“A fiend,” Incantis mutters darkly. “Let’s cover it and attack? I can musically invigorate ((inspire)) whoever wants to do it.”He pulls his mostly empty pack off, gauging its size.
Right lads. If the plan is te throw it in a sack and beat the shite out o' the thing...
I'm ashamed te say I may have the most experience with it though I'm guessing Strix may have walloped a few unsuspecting prey. If'n Strix can cast that delightful sneakin' spell...well... I'm already light on my toes but that should put him and I o'er the top on getting the jump on it eh? And if we're caught? Well death by floating magic skull sounds downright fit for a pirate as far as deaths go. Legendary even. Just make sure the song is a good shanty.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Strix removes his Redbrand cloak, bunches the ends and ties his rope around the end in a loose slip knot. He tgen closes his eyes and eases his fingers into the gloom that clings to the cave wall, pulling it about himself and his cohorts.( pass without trace)
If scupper lacks a hammer, Strix offers him his piton-hammer. (It's not a weapon hammer though, so I don't know if it can be used offensively? As a monk, naturally it's a lethal weapon in Strix's hands so if you have a legitimate blunt weapon, use that.
When everyone's ready to go, he'll creep forward. Slowly, so everyone can keep up.
Okay, so first things first. Dekhan, Incantis, Scupper and Varinth are still back in the large cavern. If you're planning to move up to where Strix is, are you moving normally or stealthily? If stealthily, please give me Stealth checks. Without Pass Without Trace, because Strix isn't near enough to you to cast it.
Also, just to be clear and so I don't misunderstand what you're aiming to do - you plan to throw a sack (do you have a sack?) over the skull and then beat it to death while it's in the sack? The skull is floating 20 feet off the ground, so you throw the sack up, is that right?
Okay, so first things first. Dekhan, Incantis, Scupper and Varinth are still back in the large cavern. If you're planning to move up to where Strix is, are you moving normally or stealthily? If stealthily, please give me Stealth checks. Without Pass Without Trace, because Strix isn't near enough to you to cast it.
Also, just to be clear and so I don't misunderstand what you're aiming to do - you plan to throw a sack (do you have a sack?) over the skull and then beat it to death while it's in the sack? The skull is floating 20 feet off the ground, so you throw the sack up, is that right?
20 feet? What do you think I am? Some kind of martial arts master?
Oh wait :D
The plan is :
Throw a Redbrand cloak over the skull and bring it down.
Tie off the ends of the cloak using the pre-prepared slip-knotted rope
Beat the skull with hammers. I do have a hammer.
OK, look, this is clearly a terrible plan.... BUT that doesn't mean it won't work. Just that there are a lot of factors that make it difficult.
20 ft is doable. Scupper has jumping boots. Strix can reach a 20ft ledge with Step of the Wind. We actually need a little more clearance than that but that's what friends are for.
We don't know how much "lift" the skull has. Can it hold itself and a Scupper/Strix in the air? One way to find out....
We don't have a bag, but a cloak with a loose noose (as described in prev post) on top of it is actually better if you can bring it down on the skull then pull the noose. Wider catchment area with quck close action. Throwing it up and over would be worse than a bag though.
So if we're willing to spend enough resources (the other half of my ki for this short rest for example) we can sneak up close enough that we get surprise on him, then Strix runs forward and either tosses Scupper up in the air to bag the skull or crouches for Scupper to jump off like a springboard (or, with step of the wind, Strix jumps off Scuppers back to get the addition couple of feet to get over the top of the skull and reverse-air-jordan him into the cloak like a bird in a fireplace. . Then KAPOW!
Edit : In favour of Sack Attack - it's a magic skull with no arms or legs. What are the chances that all it's attack are spells that include the phrase "creature that you can see"? You can't see nothing in a sack and a sack is not a creature! Remind me to buy a sack next time we're in town. MAybe as a precaution we should spend a round spinning the sack around our heads and slamming it off the ground so it's completely disoriented and can't target any non"that you can see" spells accurately. Also, why do I get the feeling we've tried something like this before?
Please, for the love of god, someone suggest something else. We can just sneak past him and over to the north east with Pass Without Trace?
If you want to get Strix back to you to cast pass without a trace, that's fine, as Zhudala can transmit the message. We can retcon so that Varinth is still with you when that happens, if that's what you decide to do.
My mind's telling me no...but my BODYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
We're overlooking three important sack-attack assets; 30ft mage hand, invisible imp flyover, and the fact that Incantis has unequipped leather armor i.e. his cloak is spare.
Staying where he is, Incantis begins to shoulder off his robe, shivering at the chill. You see that the tattoos on his face and neck run further down, along, and around his torso, and what seemed like fragmented tendril are but parts of a contiguous whole. He telepaths to Scupper. "I'm assuming you're good with knots, sailor?"
Could we retcon in that Incantis was next to Strix during pass without trace?
Ropes, knots, skulls... it's a pirate's life for me.
Magic hands could certain assist with the sack. Alas...even with me magic boots, the highest I'll get is about 10 feet straight up or 20 feet across...not 20 feet straight up.
If ye can bring it down te 9 or 10 feet I could might grab the sack but otherwise I'll be needing wings.
Incantis sees the redbrand cloak in Strix’s hands, rerobing. “Okay Scupper, Zhudie will drop the cloak onto the skull, can you rig ropes so I can pull it shut and tied with mage hand? Then we can all pull the ropes.” He telepaths to Zhudala. “We need you, invisible but in your true form.”
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Incantis, half-elf warlock (great old one) 4/bard 1 ● Thorok Earthhand, hill dwarf mountain druid 6/grave cleric 2
Cragmyre Ironseed, earth genasi ancestral barbarian 3 ● Cyrus Natriallae, aquatic half-elf warlock of the deep 3
Strix sneaks back to the large cavern, reunites with the rest of the group, and describes in detail what he has seen, adding to Incantis's description. Zhudala comes with him (I think?). He then casts Pass Without Trace on the whole party, and as a group you begin to move north, returning to the furnace cavern where the floating flaming skull is.
I have Stealth checks from Strix and Varinth already.
Incantis, Supper and Dekhan, please give me Stealth checks, Dekhan at disadvantage, as you try to move through the large cavern without attracting attention from who knows what.
“A fiend,” Incantis mutters darkly. “Let’s cover it and attack? I can musically invigorate ((inspire)) whoever wants to do it.” He pulls his mostly empty pack off, gauging its size.
Incantis, half-elf warlock (great old one) 4/bard 1 ● Thorok Earthhand, hill dwarf mountain druid 6/grave cleric 2
Cragmyre Ironseed, earth genasi ancestral barbarian 3 ● Cyrus Natriallae, aquatic half-elf warlock of the deep 3
((Where exactly are the carts of ore?))
Incantis, half-elf warlock (great old one) 4/bard 1 ● Thorok Earthhand, hill dwarf mountain druid 6/grave cleric 2
Cragmyre Ironseed, earth genasi ancestral barbarian 3 ● Cyrus Natriallae, aquatic half-elf warlock of the deep 3
Next to the furnace (the large square block), some to the south and some to the east of it, but all right next to it.
Right lads. If the plan is te throw it in a sack and beat the shite out o' the thing...
I'm ashamed te say I may have the most experience with it though I'm guessing Strix may have walloped a few unsuspecting prey. If'n Strix can cast that delightful sneakin' spell...well... I'm already light on my toes but that should put him and I o'er the top on getting the jump on it eh? And if we're caught? Well death by floating magic skull sounds downright fit for a pirate as far as deaths go. Legendary even. Just make sure the song is a good shanty.
Strix removes his Redbrand cloak, bunches the ends and ties his rope around the end in a loose slip knot. He tgen closes his eyes and eases his fingers into the gloom that clings to the cave wall, pulling it about himself and his cohorts.( pass without trace)
If scupper lacks a hammer, Strix offers him his piton-hammer. (It's not a weapon hammer though, so I don't know if it can be used offensively? As a monk, naturally it's a lethal weapon in Strix's hands so if you have a legitimate blunt weapon, use that.
When everyone's ready to go, he'll creep forward. Slowly, so everyone can keep up.
Stealth : 17
Strix, Shifter Shadow Monk in Lost Mines of Phandelver ¦ Sihegiall Human Soulknife Rogue in In Search of Molly McGuffin
Okay, so first things first. Dekhan, Incantis, Scupper and Varinth are still back in the large cavern. If you're planning to move up to where Strix is, are you moving normally or stealthily? If stealthily, please give me Stealth checks. Without Pass Without Trace, because Strix isn't near enough to you to cast it.
Also, just to be clear and so I don't misunderstand what you're aiming to do - you plan to throw a sack (do you have a sack?) over the skull and then beat it to death while it's in the sack? The skull is floating 20 feet off the ground, so you throw the sack up, is that right?
Varinth will hang back.
You mean, back in the large cavern? 100 feet south of Strix?
Will move stealthily toward Stix until about 40 feet away from him.
Stealth: 20
20 feet? What do you think I am? Some kind of martial arts master?
Oh wait :D
The plan is :
OK, look, this is clearly a terrible plan.... BUT that doesn't mean it won't work. Just that there are a lot of factors that make it difficult.
So if we're willing to spend enough resources (the other half of my ki for this short rest for example) we can sneak up close enough that we get surprise on him, then Strix runs forward and either tosses Scupper up in the air to bag the skull or crouches for Scupper to jump off like a springboard (or, with step of the wind, Strix jumps off Scuppers back to get the addition couple of feet to get over the top of the skull and reverse-air-jordan him into the cloak like a bird in a fireplace. . Then KAPOW!
Edit : In favour of Sack Attack - it's a magic skull with no arms or legs. What are the chances that all it's attack are spells that include the phrase "creature that you can see"? You can't see nothing in a sack and a sack is not a creature! Remind me to buy a sack next time we're in town. MAybe as a precaution we should spend a round spinning the sack around our heads and slamming it off the ground so it's completely disoriented and can't target any non"that you can see" spells accurately. Also, why do I get the feeling we've tried something like this before?
Please, for the love of god, someone suggest something else. We can just sneak past him and over to the north east with Pass Without Trace?
Strix, Shifter Shadow Monk in Lost Mines of Phandelver ¦ Sihegiall Human Soulknife Rogue in In Search of Molly McGuffin
The sack attack is the stuff that legends are made of. This is what Odysseus would do. I’m for it.
Dekhan will wait out of earshot of the skull for Strix to come back and cast Pass Without Trace before clanking up any closer.
Or he can ready an action to charge forward when the action starts, whatever we decide.
If you want to get Strix back to you to cast pass without a trace, that's fine, as Zhudala can transmit the message. We can retcon so that Varinth is still with you when that happens, if that's what you decide to do.
My mind's telling me no...but my BODYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
We're overlooking three important sack-attack assets; 30ft mage hand, invisible imp flyover, and the fact that Incantis has unequipped leather armor i.e. his cloak is spare.
Staying where he is, Incantis begins to shoulder off his robe, shivering at the chill. You see that the tattoos on his face and neck run further down, along, and around his torso, and what seemed like fragmented tendril are but parts of a contiguous whole. He telepaths to Scupper. "I'm assuming you're good with knots, sailor?"
Could we retcon in that Incantis was next to Strix during pass without trace?
Incantis, half-elf warlock (great old one) 4/bard 1 ● Thorok Earthhand, hill dwarf mountain druid 6/grave cleric 2
Cragmyre Ironseed, earth genasi ancestral barbarian 3 ● Cyrus Natriallae, aquatic half-elf warlock of the deep 3
Ropes, knots, skulls... it's a pirate's life for me.
Magic hands could certain assist with the sack. Alas...even with me magic boots, the highest I'll get is about 10 feet straight up or 20 feet across...not 20 feet straight up.
If ye can bring it down te 9 or 10 feet I could might grab the sack but otherwise I'll be needing wings.
I'm happy to retcon anything from the moment Strix arrived in the furnace cave and saw the floating skull, just let me know.
I'm guessing we're treating this like Strix had returned and Zhudi is keeping watch while we discuss "The Sack Plan".
I can’t offer much in the way of acrobatics and stealth, but I’ll charge in once the skull is in the sack.
Incantis sees the redbrand cloak in Strix’s hands, rerobing. “Okay Scupper, Zhudie will drop the cloak onto the skull, can you rig ropes so I can pull it shut and tied with mage hand? Then we can all pull the ropes.” He telepaths to Zhudala. “We need you, invisible but in your true form.”
Incantis, half-elf warlock (great old one) 4/bard 1 ● Thorok Earthhand, hill dwarf mountain druid 6/grave cleric 2
Cragmyre Ironseed, earth genasi ancestral barbarian 3 ● Cyrus Natriallae, aquatic half-elf warlock of the deep 3
Okay, so let's do this.
Strix sneaks back to the large cavern, reunites with the rest of the group, and describes in detail what he has seen, adding to Incantis's description. Zhudala comes with him (I think?). He then casts Pass Without Trace on the whole party, and as a group you begin to move north, returning to the furnace cavern where the floating flaming skull is.
I have Stealth checks from Strix and Varinth already.
Incantis, Supper and Dekhan, please give me Stealth checks, Dekhan at disadvantage, as you try to move through the large cavern without attracting attention from who knows what.
Stealth (including +10 for Pass without a trace) 32