[[ Huh, I just realized Roland is the only one out here with second level spells already. ]]
Before Holm can even react to the redhead's confirmation to destroy the sigil, another of his strange new comrades dashes by with a scimitar—no, a hammer now—to smash the stone apart. There was relief, and then pain, as a strange voice filled his head, and he could only assume the heads of the others. The red marks on his arm burned under CASK, and a vision of somewhat familiar mountains appeared in the vortex swirling in the distance. Shouts echoed around him from his companions, which he could barely make out through the thrumming in his head, but he knew he had to run. The wild man between him and the portal looked like he was holding some kind of spell, so rather than releasing another cone of flames, Holm simply ran, pausing only for a moment to fire a more focused pulse of red energy from the third arm of his bracer, which he'd yet to utilize in this battle.
Movement: 30 ft. south through Roland.
BA: Force Ballista at purple-white spirit 14 to hit for 6 force damage, and it is pushed 5 ft. back if possible (that may be a wall behind it I can't tell.
A: Ready another 30 ft. of movement south once Dante is out of the way to avoid the whole difficult terrain through another creature thing.
Dante winces as a sharp pain lances through his skull, and the protective layer of frost that had surrounded him almost recedes entirely. He glances behind at the vortex-portal behind them, on a distant island of floating rock. Then he glances back to the platform, where yet more spirits had formed...And something else, something worse it seemed.
He slings his shield onto his arm, resting the flat of his blade on top as he backs away after the others, keeping his eyes on the creatures sure to pursue them.
Action| Don Shield Movement|30 ft away from the platform
Lucian's arrow finds its mark this time, ripping away wisps of the specter's form. A moment later a concussive blast knocks it backwards, slamming it against the cliff face behind it.
After the others have started to pull back, but before Rolandcasts his spell and begins to retreat himself, he would see the unfinished form begin to take shape: a pale man, kneeling in reverence with his sword pointed into the ground. A dark steel armor begins to form around him next.
A growth of spikes erupt from the ground on the stairs, seemingly blocking the advance of the shades and specters...Until they rise into the air, flying 5 feet above the thorny growths as they give chase. Two of them fly past, coming back down to the ground as they land between Roland and the rest of the group. The other three stop to hover 5 feet above the druid in a line. As you look around, the shades always seem to be facing you, their faces shifting and twisting into a myriad of horrifying visages.
The specter flies off the side of the platform, avoiding the spike growth entirely.
OoC Note: I don't think Lucian's attack would have sneak attack damage here. It wasn't made with advantage and there were no allies within 5 ft. of the creature. If I'm wrong on this, let me know!
Hearing the spirits quickly approaching, Holm spins around, ready to fire another cone of flames into their midst, but stops just short as he realizes the wild-looking man is caught up in the middle of them. Shaking his head, he instead backtracks a moment before focusing once more and sending out another soft pulse of red light from the bracer to shield himself and the others around him, then resumes the dash for the portal.
BA: Protector for 5 temp HP to anyone out of Korran, Dante, and Roland that wants it (this will replace your AoA if it's still active or any other temp HP, so your choice whether to take them)
A: Dash (possible opportunity attacks as he moves back down)
Movement: 5 ft. N - BA - Remaining 55 ft. of movement in the quickest route to the portal.
Korran didn’t know what moved faster, his body or his mind. As he dashed towards the portal his legs were light, his breath unchanged and his mind filled with questions. What was that presence? How could it feel greater than the very space where it manifested, so capable of control everything around so completely? Not even the Primordials had that kind of authority over an environment. Not even in legend. Could it be they were dealing with a spirit higher than the very gods the knew? What about the voice? Whoever was behind it could hold the presence, if for a moment. And there were the marks. Hells, last time the bard felt that lost he wasn’t even a bard.
“Faster!” He shouted looking behind. Roland was almost entirely surrounded and different from Lucian didn’t seem to have a spell to jump farther. Part of him wanted to attack, cast and Eldritch Blast, but doing so had more chances of weighting down the crew. The spirits seemed stronger and that was likely to translate into their tolerance to damage. Even before that the rudimentary spell could hit but one target and hardly with enough power to kill. The optimal action was to focus all his strength into moving, into keep dashing, and so he did.
Notes: Korran moves his full speed towards the portal, then spends his action to dash in the same direction.
As the others begin to cross the next bridge, Dante dances around the shade in front of him until he's standing next to Roland, slashing at one of the shades floating above the druid with a glowing blade. "Were I more prepared friend, I could have made this escape easier for us." With a grin on his face, he shrugs. "Alas, I am not more prepared. Maybe if we make it out of this you remind me to make some holy water eh?"
"Now let's go, I'll cover your retreat as best I can. I can catch up no matter what." With that he moves back around the shade behind him, standing next to the bridge as he waits for Roland to run past.
Lucian is relieved to see the others starting to follow him, continuing to shout and gesture for them to hurry. To free up his hands he takes his bow and puts it across his back, sprinting towards the portal frantically, with extreme, panicked speed and agility.
he dashes as both an action and a bonus action using cunning action. This adds up for a total of 105 ft. Of movement, and it’s a bit hard to see squares on the map, but if that would be enough to make it to the portal, he pauses just before it, looking back to the others to wait for them.
As Holmmoves out of their reach, both shades swipe at him(Melee Group Attack:24 to hit, 2 necrotic damage), slipping past his armor with chilling claws. Dantestrikes down one of the shades, dancing just out of reach as one tries to strike him in retaliation as he pulls away. While the rest dash across the bridge, Luciantakes off like a bolt fired from a crossbow. He comes up to the edge of the portal, feeling a cold breeze through it as the mountain air pushes into this deathly realm.
All four shades fly forward, surrounding Dante, swirling around him as their faces melt and change in horrifying fashion(At the start of your next turn, make a wisdom saving throw). The shades reach out to attack the warlock, but fail to get through his defensive stance(Melee Group Attack: 9).
Meanwhile, the specter flies towards the rest of the group - halfway there it turns invisible, reappearing in front of Korranwith its claws raised. The elvish man is caught by surprise, unable to dodge the attack as ghostly claws rake through him(Melee Spell Attack: 24 (Critical), 20 necrotic damage. Make a DC 12 Constitution Saving Throw, on a failure, expend a hit dice with no benefit).
On the platform, the dark iron armor plating finishes forming around the man. He stands up, walking up to the edge of Roland's spike growth. He disappears in a puff of mist, reappearing near the outer edge of the spell's effect. The thorns find the gaps in his armor as he wades through the remainder of them(taking 8 piercing damage), emerging on the other side. Dante would see the dark knight glaring at him with cold, icy blue eyes through his helmet visor.
For a brief moment, Dantefeels the fear rising as the shades swirl around him. Then he remembers what he came here for, who he came here for, and he steels himself against the horrifying sight.
Holm lets out a yelp of surprise as the specter materializes in front of him, scrambling back from it for a moment before it slashes horribly at one of the men in front of him. Quick as a flash, he takes aim and fires another concentrated pulse of red energy at it from the longer third metal arm of his bracer before glancing a risk backwards. "Move it, redhead! I don't think we want to see what that knight has in store for us!"
BA: Force Ballista for 8 force damage on the specter, and it is pushed back 5 ft. (Hopefully it's dead? 17 from Lucian probably halved to 8, 6 and then 8 from Holm, and 5–or maybe 2?–from Korran's AoA on that crit) Edit: realized I forgot my attack roll oops, 19 to hit
As Korran turned his face towards the front he found a specter ready to strike him down. He was running, dashing, when the arm fell and there was no time for him to balance his body and try a dodge. His muscles contracted, sudden and violent, as if they were cramping. His flesh felt cold and feverish at once. He would have screamed if the pain didn’t take his voice. The Armor of Agathys shattered, crystals of ice flying on the direction of the enemy.
“Helka.” He tried to scream, but his voice was little more than a whisper. Crystal of ice covered his body once more, taking the form of scale armor. Half bed is better than no bread at all, he thought clenching the jaw and hoping that little protection were enough to resist a next strike. His mind knew that the wounds changed nothing. It was better to save the healing for when one fell and no attack of his would make difference. Part of him wanted to focus on disengaging, but he knew the truth - if the specter had reached him there it would reach him in thirty feet. Dashing was still the option with the highest chances of survival. It was the option he took.
Notes: Con save rolled in the campaign log (13). Korran spends his bonus action to cast Armor of Agathys, his movement to move 30ft towards the portal and his action to move 30f more towards the portal.
"I'm on my way!" Dante's longsword slashes across the shade behind him, as he turns to run. After a few steps he turns and leaps across the chasm, following after the others towards the portal.
Movement| 10ft southwest -- Jump southeast -- Remaining 10ft movement towards the portal Action| True StrikeAttack: 15, Damage:15 Active Spells| Armor of Agathys (1 hp, 1 hour) Jump (2 turns left)
Seeing how his small fires have been effective, Roland will cast another one between the two shades behind Dante hoping to ease his retreat. [the two not in the way to the portal so Dante doesn't have to run through the fire.]
He will then continue 30 feet towards the portal, accepting any opportunity attack from the one near him.
As the specter's claws rake through Korran, the frosty armor protecting him explodes, sending shards of ice tearing through the creature. A moment later it's blasted to pieces by the force blast of Holm's creation. Dantecuts down another of the shades, dodging an attack from the two remaining(Melee Group Attack: 14 to hit) as he escapes after the rest of the party. Behind him, a small blaze erupts between the shades(DEX Save: 6, 8 fire damage), burning away their forms.
In one moment, the black clad knight is walking through the flames of Roland'sbonfire, untouched(DEX Save: 14) by the fire. You blink, and he disappears in another puff of mist, appearing right behind Dantewith his longsword raised. You see veins of ice branching up the blade from the hilt as it comes crashing down on the warlock (Melee Attack: 13 to hit), who dodges the blow at the last moment. With the ease of a practiced swordsman the knight changes his grip on the weapon and flicks the blade back up at a terrifying speed (Melee Attack:24 to hit, 13 slashing damage, 6 cold damage). Shards of ice from Dante's frosty armor fly back into his attacker's face, but they don't appear to slow him down very much.
[[ Huh, I just realized Roland is the only one out here with second level spells already. ]]
Before Holm can even react to the redhead's confirmation to destroy the sigil, another of his strange new comrades dashes by with a scimitar—no, a hammer now—to smash the stone apart. There was relief, and then pain, as a strange voice filled his head, and he could only assume the heads of the others. The red marks on his arm burned under CASK, and a vision of somewhat familiar mountains appeared in the vortex swirling in the distance. Shouts echoed around him from his companions, which he could barely make out through the thrumming in his head, but he knew he had to run. The wild man between him and the portal looked like he was holding some kind of spell, so rather than releasing another cone of flames, Holm simply ran, pausing only for a moment to fire a more focused pulse of red energy from the third arm of his bracer, which he'd yet to utilize in this battle.
Movement: 30 ft. south through Roland.
BA: Force Ballista at purple-white spirit 14 to hit for 6 force damage, and it is pushed 5 ft. back if possible (that may be a wall behind it I can't tell.
A: Ready another 30 ft. of movement south once Dante is out of the way to avoid the whole difficult terrain through another creature thing.
DM - A Humblewood Adventure | Holm Erebos - Dread Tyrant
Dante winces as a sharp pain lances through his skull, and the protective layer of frost that had surrounded him almost recedes entirely. He glances behind at the vortex-portal behind them, on a distant island of floating rock. Then he glances back to the platform, where yet more spirits had formed...And something else, something worse it seemed.
He slings his shield onto his arm, resting the flat of his blade on top as he backs away after the others, keeping his eyes on the creatures sure to pursue them.
Action| Don Shield
Movement| 30 ft away from the platform
Lucian's arrow finds its mark this time, ripping away wisps of the specter's form. A moment later a concussive blast knocks it backwards, slamming it against the cliff face behind it.
After the others have started to pull back, but before Roland casts his spell and begins to retreat himself, he would see the unfinished form begin to take shape: a pale man, kneeling in reverence with his sword pointed into the ground. A dark steel armor begins to form around him next.
A growth of spikes erupt from the ground on the stairs, seemingly blocking the advance of the shades and specters...Until they rise into the air, flying 5 feet above the thorny growths as they give chase. Two of them fly past, coming back down to the ground as they land between Roland and the rest of the group. The other three stop to hover 5 feet above the druid in a line. As you look around, the shades always seem to be facing you, their faces shifting and twisting into a myriad of horrifying visages.
The specter flies off the side of the platform, avoiding the spike growth entirely.
Full Map
Lucian, Dante, Korran, Holm, and Roland!
OoC Note: I don't think Lucian's attack would have sneak attack damage here. It wasn't made with advantage and there were no allies within 5 ft. of the creature. If I'm wrong on this, let me know!
Hearing the spirits quickly approaching, Holm spins around, ready to fire another cone of flames into their midst, but stops just short as he realizes the wild-looking man is caught up in the middle of them. Shaking his head, he instead backtracks a moment before focusing once more and sending out another soft pulse of red light from the bracer to shield himself and the others around him, then resumes the dash for the portal.
BA: Protector for 5 temp HP to anyone out of Korran, Dante, and Roland that wants it (this will replace your AoA if it's still active or any other temp HP, so your choice whether to take them)
A: Dash (possible opportunity attacks as he moves back down)
Movement: 5 ft. N - BA - Remaining 55 ft. of movement in the quickest route to the portal.
DM - A Humblewood Adventure | Holm Erebos - Dread Tyrant
Korran didn’t know what moved faster, his body or his mind. As he dashed towards the portal his legs were light, his breath unchanged and his mind filled with questions. What was that presence? How could it feel greater than the very space where it manifested, so capable of control everything around so completely? Not even the Primordials had that kind of authority over an environment. Not even in legend. Could it be they were dealing with a spirit higher than the very gods the knew? What about the voice? Whoever was behind it could hold the presence, if for a moment. And there were the marks. Hells, last time the bard felt that lost he wasn’t even a bard.
“Faster!” He shouted looking behind. Roland was almost entirely surrounded and different from Lucian didn’t seem to have a spell to jump farther. Part of him wanted to attack, cast and Eldritch Blast, but doing so had more chances of weighting down the crew. The spirits seemed stronger and that was likely to translate into their tolerance to damage. Even before that the rudimentary spell could hit but one target and hardly with enough power to kill. The optimal action was to focus all his strength into moving, into keep dashing, and so he did.
Notes: Korran moves his full speed towards the portal, then spends his action to dash in the same direction.
As the others begin to cross the next bridge, Dante dances around the shade in front of him until he's standing next to Roland, slashing at one of the shades floating above the druid with a glowing blade. "Were I more prepared friend, I could have made this escape easier for us." With a grin on his face, he shrugs. "Alas, I am not more prepared. Maybe if we make it out of this you remind me to make some holy water eh?"
"Now let's go, I'll cover your retreat as best I can. I can catch up no matter what." With that he moves back around the shade behind him, standing next to the bridge as he waits for Roland to run past.
Movement| 5ft northeast -- 5ft northwest -- Action -- 5ft southeast - 10ft southwest
Action| True Strike Attack: 16, Damage: 10
Active Spells| Armor of Agathys (1 hp, 1 hour) Jump (4 turns left)
Lucian is relieved to see the others starting to follow him, continuing to shout and gesture for them to hurry. To free up his hands he takes his bow and puts it across his back, sprinting towards the portal frantically, with extreme, panicked speed and agility.
he dashes as both an action and a bonus action using cunning action. This adds up for a total of 105 ft. Of movement, and it’s a bit hard to see squares on the map, but if that would be enough to make it to the portal, he pauses just before it, looking back to the others to wait for them.
Roland curses as the undead easily avoid his blockade!
He will Misty Step, then he will dash to the portal, his mind on escape with the others.
As Holm moves out of their reach, both shades swipe at him(Melee Group Attack: 24 to hit, 2 necrotic damage), slipping past his armor with chilling claws. Dante strikes down one of the shades, dancing just out of reach as one tries to strike him in retaliation as he pulls away. While the rest dash across the bridge, Lucian takes off like a bolt fired from a crossbow. He comes up to the edge of the portal, feeling a cold breeze through it as the mountain air pushes into this deathly realm.
All four shades fly forward, surrounding Dante, swirling around him as their faces melt and change in horrifying fashion(At the start of your next turn, make a wisdom saving throw). The shades reach out to attack the warlock, but fail to get through his defensive stance(Melee Group Attack: 9).
Meanwhile, the specter flies towards the rest of the group - halfway there it turns invisible, reappearing in front of Korran with its claws raised. The elvish man is caught by surprise, unable to dodge the attack as ghostly claws rake through him(Melee Spell Attack: 24 (Critical), 20 necrotic damage. Make a DC 12 Constitution Saving Throw, on a failure, expend a hit dice with no benefit).
On the platform, the dark iron armor plating finishes forming around the man. He stands up, walking up to the edge of Roland's spike growth. He disappears in a puff of mist, reappearing near the outer edge of the spell's effect. The thorns find the gaps in his armor as he wades through the remainder of them(taking 8 piercing damage), emerging on the other side. Dante would see the dark knight glaring at him with cold, icy blue eyes through his helmet visor.
Player characters are back up in initiative!
WIS Save: 14
For a brief moment, Dante feels the fear rising as the shades swirl around him. Then he remembers what he came here for, who he came here for, and he steels himself against the horrifying sight.
(No effect)
Holm lets out a yelp of surprise as the specter materializes in front of him, scrambling back from it for a moment before it slashes horribly at one of the men in front of him. Quick as a flash, he takes aim and fires another concentrated pulse of red energy at it from the longer third metal arm of his bracer before glancing a risk backwards. "Move it, redhead! I don't think we want to see what that knight has in store for us!"
BA: Force Ballista for 8 force damage on the specter, and it is pushed back 5 ft. (Hopefully it's dead? 17 from Lucian probably halved to 8, 6 and then 8 from Holm, and 5–or maybe 2?–from Korran's AoA on that crit) Edit: realized I forgot my attack roll oops, 19 to hit
A: Dash
Movement: 60 ft. towards portal
DM - A Humblewood Adventure | Holm Erebos - Dread Tyrant
As Korran turned his face towards the front he found a specter ready to strike him down. He was running, dashing, when the arm fell and there was no time for him to balance his body and try a dodge. His muscles contracted, sudden and violent, as if they were cramping. His flesh felt cold and feverish at once. He would have screamed if the pain didn’t take his voice. The Armor of Agathys shattered, crystals of ice flying on the direction of the enemy.
“Helka.” He tried to scream, but his voice was little more than a whisper. Crystal of ice covered his body once more, taking the form of scale armor. Half bed is better than no bread at all, he thought clenching the jaw and hoping that little protection were enough to resist a next strike. His mind knew that the wounds changed nothing. It was better to save the healing for when one fell and no attack of his would make difference. Part of him wanted to focus on disengaging, but he knew the truth - if the specter had reached him there it would reach him in thirty feet. Dashing was still the option with the highest chances of survival. It was the option he took.
Notes: Con save rolled in the campaign log (13). Korran spends his bonus action to cast Armor of Agathys, his movement to move 30ft towards the portal and his action to move 30f more towards the portal.
"I'm on my way!" Dante's longsword slashes across the shade behind him, as he turns to run. After a few steps he turns and leaps across the chasm, following after the others towards the portal.
Movement| 10ft southwest -- Jump southeast -- Remaining 10ft movement towards the portal
Action| True Strike Attack: 15, Damage: 15
Active Spells| Armor of Agathys (1 hp, 1 hour) Jump (2 turns left)
Seeing how his small fires have been effective, Roland will cast another one between the two shades behind Dante hoping to ease his retreat. [the two not in the way to the portal so Dante doesn't have to run through the fire.]
He will then continue 30 feet towards the portal, accepting any opportunity attack from the one near him.
As the specter's claws rake through Korran, the frosty armor protecting him explodes, sending shards of ice tearing through the creature. A moment later it's blasted to pieces by the force blast of Holm's creation. Dante cuts down another of the shades, dodging an attack from the two remaining(Melee Group Attack: 14 to hit) as he escapes after the rest of the party. Behind him, a small blaze erupts between the shades(DEX Save: 6, 8 fire damage), burning away their forms.
Lucian is up!
”Come on! Go, go, go!” he urges his new companions to hurry, not wanting to leave any of them behind.
he readies his action to fire an arrow if any enemies appear or enter within 80 feet of him.
In one moment, the black clad knight is walking through the flames of Roland's bonfire, untouched(DEX Save: 14) by the fire. You blink, and he disappears in another puff of mist, appearing right behind Dante with his longsword raised. You see veins of ice branching up the blade from the hilt as it comes crashing down on the warlock (Melee Attack: 13 to hit), who dodges the blow at the last moment. With the ease of a practiced swordsman the knight changes his grip on the weapon and flicks the blade back up at a terrifying speed (Melee Attack: 24 to hit, 13 slashing damage, 6 cold damage). Shards of ice from Dante's frosty armor fly back into his attacker's face, but they don't appear to slow him down very much.
Lucian's readied action is triggered.
Initiative returns to the player characters!
Attack reaction against the knight:
to hit: 24 damage: 3 (and no sneak attack in this case i believe, since it’s not Lucian’s turn?)
If Sneak attack does apply: 4