CF - Volo's Adventurers' Guild - PbP Campaign

Serena will sit back and listen to Banjo's practicing, humming along, turning after a while into singing a tragic folk song from back home, still thinking of Lady Kerowyns lost son.
Performance: 17

As the rest is complete she will ready herself for descending the shaft. "Okay, you should know that apart from saving the last two adventurers I need to take care of that Gulthias tree before leaving this place. Banjo, how do we play this?" She asks the man with the plan.

Livia, realising it's going to be a while before they continue, opens her bedrolls and sits on it., for it is much cleaner and more comfortable when compared to the floor.

Banjo looks at the others as he packs his viol.  "If we mean to destroy the tree, then I doubt there will be any further opportunity for tricks or diplomacy.  This Belak sounds like a right madman and I doubt there is any path that leads to destruction of the tree that won't also involve a direct confrontation with him.  We have a map, and it appears there is but one path to the grove and - hopefully - the last child of Hercule."

"I am concerned about these plant creatures.  Did anyone note the thing in the pot in the goblin throne room?  I flipped through Volo's guide but there is disappointingly little on plant monsters.  Tresvar, I suspect your ability to exhale gouts of flame may come in handy."

He looks the goblin map over again.  "I don't see any areas that look like safe places to camp.  Once we head down, this may be a marathon through to the end.  I will try to conserve my spell and I recommend we all conserve our resources until we absolutely need them."

Suddenly realizing how serious this conversation has been, he pops up with a smile.  "And don't forget to have fun!  We are adventurers, after all."

Serena laughs warmly as Banjo finishes. "Thank you for that pep talk Banjo, of course we will have fun." She says, readying herself for adventure. "So Tresvar first now perhaps, followed by me, Livia and Banjo?" She suggests to the others while checking her equioment.

((When you are ready to  go back to the throne room and the shaft))

Looking at the shaft the adventurers note, the shaft has a 2-foot wall around it, much like the upper end of a well. Thick, pale vines line the shaft. The vines are as good as knotted rope for the purpose of climbing. The shaft is wide enough that up to four individuals could go down at once (one climber at each compass point), or the party can go down one at a time.

"Let's go down together." Serena suggests readying herself for the descent. "Are you alright Livia, you can do this, just like climbing trees back home." She says to Livia with a warm smile.

"I never climbed trees back at home though. They don't exactly grow inside the house..." She watchea as the others do it and triea to imitate. It doesn't look too complicated, but she wonders how long will she have to climb down this way, and what happens if she gets tired midway. However, she does not voice those concerns.

"You didn't have trees where you lived Livia? Or are you saying you didn't ever play outside?" Serena says curiously in a lowered voice as they descend the shaft.

Erky joins the descent just a little above Banjo, the two gnomes not taking up much space along the wall. The cold, almost spongy 'skin' of the thick vines sends a twinge of revulsion through those who feel it with their bare hands. Yet they hold well for the climb down. Indeed it becomes easier the further down the party climbs as the vines grow thicker, clearly having their source below.

The adventurers traverse 20 feet, then 40, then 70 eventually come to a point where the shaft breaks through the ceiling of a large space below. The vines continue both down as well as more of the sickly, white tendrils extending out away from the shaft along the ceiling like an infected wound. The thick tangled roots of the vines bring the adventurers down to the floor 80 feet below the shaft opening above. Leaning broken among the leg thick 'trunks' of the vines are the corpses of the two hobgoblins. Their features are made all the more horrible by the shadows cast by the violet light which stripes the shadows upon them from beyond the column of vines. The shaft seems to have brought you down in the SW corner of this room.

((I have the adventurers in the following compass locations in a circle within the vines: Serena at N, Livia at E, Erky at SE, Banjo at S, and Tresvar at W - let me know if anyone would rather be in a different spot))

Peering out as they descend the adventurers can see luminescent fungus, shedding violet light, clings to the walls and ceiling of this wide cavern. The air is damp, chilly, and redolent with the odors of loam and decay. A layer of earth, mixed with rotting vegetation and the remains of cave animals, covers the floor. Several varieties of mushrooms and fungi grow on the detritus, as well as a few saplings. Despite the oppressive silence of the air, their is a faint intermittent scraping heard coming from the far north-west corner.   

44 

Tresvar carefully climbs down, a little ahead of the rest of the Group so she will be in front at the bottom.   Once reaching the bottom she readies sword and shield and looks toward the northwest corner to see what is there.  She is careful not to touch any of the fungi if possible.. 

20 perception 

As Serena reaches the cavern below she quickly tries to get a reading on her surrondings, looking for threats and cover. 
Perception: 11 and then Investigation: 13 and finally Stealth: 17

"I went out to the garden... occasionally... but we didn't have tress in it. Not ones strong enough to be climbed, at least." Livia answers a bit sheepishly.

"Oh." Serena chuckles quietly. "I knew you had a sheltered upbringing Livia, I just didn't know how much so. I am glad we can show you the wonders of the world then, like this charming place for instance." Serena says with a smile and a wink at Livia.

Banjo will examine the bizarre fungus in the cavern.  Does any of it look dangerous?

The team of adventurers set about extracting themselves from the column of vines. Tresvar looks over in the corner from which the scraping noise is coming from. There a pair of robed skeletons tend a fungus garden, using shovels and a rusted wheelbarrow to turn the soil and spread compost. They do not appear to pay any attention to the adventurers at the moment. 

While thick, the vines themselves do not provide much opposition to individuals climbing through them. In addition to the fungus however, this 'garden' if it can be called that, has a number of gnarly twisted saplings which catch at the adventurers as they struggle to come into the open. 

Banjo examining the fungus, finds it to be a type of violet lichen which emits a purple bioluminescence. Other than casting a somewhat ghastly glow, the lichen itself does not appear dangerous. In studying the lichen, Banjo's clothes are caught by one of the nearby saplings. Banjo absentmindedly tugs at it to free himself when one of the saplings branches moves striking at him!

Attack: 11 damage: 4

You all note now that two of these 'saplings' appear capable of movement and are now attacking. Tresvar notices that as soon as the plant attacks Banjo, the skeletons stop their work and turn to come toward the party!

Initiative:

• 'saplings': 21 
• Tresvar: 11
• Banjo: 16
• Serena: 21
• Livia: 19
• Erky: 18
• skeleton workers: 21

Link to image of Central Garden

((Please disregard the 'bless' status indicators on a few of the tokens. I believe though that Livia's mage shield is still up))

"Don't touch her you vile weed!" Serena growls and swiftly curses the sapling by Livia before blasting it with green crackling eldritch force.
Eldritch blast: 21 Force: 10 Necrotic: 5
She then tugs at Livia to follow her, rushing eastsoutheast as far as she gets.

The plant is blasted to splinters that blow across the room like chaff in the wind. 

The other sapling strikes at Banjo again:

Attack 22

damage: 3

Tresvar attacks the remaining sapling, swinging her longsword at it.  19  to hit

9  damage

((Next up is Livia, THEN Tresvar, then Banjo... if Livia chooses to attack the sapling I will redirect Tersvar toward the skeletons? otherwise, if Livia attacks the skeletons, Tresvar's attack will stand - okay?))

Livia follows Serena. However, she doesn't want the plant thing to continue its attack on Banjo, as well as being a much easier target to look at than the skeletons, which she tries to avoid looking at. She loads a bolt into her crossbow and aims at the plant. Can it even kill it as Serena's blast did? She doesn't know, but decides to try as she releases the bolt.

Attack: 16 Damage: 14.