Quote from KestrellKestrell >>

Quote from Hambergler >>

A'ro just looks at the group "We have what we came for - let's not get cocky. We should go back deliver the book and get back to town."

 "Calm yourself, we haven't even been in here an hour yet.  And we still have one more magic mushroom to find."

'Kestrell puts his rapier away, grabs the end of the branch and pulls with all his might, his feet almost leaving the ground!'

[OOC] Strength: 12

 
'Tugging with all of his diminished might, Kestrell unfortunately pushes himself close to the point of exhaustion before having to concede that he is just not up to the task of snapping the stone limb off in his current state, though the proud bard is certain that he could accomplish the goal were he not debilitated by the lingering spider venom.'

Seeing Kestrell was unable to break the crystal branch, Vaken's curiosity is stoked. He walks up and takes hold of the branch and starts to pull.

Str: 19

"There we go Vaken!  That's the way to do it!  Now we are subterranean loggers!"

Quote from WebGambit >>

Seeing Kestrell was unable to break the crystal branch, Vaken's curiosity is stoked. He walks up and takes hold of the branch and starts to pull.

Str: 19

 
'With little apparent effort, the one inch thick, foot long crystal branch snaps off in Vaken's grasp with an echoing *CRACK-CRACk-CRAck-CRack-Crack-crack*. The stone limb in the goliath's massive hands continues to glow with the eery purple light, as does the rest of the crystal structure, both apparently unfazed by the sundering except for the faintest flickering of the violet luminesence at the moment of breakage.'

[OOC] Vaken now holds a once inch thick, one foot long, multi-faceted glowing 'purple crystal rod'.

"Fantastic! Thank you for the help Vaken! I don't know what it does, but hold onto it and we can ask Naskeen. Now, let's part these webs like a curtain and see what we can see...shall we?"

'With that, Kestrell turns back to the webbing and starts slicing them with his dagger."

[OOC]: Attack: 7
Damage: 4

A'ro just places the book into his pack and then moves it to the front of his chest so the book won't fall out during the climb. He then turns his attention to the Bard "Look around you mate - we've taken enough beatings. Tell me will whatever's down that hole be worth your life or any of our lives. Would you honestly be able to live with yourself knowing YOU got them killed because you couldn't leave well enough alone?"

He give a quick glance to Vaken and then turns his eyes back to Kestrell, his voice stern and for once his carefree look turns to daggers at the bard "Would you be able to look the crew in the eye and tell them the story about how you favored treasured over your crew mates lives? If one of us dies, would you be willing to take on the stares of the officers and crew members wondering how much their lives are to you? What would it take for him to sell us out?"

He just tugs on the rope"I say we do as Kay suggested. Turn in whatever potions remain and all the items we've retrieved, get back to town, celebrate a job well done and then set sail in the morning."

"You are sounding like a quitter, son.  Where I'm from, we follow through on our promises, even when it isn't easy to do."

"So things are getting a little tough, we're all bruised and beaten, some of us poisoned.  Does that mean we can just give up?"

"What happens when we're out at sea and the shit hits the fan?  Are you going to tell the crew and the captain that it's too hard, or you don't feel good and can't do your job?"

"No.  A job not finished is not a job well done."

Quote from KestrellKestrell >>

"Fantastic! Thank you for the help Vaken! I don't know what it does, but hold onto it and we can ask Naskeen. Now, let's part these webs like a curtain and see what we can see...shall we?"

'With that, Kestrell turns back to the webbing and starts slicing them with his dagger."

[OOC]: Attack: 16
Damage: 4

 
'Kestrell's first blow with his dagger carves a small swath throw the silverly tangled mass, sending bits of ice and shards of metallic webbing splintering off from the strike zone. As a piece of jagged webbing grazes the back of his dagger wielding hand, the determined navigator realises that a longer weapon may be best for this task, and that pointed and bladed weapons will probably prove less effective than blunt weapons would.'

Quote from Hambergler >>

A'ro just looks at the group "We have what we came for - let's not get cocky. We should go back deliver the book and get back to town."

'Plus I just want to get the **** back to safety' he thought to himself tugging on the rope "Virt! is the rope tied off up there for us to climb back up?"

 
'As the tense discussion between Kestrell and A'ro reaches a pause, Virt's oblivious voice calls out and down from the ledge,'

"Ahh, there be some rope here, but not much. Me thinks Kay pulled most of it down to use for her climb up yonder pillar. If ye throw it up though, I should be able to resecure it for ye all to climb back up. Are we done, then?

Wait a minute... err, me thinks that... Aye, I forgot that I have some rope in me pack. I'll start tying it onto the existing rope now then."

A'ro just glares at Kestrell as his voice raises a little as little sparks can be seen in his eyes "It's called being smart - at least we'll live to actually tell them a story. In the end the mission was get the book and get out. We have the book now let's do the last part."

He just instinctively takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself as he feels the rise of his emotions "Let's put it to a vote, majority decides what we do and that way no one can say it was on one man. I'm clearly in favor of leaving and you're clearly in favor of getting us killed. Where does everyone else stand?" he asks as he looks around the room.

Orlys really wants to leave, but watching Kestrell struggle with the webs is too much. He pads over there and clears the tinkly webbing with his maul. "Let me clear this, then we can be gone from here."

"A vote?!?  This is no democracy. Why don't you help Vaken get the rope set up so we can get out of here when we are done?  Or stand there and philosophize on the virtues of a job 80% done. I'm going to finish what we came down here to do."

'As Orlys offers to clear the webbing, Kestrell sighs in relief and wipes the sweat from his brow.'

"Thank you Bugbear!  I think I have the wrong weapon for this."

Quote from Mingofaust >>

Orlys really wants to leave, but watching Kestrell struggle with the webs is too much. He pads over there and clears the tinkly webbing with his maul. "Let me clear this, then we can be gone from here."

 
'Stepping forward with a growl to take the bold human man's place, Orlys manages to heft his heavy maul to good effect, smashing foot-after-foot of silvery webbing apart with *shattering* hammer strikes. It takes almost fifteen minutes to clear the path, as the thick tangled mass of web continues further and further back. When the exahuasted bugbear finally smashes his way through into the chamber beyond, he is forced to stop and catch his breath bent over with calloused hands resting on his furred thighs, the cold air of the spider caverns heaving into and from the fierce goblinoid's large lungs. 

As the bat-eared warrior takes a moment to recupperate, the rapier wielding human who argued for pressing into this room steps up behind him to look out into the newly opened chamber. The stone of this chamber is a sandstone gold colour, though much of its floor is covered in the matt grey webbing you have encountered near the fey spiders. A bank of yellow stone stalagmites hugs the chamber's Northern wall, immediately abutting a thick carpet-like mass of the metalic webbing, over and through which dozens of tiny fey spiders crawl. Beyond the bank of stalagmites and carpet of webbing, you see a thick mass of fey spider webbing clogging up the chamber's Northwest corner.'

Orlys hears the other three party members near where this new chamber runs back South into the slain spiderfey's lair.'

Panting, Orlys looks up at Kestrell. "This place goes on and on. I see no mushrooms, and wish to see no spiders. Can we go?"

"You owe no allegiance to our quest, Bugbear, and you have done us a great service already, I will not ask more of you."

'Kestrell walks up to the golden stalagmites and inspects them, trying to determine what they are made out of, and if there is a way to crawl through them.'

'He then turns to the mass of webbing and looks to see what the webbing may be concealing or may have trapped inside.'

[OOC]: With the time taken to break through the outer webbing, am I still poisoned?

Orlys watches the bard continue on in to the room, and makes no move to retreat.

A'ro just looks at the Bugbear "As long as everyone else is good with us going - yes we can leave."

His attention turns to Vaken and Kay, as the bard continues on himself "I'm afraid our friend may be going mad. It appears you two hold the important votes. What do you two want to do? I don't want to see you two put in harms way for a mushroom of all things. Though if you want to keep pressing on, we will."

Quote from KestrellKestrell >>

"You owe no allegiance to our quest, Bugbear, and you have done us a great service already, I will not ask more of you."

'Kestrell walks up to the golden stalagmites and inspects them, trying to determine what they are made out of, and if there is a way to crawl through them.'

'He then turns to the mass of webbing and looks to see what the webbing may be concealing or may have trapped inside.'

[OOC]: With the time taken to break through the outer webbing, am I still poisoned?

 
'While keeping one wary eye on the apparently spider infested web carpet, Kestrell strides forward purposefully, noticing how tightly packed the three-to-six foot tall thin orange stalagmites are together, all but forming a strange and impenetrable stone barrier along the chamber's Northern edge. Stretching his limbs and glad to be away from the oppressive atmosphere of the spiderfey's lair, the tall blue eyed sailor is almost beginning to feel himself again, still wearied from the morning's travel and his own trials, but clearer of head than he had felt for some time. 

Glancing through the small but brightly coloured forest of sandstone mini-pillars, the scrutinising navigator manages to spot not one, but two more of the large brown orange speckled mushrooms growing amidst the stalagmites, both near the far edge closest to wear the mass of tangled grey webbing obstructs the chamber's Northwestern corner.

The bard is considering his options when he almost jumps in surprise as the carpet of grey webbing to his left bulges upwards ten feet away near its centre, stretching in an irregular fashion before ripping with a *schrickkk* sound as one and then two bony yellowed arms and skeletal hands tear through to appear waving and grasping about, protruding no more than a foot above the rest of the web carpet. The entire carpet of webbing vibrates violently almost in time with the thrashing of the skeletal hands, which seems to set the dozens of tiny spiders in a frenzy as more and more of the individually miniscule insects boil up from somewhere below to amass atop the webbing in a growing spread of arachnid agitation.'

[OOC] Kestrell is no longer poisoned.

The two amber speckle mushrooms amidst the orange stalagmites are at 5/4.

The two skeletal hands are poking up at square 3/5

The swarm of tiny fey spiders are amassing at square 3/4.

The tightly packed stalagmites prohibit movement through squares 5/4, 5/5/ and 5/6

'Kestrell notices Orlys not moving and nods in appreciation.  Then his attention returns to the golden stalagmites. Upon noticing the mushrooms, he shouts'

"Alright, here are a few more mush..."

'And gets cut off by the skeletal hands as they startle him.'

"SKELETONS AND SPIDERS" 'he finishes loudly.'

"Bugbear!  Are you still there?  I hope you have all your hair!  We are going to need to take care! I don't know why I'm rhyming, it isn't fair!"

'Kestrell backs up one step before continuing'

"It looks like they are going to be on us at any moment.  Whichever comes out first, I'll mock it viciously, and you wack the living piss out of it!"

'Kestrell casts Minor Illusion between the fey spider mass and he and Orlys, creating an image of a large mass of webbing with the legs and fangs of a large Mama fey spider sticking out.'

"Maybe that will slow down the fey spiders."

Orlys lifts his maul resignedly, but stands his ground. "Tha's a fine rhyme, but get yer bony self behind me." He will stand ready.

Action: Ready an attack for the first thing that enters his range, which is 5' further out than that of most critters, because long arms. So anything that enters 3/6, 4/6, or 5/6 will get whacked.