((Gone a few days and just look at what you've done!

It is almost a certainty Marrin is going down with her -1 wisdom save, but I will use her inspiration to up the odds.))

Wis save (adv): 14

((That's all her hp and then some.))

Avaria connects solidly with both blows, and Mak'ral's definitely hurt by them, but despite that he manages to maintain his concentration and the swirling spirits stay up and active.

The necrotic energy is too much for Marrin and she collapses against the wall before slumping down to the step below.

Avaria, using all her focus to make the attacks, doesn't leave anything in reserve to defend herself as she seeks to get away from the orcish spirits. Mak'ral seizes on the opportunity to attack.

Ethel notes that Mak'ral, rather than just instinctively hitting out with a weapon starts his hands and lips moving to cast a spell (If she wants to use Counterspell please roll).

Ethel almost hesitates too long.  She doesn't know what this creature is capable of, and she is down to her last counterspell.  But seeing it attempt to cast something at Avaria as she tries to flee... 

... She raps her walking stick hard upon the ground again and snarls.  "NO."

Check:  22

Energy ripples along Mak'ral's hand but before he can complete whatever spell he was about to cast upon Avaria, Ethel is able to react and disrupt the power flow. Whatever effect was planned fizzles out.

Mak'ral glares down at Ethel.

"You should not have sided with the dragon cultists," Mak'ral says to Ethel. "You know you could have learned much from the Dark One."

With Marrin down and more opponents below than above, Mak'ral moves up the stairs after Jan, the orcish spirits following along with him.

He moves around the curve of the tower up to Jan, the orcish spirits swirling around the warlock.

He holds up his hand and a ray of greenish vapour pours out and towards Jan, however, in his rush to get up the stairs, the greenish ray misses Jan but she can still smell it and it's very similar to that of the vapours being emitted by the zombies.

Soren bounds up the stairs but stops his pursuit and bends down and places a hand on Marrin, humming a steady melody as he does so. Energy flows from Soren into Marrin (heals 14 HP).

He calls up the stairs to Jan "Don't let him touch you."

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Ethel and Jan are up (Jan will need to make another WIS save DC 18 because she's amongst the spirits again - 27 necrotic on failure, 13 on success)

Ethel fixes the half-orc with a cold, calculating stare, even as she prepares another spell.  Her voice is steady with a touch of venom.

"Oh, spare me your self-important drivel.  Any being arrogant enough to call itself 'the Dark One' is unlikely to be a wellspring of wisdom—unless, of course, I were in need of lessons on brooding pretension and... maybe... theatrical monologues?"

She grips her walking stick, stepping closed - but still keeping well enough back from the perimeter of his spectral guardians.

"And you?  A servant of this dark one, then?  And where has this master lead you?  To a tower in the middle of no where, alone, bleeding and surrounded?  No, I think I’ll continue to manage without your enlightenment."

Then she waves her stick and casts wither and bloom again.  Once again, it fails to impress with only 4 necrotic damage to Mak'ral if he fails a DC 16 CON save, or 2 if he succeeds.  Her main goal was to grant a bit of aid to Jan, as she can roll an unspent hit dice and regain the result, +5 in HP.

Mak’ral winces slightly at the effects of Ethel’s spell, but it doesn’t shake his concentration and the spirits still form a deadly cloud around him.

Jan WIS: 16

Jan's knees buckle as the spirits tear into her, before being buoyed by Ethel's arcane infusion of energy and her legs strengthen.

((8 HP regained))

She falls into a stumbling retreat, unleashing two bolts of eldritch energy at him.

Attack: 15 Damage: 8 force damage
Attack: 9 Damage: 14 force damage

((Also does +3 bludgeoning on the first hit.))

Jan knows how close to falling she is, and retreats as far as she can.

Marrin blinks up at Soren who promptly leaves her on the floor.

She looks up at the ceiling and mutters,

"He killed me? Mak killed me? I was dead?"

Both of Jan's eldritch blasts catch Mak'ral in the chest, but the orc keeps his concentration and the orcish spirits keep flying about.

As Jan moves to escape, Mak'ral takes advantage of Jan's desperation. He splays his fingers towards Jan and a ray of greenish, pungent gas flashes outwards. (Attack: 25 Damage: 14  if hits, Jan needs to make a CON Save DC 18, if fail then Poisoned until end of next turn).

Ula starts to move up the stairs but then catches movement on the stairs and turns and lets a bolt of energy race towards a zombie that raised it's head up the stairs. The zombie catches the energy straight in its face and teeters slightly. A dim glittering light outlines the zombie making it ripe for anyone else to attack (advantage on attacks against this zombie for the next turn).

Soren nods down at Marrin.

"Yeah, you were done," Soren says.

---------------------------------------------------------

K, Avaria, and Marrin are up.

As an FYI, Mak'ral looks pretty banged up but with still a ways to go before he teeters over.

Knowing this lying bastard was chasing after Jan, Avaria disregards the spirits and shifts as she runs after Mak'ral, feeling the extra temp hps this allots her.  Breathing hard with the situation falling apart around them, she doesn't see Soren heal Marrin and the rage she is feeling is palpable.

Reaching the half-orc, she swings, attacking recklessly.

Even so, she misses with her first swing.  Crying out in frustration, she tries again.  

Attack: 18, Damage: 14 + 2

Jan CON Save: 5

Whether the poison takes hold in her or not, it matters little as Jan feels her consciousness fading as she slumps to the ground.

Marrin lays on the ground looking up and hearing the shouting and fighting while Soren explains her prior situation.

She stares for a long moment then pushes herself up, stumbled to the stairs to look up and yells,

"YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A SECOND RATE BIOLOGIST MAK!"

Unsettling words (if Marrin can see him with her movement): -7 on the below save

She will start whispering loudly something awful just for Mak ( dissonant whispers, DC 16 Wisdom save): 11

((If Mak fails, Ava should get another swing as he runs away. Also, let me know if unsettling words activated so I can remove the bardic on my sheet.))

(Marrin can move up a bit to see Mak’ral. And Avaria will need to make a WIS Save - DC 18 - when she enters the spirit cloud, before she attacks - 35  necrotic on a fail, half on success).  

WIS save 6

She doesn’t look good, but she’s still coming!

Mak'ral hears Marrin's words and she can see they have some affect on the orc, but the botanist show's his strength as he's able to steel his mind against the worst of the effects.

Despite the savage attack from the spirit orcs, Avaria makes her way through to Mak'ral and is able to connect once with her sword. He grimaces at the pain but remains standing and maintains his concentration. He's battered and bruised but, for the time being, is looks to be doing better than everyone but Soren and Ula.

With Jan down behind him, Mak'ral turns and looks at both Avaria and Marrin and shakes his head.

"This will not end well for you," Mak'ral says. "You'll shortly be joining the others guarding the outside."

Rather than cast a spell, Mak'ral strikes out at Avaria with a closed fist (16 to hit for 3 bludgeoning) and connects with her shoulder. However, while that should have done little to Avaria in her current state, she feels dark energy race outwards from Mak'ral the moment contact is made and she falls to the ground, dying (additional 37 necrotic).

Mak'ral smiles at Marrin, turns, steps over Jan, and trots up the stairs, back to the room he was in before.

Soren, his plans to attack Mak'ral falling to the side, follows Marrin up the stairs only to see both Jan and Avaria unconscious and dying.

He reaches down and grabs hold of Avaria, his eyes growing wide as he sees the extent of the damage done to the shifter. He then hums a short note, holding it as much of the necrotic damage lightens and Avaria sucks air hungrily into her lungs (Healed 11 HP).

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Ethel and Jan next - with first death save from Jan. Mak'ral has disappeared up the stairs but you all know the next floor is just around the corner on the spiral staircase. The zombie that Ula lit up is still visible in the doorway (adv to attack that one until it's Ula's turn).

Ethel stands amid the wreckage, her recent taunts turning sour in her mouth.  The scent of blood hangs in the air, mingling with the sickly-sweet rot of the undead outside.  Around her, her allies lie broken—some barely breathing, others unmoving.  This was supposed to go differently.

Her gaze lingered on the stairwell, where the half-orc has disappeared.  He expects them to chase him.  He wants them to.  Ethel’s hands clench into fists.  A cold knot of realization coils in her stomach.  This isn’t just a retreat—this is a trap.  She takes a step forward… then stops.

Her mind, so often a tool of razor-sharp logic, struggles to push past the rising panic.  Confidence had blinded her.  This man's - this thing's - power was beyond what she’d accounted for.  If they stormed after him blindly, they could be walking straight to their deaths.

Ethel turns sharply, scanning the room, searching for something—anything—that might turn the tide.  A strategy.  An escape.  A weapon they haven’t yet considered.  Her eyes flicker to her remaining allies.

"We are losing."  The words taste bitter, but she forces them out.  "Rushing after him will not change that.  Think.  There is something we are missing.  There has to be."

In frustration, she lashes out at the illuminated zombie with a spectral claw.

• Spell Attack:  17  Necrotic Damage:  9

"Ula, get Jan back on her feet.  Soren... Marrin... if you have any ideas or tricks up your sleeves, there will be no better time for them."

@GM