Star Metal Marauders- Highway Harvest

Quote from ChoirOfFire >>

[Are the crystals at the same positions as those three towers? I'm guessing you can teleport by entering the room and closing the door behind you... Maybe it also requires something else. Like the scroll Vars has, perhaps.]

 No. They are straight and equidistant down the frame and edge of the door. The location is determined by the runes within the circle

[Are the crystals the same as the lights described in #744, like they're stuck halfway through the wall?]

[I think we should probably leave the teleportation chamber alone and go extract Butterman.]

Not the same, but related.

"Yes, I agree we should not try to use this teleportation circle at this point. If we find a way to free the gnome and interview him that would likely be very helpful. We have also some rooms downstairs to investigate but after dealing with these things it might be a good idea to report to Irongrass before we proceed." Sorsha says with a nod to the others.

"Well then," Vars says, flipping the key into the air and catching it again before tucking it away. "Shall we return via painting? Or, should we try and free that gnome? It may be more profitable to get him out ourselves, that way we are the first to hear whatever he has to say." 

Sorsha gives Vars a curious look. "Yes, first we free the gnome if we can and interview him, then we serach the remaining rooms downstairs, then we return to the Hosttower, via the painting if you want."

Vars shrugs, "It'll save time." Then he walks over to the cubed gnome and pulls out a short sword. Experimentally, he attempts to cut through the top corner of the cube. As he does this he says, "Do we want to check the other rooms first or try to get this fellow out of here? Might be best to leave him for now."

Sorsha walks over to the gnome in the cube. "Any ideas we haven't tried so far?" She asks the others.

"The rope maneuver seems good. We might even be able to get the knife out of his hand that way, if we go slowly." Bjorn taps his foot impatiently. "We lost an hour walking already, and another recovering from the mimic. This Abernathy thing pays better than our current job, but remember we're magically bound to catching that bugbear, and he's getting further away with every passing moment. We can turn in what we've found when we return to Luskan -- I suggest we just sabotage the information here so that nobody else claims the bounty while we're away."

"It is my understanding that the magical seal just keeps us from trickery, but it is just a matter of time before we find and capture this bugbear Bernard." Sorsha says confidently. "We're nearly done here though, go and take what evidence you want removed Bjorn. You hold on to that key Vars." Sorsha says and closes the secret door again. "As Vars said, using the painting would save us time to get to the Hosttower, then a quick report to Irongrass, then back to the Cutlass for the mule and the cart and then off to Mirabar, okay? So, ready to try the rope?" She says to the others.

"If we want to search the remaining rooms I would suggest we do that first," Vars says. "The gnome is secure here. If we want to continue searching it might be easier to wait until we are done before getting him out." He shrugs, "Or we can just get him out and ignore the other rooms, I think we've found the most important pieces of evidence. I prefer to be thorough. Though, depending on what he has to day, it might be pointless to search the other rooms anyways."

Bjorn grins and picks up the journal on the desk, flipping to a random page as he heads back into the previous room. "Abernath must have liked you, Butterman!" He casts Minor Illusion upon the alchemy supplies, creating a puff of colored smoke that reveals various substances brewing in the jars, over magical green flames. "He used the nonlethal version of this spell on you. But I have here the instructions for the true version, and I am not blinded by affection in the way he was. So let's play nice, shall we?"

Deception: 18

(OOC: Just so you know, Vars took the journal as evidence. If you still want it, he wouldn't mind giving it to you if you want to use it.)

[Ah, that's fine. Just need some random bit of writing lol. A folded up map would work, or the scroll of Scorching Ray even.]

“Ok, says Sparhawk, grinning so his orchish teeth show a bit in anticipation.  Shall we try the rope trick and see what happens?”  Sparhawk directs a few of them to carefully wrap the rope around the cube at waist level.  Then. He tightens the rope so it stays attached at waist level.  Then, assuming nothing bad has happened, he will start to tighten the rope and pull it through the cube. Until it reaches his friend, Butterman.  
He will adjust plan if something bad happens.  
Strength of 18 so should not be a big

problem for the the strong  half orc. 

Frangipani is almost vibrating with excitement and looks a little disappointed as the possibility of teleporting immediately fades but Sparhawk chooses that moment to distract her with the opportunity to watch a gnome get cut in half by a rope inside a cube.

She hunchs down and watches with a toothy grin.....wondering if she can save the cube for use as a dessert ingredient once they are finished with it.

Eberk readies his shield and carefully watches the angry looking gnome.

[Bjorn's a pretty strong fellow (16) if help is needed here. If I'm visualizing it right, there's no knot or anything, just basically looping the rope in a U shape, grabbing both ends and dragging? We may need to brace the cube somehow, so we don't just pull the cube across the ground. So Bjorn could do that.]

Or we can use the doorway. 

Quote from shimshon123 >>

Or we can use the doorway. 

 Good idea