...But the excitement from all the discoveries already made during the day is such that this time some vital details of the spell escape her and the scroll is uselessly consumed. Too bad.
Mal will make herself useful during the studying and preparation time by getting whatever the others need, another book, some refreshments. Making sure every now and then they get up and walk around a bit as she knows sitting for any period of time takes its toll.
While running errands throughout the library she will occasionally grab a random book, carefully flip through its pages and then place it back in a random spot. Then she will try and find books that have a prominent word on the spine that stands out and rearrange the books so the first letter of the title spells words that some might consider uncouth. Either way she will try and occupy her time "wisely".
As you return to the tavern to wait, and do what you wish to kill time, Sparhawk sits at the table looking at a map with a goblet next to him.
"How goes the search, my intrepid scholars?" he asks when you enter the tavern. Inside the tavern, are small groups of scholars, a minstrel is playing a lute in the corner, and the servers move about the large room with trays of food and spirits.
Not one for books himself, Tyekanik follows Mal to see what he can get into. Heading back to the tavern he says, "Why can't this city have a nice outdoor beer garden?" Then looking to the fighter next to him as he orders a tray full of beers, says, "So Mal, which fight was your most memorable? I once got between a Giant and a Dragon and somehow even managed to calm them down to talk. Two wagonfulls of wine later and they were even hugging it out."Laughing at the memory he pours the first pint down in one shot.
"Library research does in fact seem to require require for scholars to be intrepid, sometimes..." Khessa smiles at Sparhawk, in a joking mood "...considering that today Maynard was challenged to a martial arts duel for life and death by a faithful of Azash!"
"Anyway," the blonde arcane warrior summarizes, moderately optimistic "we then got interesting information... Some indications on how Azash was defeated in the past... Some indication on a possible weaknesses of him... And some hypotheses on possible help for us. Interesting scenarios open up - for example regarding troll deities. Do you know them? Have you ever dealt with them before?"
Guys, I am sorry for not posting for a while, I don’t post a lot on weekends, but I will try to be more active.
Benron goes to Akkron. I would Prefer not to waste the diamond dust on this assassin, rather than our allies if needed. I could also prepare speak with the dead if needed.
"I don't think it matters much which one of us actually prepares and casts the spell," Akkron says. "But I suspect I can do so in a more timely fashion... unlike mortal mages, I only require about four hours of meditation to rejuvenate myself and, by extension, prepare my spells. But I completely agree that we shouldn't waste diamond dust on a suicidal assassin. Though it might be a good idea to set up a zone of truth as well to try to force some honesty out of him. I don't know for sure if a corpse semi-animated for questioning will actually be effected by the spell, but we might as well try."
The lich pauses for a moment, considering how best to deal with the problem. He glances at Mal and a thought occurs to him.
"It might also help us to try and appear as allies of his rather than enemies. At a distance, Mal might be able to pass for a Zemoch... so perhaps we should have her ask the questions once the spell is cast."
"Not exactly... I'll be honest, I've never really been the most subtle person," he replies with a chuckle. "but I do have this cap which will allow anyone to cast the spell you mentioned as much as they would like. Considering that we are now more-or-less known, I felt it would be more advantageous for me to use my grimoire than the cap. It should take an hour for someone to attune to this cap... I suppose I could do it, but that would take another hour when we could have someone attune to the cap while I work on preparing the spell."
Khessa, who was following the conversation with great interest, since it involved magic, steps forward: "Master Akkron has no need to prepare that spell... because he has a Hat of Disguise!"
But the tall adventuress then listens to the reasoning of the powerful lich and agrees: "Yes, perhaps then it is better as you say, Master Akkron".
"I doubt that Zone of Truth can work, Master Akkron..." ponders the blonde arcane warrior "I still remember those difficult times when you explained to me the difference between the possible Targets of a spell... Creatures... Objects..." she partly shudders, partly smiles, remembering how much difficulty she had in becoming familiar with such subtle distinctions "Zone of Truth influences creatures... But Speak With Dead I fear does not change the nature of the corpse it targets - which thus, I fear, simply remains an object. The spell simply... grants the semblance of life and intelligence to the corpse, but does not change its nature... That's why I fear that Zone of Truth would not help us (with the understanding that we can still try to launch it - a practical experiment can help more than a thousand reasoning, when it comes to arriving at the truth). But the idea of the disguise is a good one, whether you prefer to use the hat or the spell".
Akkron nods... Khessa is most likely right about the interaction (or lack thereof) between speak with dead and zone of truth
"Your assessment is more than likely correct," he tells her, handing over the cap. "But as we both know, with magic you can never say for sure until you try. If you would like to chat with the dead guy, I doubt that you will need your ring of regeneration before we get the chance to rest up again."
“Oh, should I play the role of the corrupt Zemoch, you say?” Khessa fakes an evil and depraved expression "Alright, Master Akkron!" she takes the magic hat "In fact, I might even take the opportunity to change rings, after this experiment... This time we have powerful healers with us, like Benron... I might prefer my spell-storing ring to the regeneration one".
Brother Maynard listens to your discussion, before excusing himself. "I will return to the constable, look over the body and see if the tattoos mean anything." He rises up, "When you are ready, return to the constable and hopefully I have learned more about the assassin." Maynard turns and leaves the tavern.
As you are discussing what to do about the dead assassin, Sparhawk slides over so he can keep his voice down. "Just received word that reportedly, the dwarves at Arafel observed a red dragon flying along the mountains and towards the coastal area. Also, rumors are coming in from the east of the Shinerian outposts of the dead walking at night, near some old ruins that date back to the War of the Shadow."
"Dragons all day and walking dead at night..." the lich sighs. "Well, at least the undead aren't attacking in broad daylight as well... so we're probably dealing with either wights or vampire spawn... maybe wraiths, but people don't usually refer to disembodied spirits as walking dead. As for the dragon, Is there any indication as to whether we're dealing with an adult red dragon or ancient red dragon? In either case we're probably going to want to deal with the restless dead first... there is a very serious risk that their numbers could grow exponentially if not dealt with in a timely fashion."
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"You're right Master Akkron..." Khessa agrees "And I haven't forgotten that you mentioned the possibility of acting as our ambassador to the undead... It's clear that Azash is trying to secure a good number of allies, including trolls, undead and dragons... either for a mass offensive to overwhelm us with, or to keep us busy while he carries out his moves - if he has secret moves that he is carrying out. For each of these allies, if we can lead them back to the neutrality (or even to convince them to ally with us instead), we secure ourselves a considerable advantage".
"Of course," the blonde arcane warrior adds "I have no doubt that we can also simply destroy them; but bringing them to our side would be an even greater success".
Not one for books himself, Tyekanik follows Mal to see what he can get into. Heading back to the tavern he says, "Why can't this city have a nice outdoor beer garden?" Then looking to the fighter next to him as he orders a tray full of beers, says, "So Mal, which fight was your most memorable? I once got between a Giant and a Dragon and somehow even managed to calm them down to talk. Two wagonfulls of wine later and they were even hugging it out."Laughing at the memory he pours the first pint down in one shot.
Mal looks the Goliath up and down then responds, "Well I am not that much into straight out fighting as I prefer to shoot my targets form the shadows." Then she pauses and thinks a moment, "Well there was this one time ages ago well a group I was with was teleported to a Gith creche and as we were creeping around we came across an Adult Red Dragon that was just waking up. I kept to the shadows at the entrance of the passageway and shot a few cross bolt into its eye, felling the creature before any of the rest of my party could even move. It was quite satisfying, but there are better stores but unfortunately I have to keep them to myself as if word got out, it might bring undue attention to us and we have enough to worry about with these damn Zemochs and some stupid god running amok in this land."
"I agree with Khessa, hopefully we can talk some of these factions into either allying with us, the prominent winners of the coming battle, or at the very least, waiting till the dust settles to see who is the winner before advancing their own whims. Any blow dealt to what's his face is a good thing in my book." Mal adds to the conversation.
Sparhawk listens to the conversation. "Little Mother has been trying to instill that into our teachings, to think before we act. Of course, I tried to explain we Pandions have an image to uphold, we are not masters of the sword for no reason. She did spit and sputter, calling us heathens and barbarians. She did get through, but we have to admit, we prefer to charge into our fights with full force, sometimes even using our minds."
"There is nothing wrong, Sparhawk, in throwing ourselves into our fights with all our strength" Khessa smiles, putting a hand on the other's shoulder. "But, before doing so, it is important to stick to a principle that a highly experienced Battle Master from Kara-Tur once explained to me: 'Know your enemy'. Which has a deeper meaning than simply studying his weaknesses (which is also important). It is, first of all, an invitation to understand who your enemy really is; because sometimes, what seems like an enemy to you, may not be one. Or at least not necessarily".
"Azash wants to send Zemoch, Trolls, Undead and Dragons against us" the blonde arcane warrior recaps. "Is Azash our enemy? Probably yes. From the evidence we have, it is not plausible that he will change his plans - he has always tried and will always try to destroy us. Are the Zemochs our enemies? For now. But, it seems, they have been corrupted by Azash. If If this situation could be changed? Then perhaps they could no longer be enemies. They could even become the key to ultimate victory, if taking them away from the cult of Azash meant defeating Azash once and for all, having taken away his faithful. The Trolls? The Undead? The Dragons ? The same goes... If Azash has convinced them, they can be our enemies, for now; but they are not obliged to be".
"Now, Sparhawk..." the tall adventuress concludes, with a smile "You too understand that there is a big difference, between 'throwing into battle with all your strength' against Azash alone, or against Azash, Zemoch, Trolls, Undead and Dragons... Probably this is what Little Mother wanted you to understand".
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...But the excitement from all the discoveries already made during the day is such that this time some vital details of the spell escape her and the scroll is uselessly consumed. Too bad.
Mal will make herself useful during the studying and preparation time by getting whatever the others need, another book, some refreshments. Making sure every now and then they get up and walk around a bit as she knows sitting for any period of time takes its toll.
While running errands throughout the library she will occasionally grab a random book, carefully flip through its pages and then place it back in a random spot. Then she will try and find books that have a prominent word on the spine that stands out and rearrange the books so the first letter of the title spells words that some might consider uncouth. Either way she will try and occupy her time "wisely".
Brother Maynard nods, then turns to the constable. "Make sure this body is not disturbed until we return." The constable states he will see to it.
As you return to the tavern to wait, and do what you wish to kill time, Sparhawk sits at the table looking at a map with a goblet next to him.
"How goes the search, my intrepid scholars?" he asks when you enter the tavern. Inside the tavern, are small groups of scholars, a minstrel is playing a lute in the corner, and the servers move about the large room with trays of food and spirits.
Not one for books himself, Tyekanik follows Mal to see what he can get into. Heading back to the tavern he says, "Why can't this city have a nice outdoor beer garden?" Then looking to the fighter next to him as he orders a tray full of beers, says, "So Mal, which fight was your most memorable? I once got between a Giant and a Dragon and somehow even managed to calm them down to talk. Two wagonfulls of wine later and they were even hugging it out." Laughing at the memory he pours the first pint down in one shot.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
"Library research does in fact seem to require require for scholars to be intrepid, sometimes..." Khessa smiles at Sparhawk, in a joking mood "...considering that today Maynard was challenged to a martial arts duel for life and death by a faithful of Azash!"
"Anyway," the blonde arcane warrior summarizes, moderately optimistic "we then got interesting information... Some indications on how Azash was defeated in the past... Some indication on a possible weaknesses of him... And some hypotheses on possible help for us. Interesting scenarios open up - for example regarding troll deities. Do you know them? Have you ever dealt with them before?"
Guys, I am sorry for not posting for a while, I don’t post a lot on weekends, but I will try to be more active.
Benron goes to Akkron. I would Prefer not to waste the diamond dust on this assassin, rather than our allies if needed. I could also prepare speak with the dead if needed.
Bram Quikfoot fractured.
"I don't think it matters much which one of us actually prepares and casts the spell," Akkron says. "But I suspect I can do so in a more timely fashion... unlike mortal mages, I only require about four hours of meditation to rejuvenate myself and, by extension, prepare my spells. But I completely agree that we shouldn't waste diamond dust on a suicidal assassin. Though it might be a good idea to set up a zone of truth as well to try to force some honesty out of him. I don't know for sure if a corpse semi-animated for questioning will actually be effected by the spell, but we might as well try."
The lich pauses for a moment, considering how best to deal with the problem. He glances at Mal and a thought occurs to him.
"It might also help us to try and appear as allies of his rather than enemies. At a distance, Mal might be able to pass for a Zemoch... so perhaps we should have her ask the questions once the spell is cast."
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Do you have disguise self prepared?
Bram Quikfoot fractured.
Akkron rummages through his bag of holding and pulls out his hat of disguise.
"Not exactly... I'll be honest, I've never really been the most subtle person," he replies with a chuckle. "but I do have this cap which will allow anyone to cast the spell you mentioned as much as they would like. Considering that we are now more-or-less known, I felt it would be more advantageous for me to use my grimoire than the cap. It should take an hour for someone to attune to this cap... I suppose I could do it, but that would take another hour when we could have someone attune to the cap while I work on preparing the spell."
Unhappy that the market got rid of individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
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Khessa, who was following the conversation with great interest, since it involved magic, steps forward: "Master Akkron has no need to prepare that spell... because he has a Hat of Disguise!"
But the tall adventuress then listens to the reasoning of the powerful lich and agrees: "Yes, perhaps then it is better as you say, Master Akkron".
"I doubt that Zone of Truth can work, Master Akkron..." ponders the blonde arcane warrior "I still remember those difficult times when you explained to me the difference between the possible Targets of a spell... Creatures... Objects..." she partly shudders, partly smiles, remembering how much difficulty she had in becoming familiar with such subtle distinctions "Zone of Truth influences creatures... But Speak With Dead I fear does not change the nature of the corpse it targets - which thus, I fear, simply remains an object. The spell simply... grants the semblance of life and intelligence to the corpse, but does not change its nature... That's why I fear that Zone of Truth would not help us (with the understanding that we can still try to launch it - a practical experiment can help more than a thousand reasoning, when it comes to arriving at the truth). But the idea of the disguise is a good one, whether you prefer to use the hat or the spell".
Akkron nods... Khessa is most likely right about the interaction (or lack thereof) between speak with dead and zone of truth
"Your assessment is more than likely correct," he tells her, handing over the cap. "But as we both know, with magic you can never say for sure until you try. If you would like to chat with the dead guy, I doubt that you will need your ring of regeneration before we get the chance to rest up again."
Unhappy that the market got rid of individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
Provide feedback!
“Oh, should I play the role of the corrupt Zemoch, you say?” Khessa fakes an evil and depraved expression "Alright, Master Akkron!" she takes the magic hat "In fact, I might even take the opportunity to change rings, after this experiment... This time we have powerful healers with us, like Benron... I might prefer my spell-storing ring to the regeneration one".
That might be good, we need firepower to get through this threat.
Bram Quikfoot fractured.
Brother Maynard listens to your discussion, before excusing himself. "I will return to the constable, look over the body and see if the tattoos mean anything." He rises up, "When you are ready, return to the constable and hopefully I have learned more about the assassin." Maynard turns and leaves the tavern.
As you are discussing what to do about the dead assassin, Sparhawk slides over so he can keep his voice down. "Just received word that reportedly, the dwarves at Arafel observed a red dragon flying along the mountains and towards the coastal area. Also, rumors are coming in from the east of the Shinerian outposts of the dead walking at night, near some old ruins that date back to the War of the Shadow."
"Dragons all day and walking dead at night..." the lich sighs. "Well, at least the undead aren't attacking in broad daylight as well... so we're probably dealing with either wights or vampire spawn... maybe wraiths, but people don't usually refer to disembodied spirits as walking dead. As for the dragon, Is there any indication as to whether we're dealing with an adult red dragon or ancient red dragon? In either case we're probably going to want to deal with the restless dead first... there is a very serious risk that their numbers could grow exponentially if not dealt with in a timely fashion."
Unhappy that the market got rid of individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
Provide feedback!
"You're right Master Akkron..." Khessa agrees "And I haven't forgotten that you mentioned the possibility of acting as our ambassador to the undead... It's clear that Azash is trying to secure a good number of allies, including trolls, undead and dragons... either for a mass offensive to overwhelm us with, or to keep us busy while he carries out his moves - if he has secret moves that he is carrying out. For each of these allies, if we can lead them back to the neutrality (or even to convince them to ally with us instead), we secure ourselves a considerable advantage".
"Of course," the blonde arcane warrior adds "I have no doubt that we can also simply destroy them; but bringing them to our side would be an even greater success".
Mal looks the Goliath up and down then responds, "Well I am not that much into straight out fighting as I prefer to shoot my targets form the shadows." Then she pauses and thinks a moment, "Well there was this one time ages ago well a group I was with was teleported to a Gith creche and as we were creeping around we came across an Adult Red Dragon that was just waking up. I kept to the shadows at the entrance of the passageway and shot a few cross bolt into its eye, felling the creature before any of the rest of my party could even move. It was quite satisfying, but there are better stores but unfortunately I have to keep them to myself as if word got out, it might bring undue attention to us and we have enough to worry about with these damn Zemochs and some stupid god running amok in this land."
"I agree with Khessa, hopefully we can talk some of these factions into either allying with us, the prominent winners of the coming battle, or at the very least, waiting till the dust settles to see who is the winner before advancing their own whims. Any blow dealt to what's his face is a good thing in my book." Mal adds to the conversation.
Sparhawk listens to the conversation. "Little Mother has been trying to instill that into our teachings, to think before we act. Of course, I tried to explain we Pandions have an image to uphold, we are not masters of the sword for no reason. She did spit and sputter, calling us heathens and barbarians. She did get through, but we have to admit, we prefer to charge into our fights with full force, sometimes even using our minds."
"There is nothing wrong, Sparhawk, in throwing ourselves into our fights with all our strength" Khessa smiles, putting a hand on the other's shoulder. "But, before doing so, it is important to stick to a principle that a highly experienced Battle Master from Kara-Tur once explained to me: 'Know your enemy'. Which has a deeper meaning than simply studying his weaknesses (which is also important). It is, first of all, an invitation to understand who your enemy really is; because sometimes, what seems like an enemy to you, may not be one. Or at least not necessarily".
"Azash wants to send Zemoch, Trolls, Undead and Dragons against us" the blonde arcane warrior recaps. "Is Azash our enemy? Probably yes. From the evidence we have, it is not plausible that he will change his plans - he has always tried and will always try to destroy us. Are the Zemochs our enemies? For now. But, it seems, they have been corrupted by Azash. If If this situation could be changed? Then perhaps they could no longer be enemies. They could even become the key to ultimate victory, if taking them away from the cult of Azash meant defeating Azash once and for all, having taken away his faithful. The Trolls? The Undead? The Dragons ? The same goes... If Azash has convinced them, they can be our enemies, for now; but they are not obliged to be".
"Now, Sparhawk..." the tall adventuress concludes, with a smile "You too understand that there is a big difference, between 'throwing into battle with all your strength' against Azash alone, or against Azash, Zemoch, Trolls, Undead and Dragons... Probably this is what Little Mother wanted you to understand".