This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Phodoxia follows Buppido into the mushroom cave, her eyes aglow with curiosity. How much fun! She creeps around inspecting the various orbs and myces. Some of them must certainly be poisonous...
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Shoowaa looks giddy at the various mushrooms, already stuffing his bag with some that look edible, and some that looked like they would be fun.
Seeing that Bupido rips off the shelf like fungi, he stuffs some of those in his bag as well. He then eyes the glowing mushrooms with wonder and takes a small chunk to see if it still would glow.
Petmailer shares with the other members of the party (not Buppido, Sarith) the conversation that he overheard in Undercommon. He shares this via message, "I think we are going to have problems with Buppido. Everyone keep alert. He may need to be dealt with."
Petmailer offers to everyone in the party bites of his jerky that he got from the Drow. He also took 2 filled waterskins that were hanging on the wall in that guard room, he offers water to anyone that wants it. He keeps his bow handy and an arrow knocked as they are searching, helping toward the front of the party, offering advice on their path and looking out for trouble. "I had strange nightmares last night. Did anyone else have anything like that? Something is ... not right. I can't put my finger on it."
Whenever needed, Petmailer can cast dancing lights to move 4 lights up to 120 feet in front of us to light the path. He will do so whenever needed, that is the length of his dark vision.
Tanis, having heard he same in undercommon, backs up what Petmailer is saying about Buppido in case some (e.g. Eldeth) might still be mistrustful of the drow.
Also on something being not right: "Definitely not right. The only reason we are free are those... flying abominations screeching and droning and fighting each other that distracted and wounded the dark elves guarding us. And the day before, the ooze was telepathically yelling in our brains about the Faceless Lord. If we're all having the same nightmares, either someone put some magic on all of us or there is something else going on."
He has proficiency with a herbalism kit, but does not trust himself yet with these strange Underdark fungi. He observes from a bit of a distance which ones the knowledgeable members of the party seem to be gravitating towards. He looks briefly at Stool to make sure the gentle mushroom creature is not upset by these activities. Stop thinking about savory mushroom broth!
Also, I'm assuming the forward and rear scouts (including Tanis) mostly continue to keep watch when the party stops like this, or at least take turns doing so.
Vrah hearing the warning from Petmailer, "Right, I will take care of him when the time comes, sooner probably more than later." A wicked grin spreading across his face.
Stool comes in the cave and looks around. It's hard to read an expression on its face, but then it releases spores in a moment of joy (you can tell its joy, because within moments you sense the delight of the little creature at being around mushrooms and fungus.) Some of you express some concern at eating what may be its relatives. Stool quickly assures you this is all the cycle of life. He asks you whether you care when fungus grows on the dead bodies of your relatives? There's an interesting perspective for you. He settles his feet down into the dirt and muck near the water and gives off a feeling as if he's enjoying a wonderful meal.
Shuushar points to the orbs in the shallow water and starts to mime that they are good for water, then when the spores kick in, he lets you know they are a good source of safe drinking water. He is not sure about the water in the pool, but the plants filter out impurities.
Topsy and Turvey are in the chamber when the spores go off, but when they do, they quickly look at each other and leave. As they leave the area of the spores' effect, you sense from one of them a phrase repeating over and over "Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it." They are successful at keeping whatever "it" is out of their minds, at least until they leave the vicinity.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Food
A character needs one pound of food per day and can make food last longer by subsisting on half rations. Eating half a pound of food in a day counts as half a day without food. A character can go without food for a number of days equal to 3 + his or her Constitution modifier (minimum 1). At the end of each day beyond that limit, a character automatically suffers one level of exhaustion. A normal day of eating resets the count of days without food to zero.
Water
A character needs one gallon of water per day, or two gallons per day if the weather is hot. A character who drinks only half that much water must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion at the end of the day. A character with access to even less water automatically suffers one level of exhaustion at the end of the day. If the character already has one or more levels of exhaustion, the character takes two levels in either case.
These are the basic rules for food and water needs for a day. With Shuushar's help, you are able to harvest 7 pounds of:
Ripplebark
Ripplebark is a shelf-like fungus that resembles a mass of rotting flesh. (This is what Buppido was grabbing) It is surprisingly edible. Though it can be eaten raw, it tastes better roasted.
Jimjar comes over and says, "that stuff tastes better once you've used on of these on it." He takes one of the mushrooms he had been collecting and a tinderbox.
The Torchstalk immediately ignites into flame. Jimjar pierces a piece of the ripplebark with a dagger and holds it over the flame for a few minutes. For any of you who try it, it does develop a warm, nutty flavor and is much more enjoyable that in its uncooked form. (it's a little bland and chewy raw).
You also gather the 3
Waterorbs
A waterorb is a bulbous fungus that grows in shallow water. A mature waterorb can be squeezed like a sponge, yielding a gallon of drinkable water and a pound of edible (if chewy and somewhat tasteless) food.
You all can get a nice meal here and still leave with 7 pounds of ripplebark, three gallons of water, plus 3 pounds of waterorbs that you can eat if you run low on food. In addition to the one torchstalk Jimjar has, you collect two others that can be lit later. His continues to burn steadily well after you all cook the other mushrooms and have a meal. He'll tell you that the glowing tubular mushrooms aren't very helpful. They lose their glow after they've been uprooted for an hour. They can help you find locations like this though.
I don't know that anyone has used a resource yet on this day, but you could get a short rest here if you need it.
Shoowaa starts to gather the waterorbs and tries to fill his waterskin with it before drinking from the odd fungi. He puta it back in the water to see if it expands again. He then grabs as much as he can for the group. <I can purify food and water if needed.>
You can either drink from the Waterorb itself or squeeze it to get the water out of it. That will be tricky to get it into a waterskin that way. The orbs don't immediately fill back up if you submerge them again (it's more like they slowly re-absorb water through their tissue). You could fill your waterskin in the pool, but you don't know how safe the water is to drink directly. If you cast purify food and drink on the pool (it's less than 10 feet in diameter), you can purify all the water in the pool.
Kisiki enters the bioluminescent chamber with his allies. He extracts a pound of ripplebark from the wall and eats it raw, seemingly unconcerned that the taste could be improved.
He then invokes the power of his god with another rhythmic phrase of power. (cast as an action not as a ritual, detect poison and disease
Draconic:
...But She is a kind Mother, and showed Her child what tormented him when he pled, although it was of Her own making...
The light coming from his rat skull instantly changes from a dull yellow to a dark purple (black light). Anything or anyone poisoned, poisonous, or diseased will be revealed in Semuanya's light. If the water reveals itself to be poisoned or diseased ((That's what purify food and drink cures)) then he will purify it, if asked.
He looks a Buppido after the revelation, though not in fear or anger. While filling up, Kisiki says in common (or thinks, if the spores are active), "Tell me of your home. In times of trouble it is good to think on home." He addresses this to no one in particular. He actually seems fairly uninterested in the answers, instead merely doing his job as a spiritual guide - he knows if will benefit those who speak.
When you cast the spell, there is a faint greenish glow from the pool of water.
[ooc: It's not poison so much as the water is tainted with bacteria that could make you sick if you drink it without purifying it. The waterorb fungi filter that out. I'm assuming the purpose of the spell is to tell you if something is harmful, so it would tell you of potential sickness that the water could cause. On the other hand, I'm not including mental health conditions in "detect disease." For example, Derendil's delusion that he is actually an elf that has been transformed into a Quaggoth doesn't show up in response to your spell. However...]
There is one person in this chamber who glows in response your detect poison and disease spell. The Drow, Sarith. He appears to have some sort of major systemic fungal infection.
For most of you, roasted mushrooms wouldn't have been on your list of the best meals you've ever had, but considering what you've had lately, this feels like a feast. After everyone eats. You have around ten pounds of food to take with you, plus your waterskins are all full with purified water. [Kisiki and Shoowaa can work out between them who used the spell slot to purify the water]
Anyone have anything else to do before you leave this chamber?
Tanis has nothing further to do here. After briefly paying attention to which of the fungi are for what and trying to commit it to memory, he continues acting as rear scout, watching and listening for signs of pursuit. He nibbles a bit on some of the mushrooms he is told are edible, such as the ones Jimjar is using. "Happy to see you haven't lost your bet with me yet," he quips in gnomish with a smile. He will also answer Kisiki's question of home at some point, perhaps later when the party stops for a long rest.
The one thing he would ask the group, a little belatedly, is: "Should one of us be trying to keep a map of where we have come from and where we are going? In case we need to retrace our steps or make sure we are not going in circles? Or is map-making just pointless down here? I'm not sure if we even have the tools to make a map."
After the brief stop in the mushroom chamber, you set out again in a better mood. Stool seems more energetic having spent some time soaking up nutrients from the ground. With Vethna scouting ahead of the group, Stool has taken to hanging near Phodoxia.
Jimjar's torchstalk continues to burn steadily, making it easier for those in the middle to navigate among the rocks and difficult terrain. In response to Tanis's suggestion, Jimjar pulls a small notebook with blank pages out of a fold of his clothing. "I managed to keep this hidden from them. If anyone has ink or something to write with, I'm happy to give them this journal for mapping and taking notes."
While the spore effect continues, Shuushar, who is something of a gardener begins mentally lecturing all of you on the fungi of the underdark. Intermingled with descriptions of the types and uses of the fungus, he sprinkles in spiritual principles and lessons. It's pretty simplistic stuff like "One with deep roots is not easily shaken." He tells you about several species of mushrooms you might find that are useful and warns of some dangerous ones. He recommends that anyone using a torchstalk in the future should only light it at a distance from the rest of the group. Jimjar dismisses this and says "I'll bet anyone 20 gold that none of them will explode while I'm lighting them." Shuushar also talks for quite a while about Zurkhwood - giant mushrooms with long, sturdy trunks, these plants are the primary source of lumber in the underdark. They can grow to be 30 or 40 feet high. They aren't as dense as traditional timber, but they are what the Drow used for their furniture and platforms. What has been fascinating about this lecture is the Stool has been providing visual aids, filling your minds with images of various fungi and mushrooms as Shuushar spoke of them.
While all this has been going on for the better part of an hour, you notice that Topsy and Turvy are hanging back from the central group. Maybe they don't like botanical lectures.
If Vethna is scouting ahead again, Eldeth will offer to go with you and help. She's no amateur. She may not be as stealthy as you, but you strike up an easy partnership. Since you are still fairly near the outpost and areas where the drow frequently patrolled, Sarith is confident he is guiding you down the correct passages to get to the darklake. When you get a chance, let me get another set of stealth, survival and perception rolls from the folks in the front and back (if the rear guard is trying to cover tracks again). The survival role from the lead scout (Vethna) can be at advantage since you have Sarith's directions and Eldeth's help. If there are two of you working together in the back, those rolls can also be at advantage. I'm assuming you are maintaining a normal pace for the second half of this day, but tell me if the party feels otherwise.
Kisiki looks blankly at Sarith's green glow before stopping concentration on Semuanya's vision. He stands over the pool and casts purify food and drink as an action, not a ritual.
Draconic:
...And he learned that everything She created is useful for more than food. Even the delicious maggot eats diseased flesh...
When he finishes chanting, a bit of shimmering drool drips from the rat's mouth into the pond. All the stirred up silt drops immediately to the bottom, and all the unseen pathogens and bacteria rise to the surface and bloom into shining lily flowers, which, after a few moments, burst into a golden light. The water is left completely pure.
As he leaves the chamber, he says to Sarith, "My connection to Semuanya is weak down here. Give me time and She will heal you."
Phodoxia follows Buppido into the mushroom cave, her eyes aglow with curiosity. How much fun! She creeps around inspecting the various orbs and myces. Some of them must certainly be poisonous...
Nature (with proficiency for Poisoner's kit): 16
Investigation: 15
Survival: 18
Shoowaa looks giddy at the various mushrooms, already stuffing his bag with some that look edible, and some that looked like they would be fun.
Seeing that Bupido rips off the shelf like fungi, he stuffs some of those in his bag as well. He then eyes the glowing mushrooms with wonder and takes a small chunk to see if it still would glow.
Nature: 12 (prof from herbalism kit)
Perception: 7
When you touch one of the glowing mushrooms, its light goes out.
Petmailer shares with the other members of the party (not Buppido, Sarith) the conversation that he overheard in Undercommon. He shares this via message, "I think we are going to have problems with Buppido. Everyone keep alert. He may need to be dealt with."
Petmailer offers to everyone in the party bites of his jerky that he got from the Drow. He also took 2 filled waterskins that were hanging on the wall in that guard room, he offers water to anyone that wants it. He keeps his bow handy and an arrow knocked as they are searching, helping toward the front of the party, offering advice on their path and looking out for trouble. "I had strange nightmares last night. Did anyone else have anything like that? Something is ... not right. I can't put my finger on it."
Whenever needed, Petmailer can cast dancing lights to move 4 lights up to 120 feet in front of us to light the path. He will do so whenever needed, that is the length of his dark vision.
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Tanis, having heard he same in undercommon, backs up what Petmailer is saying about Buppido in case some (e.g. Eldeth) might still be mistrustful of the drow.
Also on something being not right: "Definitely not right. The only reason we are free are those... flying abominations screeching and droning and fighting each other that distracted and wounded the dark elves guarding us. And the day before, the ooze was telepathically yelling in our brains about the Faceless Lord. If we're all having the same nightmares, either someone put some magic on all of us or there is something else going on."
He has proficiency with a herbalism kit, but does not trust himself yet with these strange Underdark fungi. He observes from a bit of a distance which ones the knowledgeable members of the party seem to be gravitating towards. He looks briefly at Stool to make sure the gentle mushroom creature is not upset by these activities. Stop thinking about savory mushroom broth!
Also, I'm assuming the forward and rear scouts (including Tanis) mostly continue to keep watch when the party stops like this, or at least take turns doing so.
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Vrah hearing the warning from Petmailer, "Right, I will take care of him when the time comes, sooner probably more than later." A wicked grin spreading across his face.
Vethna settles down to watch the passage ahead, while the main group forages in the mushroom chamber.
Stool comes in the cave and looks around. It's hard to read an expression on its face, but then it releases spores in a moment of joy (you can tell its joy, because within moments you sense the delight of the little creature at being around mushrooms and fungus.) Some of you express some concern at eating what may be its relatives. Stool quickly assures you this is all the cycle of life. He asks you whether you care when fungus grows on the dead bodies of your relatives? There's an interesting perspective for you. He settles his feet down into the dirt and muck near the water and gives off a feeling as if he's enjoying a wonderful meal.
Shuushar points to the orbs in the shallow water and starts to mime that they are good for water, then when the spores kick in, he lets you know they are a good source of safe drinking water. He is not sure about the water in the pool, but the plants filter out impurities.
Topsy and Turvey are in the chamber when the spores go off, but when they do, they quickly look at each other and leave. As they leave the area of the spores' effect, you sense from one of them a phrase repeating over and over "Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it." They are successful at keeping whatever "it" is out of their minds, at least until they leave the vicinity.
Food
A character needs one pound of food per day and can make food last longer by subsisting on half rations. Eating half a pound of food in a day counts as half a day without food. A character can go without food for a number of days equal to 3 + his or her Constitution modifier (minimum 1). At the end of each day beyond that limit, a character automatically suffers one level of exhaustion. A normal day of eating resets the count of days without food to zero.
Water
A character needs one gallon of water per day, or two gallons per day if the weather is hot. A character who drinks only half that much water must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or suffer one level of exhaustion at the end of the day. A character with access to even less water automatically suffers one level of exhaustion at the end of the day. If the character already has one or more levels of exhaustion, the character takes two levels in either case.
These are the basic rules for food and water needs for a day. With Shuushar's help, you are able to harvest 7 pounds of:
Ripplebark
Ripplebark is a shelf-like fungus that resembles a mass of rotting flesh. (This is what Buppido was grabbing) It is surprisingly edible. Though it can be eaten raw, it tastes better roasted.
Jimjar comes over and says, "that stuff tastes better once you've used on of these on it." He takes one of the mushrooms he had been collecting and a tinderbox.
5
The Torchstalk immediately ignites into flame. Jimjar pierces a piece of the ripplebark with a dagger and holds it over the flame for a few minutes. For any of you who try it, it does develop a warm, nutty flavor and is much more enjoyable that in its uncooked form. (it's a little bland and chewy raw).
You also gather the 3
Waterorbs
A waterorb is a bulbous fungus that grows in shallow water. A mature waterorb can be squeezed like a sponge, yielding a gallon of drinkable water and a pound of edible (if chewy and somewhat tasteless) food.
You all can get a nice meal here and still leave with 7 pounds of ripplebark, three gallons of water, plus 3 pounds of waterorbs that you can eat if you run low on food. In addition to the one torchstalk Jimjar has, you collect two others that can be lit later. His continues to burn steadily well after you all cook the other mushrooms and have a meal. He'll tell you that the glowing tubular mushrooms aren't very helpful. They lose their glow after they've been uprooted for an hour. They can help you find locations like this though.
I don't know that anyone has used a resource yet on this day, but you could get a short rest here if you need it.
[ooc: That's weird. Don't know why that roll changed from a 6 to a 2, but either way, nothing happens.]
Shoowaa starts to gather the waterorbs and tries to fill his waterskin with it before drinking from the odd fungi. He puta it back in the water to see if it expands again. He then grabs as much as he can for the group.
<I can purify food and water if needed.>
You can either drink from the Waterorb itself or squeeze it to get the water out of it. That will be tricky to get it into a waterskin that way. The orbs don't immediately fill back up if you submerge them again (it's more like they slowly re-absorb water through their tissue). You could fill your waterskin in the pool, but you don't know how safe the water is to drink directly. If you cast purify food and drink on the pool (it's less than 10 feet in diameter), you can purify all the water in the pool.
Kisiki enters the bioluminescent chamber with his allies. He extracts a pound of ripplebark from the wall and eats it raw, seemingly unconcerned that the taste could be improved.
He then invokes the power of his god with another rhythmic phrase of power. (cast as an action not as a ritual, detect poison and disease
Draconic:
...But She is a kind Mother, and showed Her child what tormented him when he pled, although it was of Her own making...
The light coming from his rat skull instantly changes from a dull yellow to a dark purple (black light). Anything or anyone poisoned, poisonous, or diseased will be revealed in Semuanya's light. If the water reveals itself to be poisoned or diseased ((That's what purify food and drink cures)) then he will purify it, if asked.
He looks a Buppido after the revelation, though not in fear or anger. While filling up, Kisiki says in common (or thinks, if the spores are active), "Tell me of your home. In times of trouble it is good to think on home." He addresses this to no one in particular. He actually seems fairly uninterested in the answers, instead merely doing his job as a spiritual guide - he knows if will benefit those who speak.
When you cast the spell, there is a faint greenish glow from the pool of water.
[ooc: It's not poison so much as the water is tainted with bacteria that could make you sick if you drink it without purifying it. The waterorb fungi filter that out. I'm assuming the purpose of the spell is to tell you if something is harmful, so it would tell you of potential sickness that the water could cause. On the other hand, I'm not including mental health conditions in "detect disease." For example, Derendil's delusion that he is actually an elf that has been transformed into a Quaggoth doesn't show up in response to your spell. However...]
There is one person in this chamber who glows in response your detect poison and disease spell. The Drow, Sarith. He appears to have some sort of major systemic fungal infection.
For most of you, roasted mushrooms wouldn't have been on your list of the best meals you've ever had, but considering what you've had lately, this feels like a feast. After everyone eats. You have around ten pounds of food to take with you, plus your waterskins are all full with purified water. [Kisiki and Shoowaa can work out between them who used the spell slot to purify the water]
Anyone have anything else to do before you leave this chamber?
Tanis has nothing further to do here. After briefly paying attention to which of the fungi are for what and trying to commit it to memory, he continues acting as rear scout, watching and listening for signs of pursuit. He nibbles a bit on some of the mushrooms he is told are edible, such as the ones Jimjar is using. "Happy to see you haven't lost your bet with me yet," he quips in gnomish with a smile. He will also answer Kisiki's question of home at some point, perhaps later when the party stops for a long rest.
The one thing he would ask the group, a little belatedly, is: "Should one of us be trying to keep a map of where we have come from and where we are going? In case we need to retrace our steps or make sure we are not going in circles? Or is map-making just pointless down here? I'm not sure if we even have the tools to make a map."
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
After the brief stop in the mushroom chamber, you set out again in a better mood. Stool seems more energetic having spent some time soaking up nutrients from the ground. With Vethna scouting ahead of the group, Stool has taken to hanging near Phodoxia.
Jimjar's torchstalk continues to burn steadily, making it easier for those in the middle to navigate among the rocks and difficult terrain. In response to Tanis's suggestion, Jimjar pulls a small notebook with blank pages out of a fold of his clothing. "I managed to keep this hidden from them. If anyone has ink or something to write with, I'm happy to give them this journal for mapping and taking notes."
While the spore effect continues, Shuushar, who is something of a gardener begins mentally lecturing all of you on the fungi of the underdark. Intermingled with descriptions of the types and uses of the fungus, he sprinkles in spiritual principles and lessons. It's pretty simplistic stuff like "One with deep roots is not easily shaken." He tells you about several species of mushrooms you might find that are useful and warns of some dangerous ones. He recommends that anyone using a torchstalk in the future should only light it at a distance from the rest of the group. Jimjar dismisses this and says "I'll bet anyone 20 gold that none of them will explode while I'm lighting them." Shuushar also talks for quite a while about Zurkhwood - giant mushrooms with long, sturdy trunks, these plants are the primary source of lumber in the underdark. They can grow to be 30 or 40 feet high. They aren't as dense as traditional timber, but they are what the Drow used for their furniture and platforms. What has been fascinating about this lecture is the Stool has been providing visual aids, filling your minds with images of various fungi and mushrooms as Shuushar spoke of them.
While all this has been going on for the better part of an hour, you notice that Topsy and Turvy are hanging back from the central group. Maybe they don't like botanical lectures.
If Vethna is scouting ahead again, Eldeth will offer to go with you and help. She's no amateur. She may not be as stealthy as you, but you strike up an easy partnership. Since you are still fairly near the outpost and areas where the drow frequently patrolled, Sarith is confident he is guiding you down the correct passages to get to the darklake. When you get a chance, let me get another set of stealth, survival and perception rolls from the folks in the front and back (if the rear guard is trying to cover tracks again). The survival role from the lead scout (Vethna) can be at advantage since you have Sarith's directions and Eldeth's help. If there are two of you working together in the back, those rolls can also be at advantage. I'm assuming you are maintaining a normal pace for the second half of this day, but tell me if the party feels otherwise.
Kisiki looks blankly at Sarith's green glow before stopping concentration on Semuanya's vision. He stands over the pool and casts purify food and drink as an action, not a ritual.
Draconic:
...And he learned that everything She created is useful for more than food. Even the delicious maggot eats diseased flesh...
When he finishes chanting, a bit of shimmering drool drips from the rat's mouth into the pond. All the stirred up silt drops immediately to the bottom, and all the unseen pathogens and bacteria rise to the surface and bloom into shining lily flowers, which, after a few moments, burst into a golden light. The water is left completely pure.
As he leaves the chamber, he says to Sarith, "My connection to Semuanya is weak down here. Give me time and She will heal you."
Vethna's rolls:
Survival: 23
Perception: 23
Stealth: 19