurines?)
-some dyed cut glass gems
-5 ordinary pieces of jewelry
-tiara (300gp)
Alzav will hang the solid gold bucker on the door of the fledgling armory.
So, just going up another Wizard level.
https://ddb.ac/characters/71627966/cRpoIt
Endless let me use the Tasha rule to swap out a cantrip, so I have Light now (no more fighting torches or darkvision).
That is great news. I was prepped to use a second-level spell to give y'all light
3DS Friend Code: 3110-5393-4113
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My idea is that Arthur can write in the journal about the places we visit and the things we encounter and Solomon will illustrate on other pages. Just a neat thing to do on downtime.
She'd probably be familiar enough with what everyone else is carrying around. Does anyone have a spare unused weapon?
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Or, maybe the broken blade Solomon carries could be used?
He uses his free hand to pull out his personal book, flipping it open past a few pages, lots of notes written haphazardly and in various shorthand. It's a drastic difference in penmanship between the two, the journal contains the exquisite script that he was granted due to his ring, while his own notebook has much faster scratches, signs of writing while they were walking. "I have so much of my own notes I need to go through to continue, but I would love if you could help out. There's so much about this place that is unknown or just wrong from what I've read, I want to have the best summary of it!"
He pushes the journal towards Solomon. "Please, read the start and let me know what you think. And if you have anything to add, we can add it right now!" Arthur is probably the most excited that Solomon has seen him so far to this point.
I'm just going to assume Arthur doesn't find a magic button to release himself from the axe and keep on moving with it attached.
Prepping mostly utility/exploration stuff. Also, anti-poison stuff, because:
When the others awake and leave their rooms, Kirina broaches the subject of where to head next. "I mentioned it before we headed to Oudru, but I still think the Drossmire remains a good place to travel to next. It sounds like it may have a more established society, and we do have items of value to trade now..."
Feel free to ignore this if you wanna still do nighttime/evening stuff from before, but putting this out here for whenever people are ready for the next day.
Also, probably the only gem I can contribute to Ben (last night) is my 50-gold Emerald.
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Simon, clutching the scroll to his chest, then rushed to where Arthur and Solomon were looking over their new journal. For a moment he is quiet as they continued talking about their plans for the scroll. When finally there is a moment of silence he tried to sneak into the conversation.
"er Arthur, can we speak? I have this scroll? Could you help me translate it?"
@kime I have a warhammer that should be fine to take now that I can summon my ball and chain.
I know that I should be rolling something here, but not sure what. History? Arcana? Both are the same bonus (+5) so I'll roll.
Geth, roll 1d20+5 for Arcana/History
Satisfied, the Mask finds his way through spider webs and half fallen fabrics to the one standing loft bed. Thumping a few foul smelling blankets into a rough nest underneath it, the man stretches out onto the floor. As he observes the rotted and moldy ceiling overhead, he stretches out his arms behind his head and spine to an obscene angle until his back and neck give strong pops among a couple dozen vertebrae and joints. With a sigh of deep and utter satisfaction, Gruush now takes off his mask and lays it by his side. A single glance back at the door, the man begins reading from amongst his rough newfound library, starting with the text on simple botanical healthcare…
He comes to in the near-dark to the find Simon the Wytch-Knight violently shaking him awake! The man, wide-eyed and manic, begins to babble about magic and the boy, roughly demanding the scroll! Gruush, dazed and still one foot in the land in dreams, fervently nods his head in an attempt to calm the Knight, moving subtly to replace the knives he had just grabbed out of instinct back into their holsters.
As Simon takes the scroll and darts back out of the room quick as he came, Gruush sits up in the bed and let’s himself breathe. “Man’s a bloody lunatic!,” he tells the surrounding dark. Gruush moves to rub the sleep from his eyes and finds no resistance, and he discovers to his sudden horror that the Mask was still laying upon the floor nearby this whole time!
After refreshing himself and shaving in the nearby lake, Gruush goes back to his room, digging out a secretive nest for the stash of gold and the ruby he’d discovered within a ruin-laden corner of one of the sunken bedframes. Afterwards, the Mask finds his way inside the Belfry to the Nan and the Snail. “Ere’,” he says, pressing 20 gold into Nan's palms. “Fer’ keeping an eye on thur place. Ain’t much, but it’ll ‘elp trade fer what ye’ need, should anyone ‘appen to come through here bearing goods. Course,” he follows discretely. “Should ye’ see anyone come through or by, I would mighty appreciate it ye' let us know…”
Later, Gruush attempts to ingratiate himself in the same way with the Giant, but finds himself flummoxed when Ben turns down his offer of gold. Grumbling, the Rogue considers for a long while afterwards. Suddenly stumbling upon a thought, he briefly excuses himself back to his room, and returns shortly thereafter with the Navigator’s Tools he had found. “Alright, alright….ye’ ain’t interested in gold. But, yer’ a man of no small craft….what ken’ ye’ tell me about this contraption right ere’?”
Afterwards, Gruush finds the others of his group, and siddles up next to Kirina at the morning fire as she tries to plan out the next leg of their journey. “Drossmire seems like er’ best next stop! Now that we got ur’ foothold going, best we step forward safely so we ken’ take another.”
Evil-Eyed Gruush strokes his beard, watching the fire. “…might not be a bad bet to do some hunting ere’ fishing long the way, keep our stores up. Not sure what the vittles situation might be, out Drossmire way…”
Solomon
By morning Ben has a shield waiting for you.
Black Dragon Kite Shield
A shield dyed black, it depicts a dragon breathing fire. Surprisingly heavy for such a style of shield.
While holding this shield you have +2 HP.
As an action, you can slam this shield into the ground. When you do, you cannot be forcefully moved, but your speed is halved. You can return to a regular stance as a bonus action.
—
Kirina
Ben seems overjoyed with his own work, though in a simple way, he’s not one to boast.
Eventide
A sturdy warhammer, built for purpose. It is dark blue for most of the time, but subtly changes to orange at sunrise and sunset.
1d8+1 bludgeoning damage.
Versatile (1d10+1)
When you roll a 1 on an attack action with this warhammer, you may deal 1d4 piercing damage to a creature in range.
Gruush! I’ve nicked your ruby for this.
Alzav! I’ve taken two daggers from you for this.
Actually, Simon’s own warhammer makes much more sense.
Staying up late, you learn the following…
The axe is cursed. There’s gotta be a way to break the curse. Could this be an executioner’s axe? If so…
The contraption is quite puzzling. It takes some time to open, and when you do you find it empty. But then it hits you. It absorbs a spell cast into it, and when you throw it at a hard surface, the spell will be cast out from it. An arcana bomb! This’ll need testing! Theory is not enough!
—
Alzav
You rise early and before you can meet with the snail, you—let’s charitably say due to fatigue—just down a random bottle you found. Tasted like mint.
You have resistance to cold damage for the rest of the day.
Dun dun dunnnnn
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It is a scroll imbued with the Arcane Eye spell. As an action, anyone may cast the spell by reading the scroll. It cannot be copied into a spellbook, and burns away upon use.
This, perhaps, tells you something of their methods, at least in the past. But how did this scroll end up in Oudru? Was there a spy in their midst, or were the Wytch-Knights aiding them?
You create an invisible, magical eye within range that hovers in the air for the duration.
You mentally receive visual information from the eye, which has normal vision and darkvision out to 30 feet. The eye can look in every direction.
As an action, you can move the eye up to 30 feet in any direction. There is no limit to how far away from you the eye can move, but it can’t enter another plane of existence. A solid barrier blocks the eye’s movement, but the eye can pass through an opening as small as 1 inch in diameter.
"Would you show me more? I memorized a few spells. I know the words but the meaning the eludes me."
Simon grasp about in his mind for something he could offer a true mage. "Perhaps... I could show you how to use the axe?"
Unfortunately I am off to work. Updated sheet tomorrow or tonight if I can manage.
Simon would flat out reject the Wytch-Knights doing something untoward but he will have to think on this mystery another day.
You have earned a Stab Somebody Die, which is a d6. Add it to your next attack for doing a big post.
Ben very gently takes a few select pieces of the navigator’s tools between his finger nails and looks them over. He hands them back.
“For sailing. Rr. Hmm. To chart a course and stay it true. Not an art I have a hand in, mine own self is far too heavy. Giants are a people of the earth alone. You? Ahh. Full of water.”
He gives you an inscrutable look.
“Hrm… You could learn to use it. Pity there’s none to teach you. But, just as I once held a hammer for the first time if you keep it with you and make your best attempt to utilise it… Well, mm, you’ll get the knack.”
He goes on to say it might be useful even on rivers, that Drossmire should be avoided by all, but yes, it has many lakes, and lastly, that to the west of Drossmire is a sunken place, a veritable inland sea.
Together Gruush and Kirina agree that some extra rations and, if possible, anything to stave off poison would be wise. Neither are quick and so, you must be spending the day in this area.
One of you make a Survival check, the other Nature.
Geth roll 1d20+3 for Survival check
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You reach the snail sage, who, along with the old, blind lady are sat on a rock gazing at nothing.
“Sunny day!”, she says, turning the wrong way to greet you.
The show the cat statue to the sage, you waxes poetically about a bygone age and the craftsmanship of the past.
“Indeed,” says Gebinon, his eye stalks working independently, “This is a superb find. I believe it to be the work of the Celestial Aerie. A gift no doubt, to bring fortune. Cats are thought to be most lucky creatures. It is enchanted, that is plain to see. Subtle though, yes, quite subtle. I would be pleased to research it further, if I may? Would you put it in the main hall, next to where my dear friend makes her home?”
“Now please, ask me a question. I will answer it truly.”
He was outside the belfry in the view of the giant going through the moves with Mordwyn. Was Ben still working at the forge? What strange person would still be at work this time of night? No matter. He faced the stump he was using as a target. He did the simple movements and set his will against reality. A simple flick. No, that was too much to the left. Legs too far apart. The timing was wrong. Suddenly something clicked. Hit sword struck the stump and then as he pulled it away something happened. The air surrounding the stump began to change. It was as if he was looking at it through steam.
He fell to his knees. That strange shimmer was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Someone was laughing. Oh, it was Simon! He felt it deep in his chest. A weight lifted. His great aunt Hildegarde had left town when he was still a boy. She had told him that he could become a Wytch-Knight like her. A large chest had been left behind with notes and tombs. They were all gone now but he had memorized them long ago. It hadn't done him any good though. The magic he remembered Hildy using in his youth could not be rekindled. Simon had struggled with learning anything really. He would discover specific interests where his understanding blossomed but for the most part he had struggled.
Hildy had shown up on their doorstep one day. Simon didn't know if she was really his great aunt. He supposed they must have been related what with their strong family resemblance. It had been just Simon and Simon's father for a long time. Simon still didn't know what had happened to his mother. His father had demanded her silence whenever Hildy had tried to speak of her. Simon's father was a gentle man to all and the fervor and vitriol that had come over him when Hildy tried to tell Simon about his mother had been shocking. He hadn't asked again. When she had arrived she'd come with a small fortune in gold. It was a godsend for a poor tailor and his son that couldn't do anything right.
When he started seeing and hearing illusions Hildegarde had suggested that becoming a Wytch-Knight could be the key. He had tried and tried and doubled his efforts after she left but to no avail. The visions seemed to get worse. They didn't fool him much anymore. He was good at telling the difference between what was real and what was illusion.
If there was anyone with him he recounted this story to them as he brushed tears from his eyes and laughed with uncontrolled abandon.
You’ve put a lot of work into this character, so I reckon you deserve this.
Mordwyn
Martial melee weapon
Magical estoc
1d8 slashing damage
Versatile (1d10)
As a bonus action, you can enter a wide stance, estoc raised with both hands. When you do, you instead deal 2d6 piercing damage when you attack with this weapon.
Once per long rest, you may cast the Heat Metal spell as part of an attack action with the estoc. The spell must target where the blade is aimed, limiting the spell’s range.
Simon! You learn the Find Familiar ritual. However, you cannot choose the shape of your familiar. Now, and any time hereafter, roll on this table:
Wytch-Knight Familiar
Body:
1. Yellow Slime
2. White Raven
3. Six Legged Greyhound
4. Snake Skeleton
5. Winged Goat
6. Blood Red Wolf
Head:
1. Elderly Man
2. Barn Owl
3. Tusked Monkey
4. Featureless Porcelain
5. Delicate Furred Moth
6. Horned Imp
Personality:
1. Mean Spirited
2. Babbling Riddle Spinner
3. Violence is The Only Way
4. Gentle and Slothful
5. Witty
6. Extremely Lawful
You’re spending the day here.
Ben will have room in his busy schedule of whatever else he does to upgrade two weapons.
To upgrade Mordwyn, he’ll need an old weapon, Kirina’s emerald and some special material—an enchanted item. He won’t have it finished this week!
He sits up, careful to not knock the axe on anything. As he looks around, he sees his notebook open to a section he knew hadn't written in yet. With a confused look in his face, he pulls it over. Looking down in the page with a furrowed brow, he reads the passage, looks up in confusion, then reads it again. Understanding breaks across his face as he looks down at the ring on his right hand, but then he reads the passage yet again. Pointing to certain words with his finger, a look of concern appears across his face and he slams the book shut, looking around. After a minute of sitting upright in his bed with the book on his lap, he gets up to leave the room, leaving the book behind. A few steps out the door, he shuffles back in, grabs the book and taking it with him.
Allowing some of the concern of the previous event to pass, Arthur realizes this his own study wasn't enough. He seeks out the Snail Sage.
"Yes, uh, Hi." Arthur sheepishly raises his hand that is holding the axe, shaking it around a moment to display the problem. "I seem to have a bit of a problem with a curse, and my study of it last night didn't get me very far. Might you have any ideas as to how to unlock myself from this?"
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At one point during the day, Solomon enters one of the vacant room in the Belfry, just to have a moment of solitude. He finds a broken piece of wood, or a stick, and just begins drawing in the collected dust and dirt. He'd never really been an artistic person before, but after his experience back at the castle of the Oudru, he now seemingly had a small desire to create, to make shape of his experiences. It's a little rough at first, he'd never really done it before, but quickly Solomon is drawing forms and figures with what would be considered by many a long practiced skill. Thinking back on finding the easel and the painting, Solomon remembers his unpleasant experience with the spirit. You left something of yourself behind, spirit. I hope that's the only thing. Once he's confirmed his new skill, Solomon erases his dirt canvass by shuffling it with his feet.
During the evening, when he is eating his rations, Solomon looks over what Arthur has entered in the journal so far. Solomon plans on adding illustrations to add to Arthur's writings, the recounting of their experiences here in the Beyond. But before that, Solomon turns all the way to the last pages, all blank. He finds the last twelve pages, he leaves every other page blank, for when Arthur reaches that point in the book to add his notes. But for the illustrations he begins to draw his companions, one per page. No matter what happens, you all will be remembered. The first person he draws is young Arthur, a bright eyed young man with an insatiable curiosity with a quill in hand. Before returning the journal to Arthur, he makes an illustration at the beginning of the fallen knight on the rocky outcropping, with shambling undead around the base.
Thought it'd be a nice touch for Solomon to leave space at the end of the journal for the party itself. That part is a surprise so he doesn't say anything about it. He did the other drawing at the beginning to make it look like that's all he'd done during that time.
After his fishing and foraging for the day, Gruush would like to read the book "Passing the Hammer", wondering if it may help him to understand the situation they had encountered at Ourdru
Give me a Nature check.