(Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown

(Thanks, Aubrey tries to figure out where he would go on the ground floor to be directly under the fireplace that Ms. Umn was last seen heading towards.)

Grugga pokes around the ground floor fireplace, looking inside and around it for any sign of Ms. Umn's passage. "It could be under a rug. In Raven's Hill, some of the older buildings had cellars with trapdoor passages. Usually they were pretty big entrances for rolling kegs down into, but the owners would sometimes cover them up with rugs and other things when they weren't in use. Just stomp around and if the floor gives way a bit, check it out - they usually weren't braced very well."

Grugga also looks curiously at the party's new "avian" companion. "Can Furvus fly underground and look? He can... he can just go through walls, right?"

[Aubrey, give me an investigation check.  Grugga, make a perception check.]

Aubrey investigation: 19 Furvus investigation: 17

"Furvus can turn ethrereal, as Ms. Umn did, so yes he could peek down. I'm afraid Furvus was very nearly destroyed by Ms. Umn though so he would have to be careful." Aubrey answers Grugga. Unless he or Furvus finds anything he will however order Furvus to take a peek down to see if there is a cellar, just a peek.

Perception: 19

"Oh, right. Well do be careful with him..." He trails off, as though unsure if you have to actually be careful with the strange, shadowy creature. "Do you know what makes him able to turn ethereal like that? I know it's from the talisman... I'm just wondering what it is and if I could recreate it for Zip and Zap - that would be quite something!"

"I'm not a scholar in any sense Grugga and I admit knowing very little about my servant other than it is very obedient, and even less about the mystic arts used to create Zip and Zap, but if I had to guess they are very different in so many ways. That said, I wish you luck with empowering your devices with the ability to go ethereal, a very useful power indeed." Aubrey says to the artificer.

Aubrey, the upstairs fireplace toward which Ms. Umn was fleeing is directly above the large fireplace in the game room, where the stuffed animals had come to life.  These fireplaces are both ostentatiously large, even for a manor house.

Grugga, at the same time, you uncover a mechanism hidden inside the fireplace.  Pressing a block on the underside of the mantle, the rear wall slides to one side.  The mechanism groans and the entire chimney shakes.  Dust is shaken free from hidden workings not exercised in decades, if not longer.  When it stops, a spiral staircase is revealed, leading up to the second floor, and further down into darkness.

"Violà!" Aubrey says as Grugga discovers the secret staircase. "I guess there is some kind of cellar after all." He continues, standing ready to follow Rohuzar and the others down the stairs.

Rohuzar smiles in satisfaction. He brings his shield up and gestures to Guilim. "I'll lead. You right behind. Ve may find... Something unexpected. Need your experience."

then heads down

Leelan readjusts his glasses and his beret before chiming up.

"Before we head down into the unknown darkness, is anybody in desperate need of medical attention?"

"I'm well enough, my friend." After answering the monster hunter, Grugga takes his steps down the secret passageway, longsword is one hand, and a purple-gemmed invention in the other. 

"It's okay, just some bruises from being flung into a wall." Aubrey says to Leelan with a wince and a smile, then following behind Grugga down the stairs.
Stealth: 11 Perception, helped by Furvus: 19

Guilim shrugs as he moves to follow them down the steps, making sure to set his weapon so that it would not be knocked about in such a small area.

The team squeezes into the narrow staircase and descends into the earth below the foundations of the Flamewatch manor house. 

The stairs end at a cobweb strewn stone hall, which comes to another, short set of stairs down.  This opens into a large cavern.  It is dark, but you can tell the floors are polished marble.  A heavy stone door fixed with a chain is to your left, and the cavern continues to your right.  You can just make out an elegant table, with chairs and service for eight.  Everything is covered with a fine layer of dust.

"A secret meeting place for a cult it seems. Not used in some time." Aubrey says in lowered voice, glancing around the table for any symbols or other clues to what has been going on down here.

Perception: 11
History to recognize any significance to the number of eight: 7

"Make sure. The creature have lied." Rohuzar will move to get a better look into the rest of the cavern.

Leelan will walk over to the stone door and, without touching it, try to ascertain whether it is trapped/locked.

Investigation: 17

Approaching the table, Aubrey doesn't see anything too unusual.  The table itself, along with the cutlery and plates, are of a style far beyond that of the manor upstairs.  The table has gold-leaf ingrained into the carvings and the plates and silverware handles are all enameled ivory.  It is beyond extravagant - it is like what a peasant, with no knowledge of finery, might imagine a king's table service to look like.  The number eight could be significant.  In occult rituals, three, five and seven are more significant numbers, but eight is not unheard of.  In this context and setting, however, there is no clear evidence whether the number of settings is important or not.

Leelan does not detect any traps, but the door is held in place with a chain, fixed with a large lock.  

Moving deeper into the cavern, Rohuzar sees a line of candelabras around a golden altar. 

As Rohuzar approaches, the candelabras, and all the torches in the cavern, flare to life, providing illumination throughout.  Fire light gleams off the golden statue of a huge vulture, wings spread and looming over the altar.  Opposite the altar, a floor to ceiling mirror, also ringed in gold, dominates a wall.  Beyond the altar, the cavern extends to something like a lounge, with rich upholstered sofas, rugs and cushions.

Rohuzar let's out a whistle to get the group's attention.

Aubrey nods and comes closer to Rohuzar, and glances over the altar from some distance.
Perception with help from Furvus: 18
He then orders Furvus to take a quick peek around on the ethereal plane.