Arthurstumbles out of the circle as it breaks, drawing in deep breaths. He wipes the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, turning around to gesture with both arms at the dispersing dancers. "There Selyne, we all danced. Satisfied?" The young swordsman sways on his feet once, then steadies himself. He runs his hands down his face, then glances to the street leading west. "I think Clearspring Tor had something going on. Shall we?"
"Mm, something about fortune tellers wasn't it?"Zerilsays, drawing his outer coat tighter as they step away from the crowd. "Not too interested in knowing my future, but I'll tag along."
The four of you peel away from Amberside’s blaze, following the stream of festival-goers west. The noise of drums and fiddles fades behind you, replaced by the hum of voices as people drift toward Clearspring Tor. Lanterns hang between buildings here, their glow catching on the wet cobblestones and the high, leaning roofs that seem to close in above the street.
Vendors still ply their trade along the way with roasted chestnuts, steaming stew, spiced nuts wrapped in paper cones...but the crowd thins as you push further, laughter and music growing patchy. A group of singers passes by, their song trailing off into the night, and suddenly the street is quiet.
Arthur: It’s in that quiet you hear it: a muffled thump, like something heavy dropped against stone, followed by a low murmur of voices. The sound bleeds from a narrow side-street between two tall houses, where the torchlight doesn’t quite reach. As you pass-by, you glance down to see four cloaked and masked figures standing at the end, huddled over some misshapen form on the ground. When you do a double take, you recognize the form to be a person - or perhaps the corpse of one.
"Hold on,"Arthur says quietly to his friends, holding up a hand as he himself comes to a stop. He nods down the sidestreet, then slowly starts to walk towards the huddled group. "Everyone okay over here?" He calls out cautiously, hands splayed out at his sides in a non-threatening manner.
"En-ithar, wait!" The elvish sorceress hisses quietly, stepping quickly to catch up with Arthur as he starts down the street. "You—we're half-drunk! Not the time to be looking for trouble!"She continues, scolding him in hushed tones.
"Careful now." Zeril calls softly his friends as they start down the side-street, tilting his head to the side curiously as he follows with his hands in his coat pockets. A fist curls around the crystal waiting inside one of the pockets.
At the sound of Arthur’s voice, the cloaked figures go still. Four heads lift in eerie unison, white-painted masks turning toward you. In the glow of Bastian’s amulet, you catch the gleam of red smears across their gloves, across the cobbles. The shape at their feet is a man, his eyes wide and glassy, throat opened ear to ear.
One of the figures straightens slowly, a jagged blade dangling loose in hand. Another hisses to the rest in a language half-swallowed by the night, its cadence more like a beastly growl than speech. Only Arthurunderstands the words spoken in Draconic. "Witnesses," they rasp. "Leave none standing."
They do not answer his question. They do not flee. Instead, as the light spreads down the alley, all four step back from the body at once, jagged blades glinting in the light from Bastian's spelled amulet.
They fan out in the narrow street, approaching with severe intent.
[ Roll initiative and place yourself somewhere within the outline orange box in the map. The VTT is up. Remember Bastianhas that Weapon of Warning. Selyneand Arthurare still poisoned. ]
"Half drunk or not, trouble's found us."Arthurmutters to the elfnext to him, stumbling to the side to reach the opposite wall. Under his breath he mumbles words in another language, and lines of pale azure light race across the empty air at his side, sketching the outline of a weapon like a blueprint. Sparks flare as if steel is being hammered in an unseen forge. Then the glow collapsed inward, and a slender longsword takes shape.
He points the weapon like a wand at the two assailants diagonal from him, arcane words of power flowing from his lips next.
Selyne's eyes narrow suspiciously. "Arthur, since when can yo—" she cuts herself off, refocusing on the fight in front of them. Her eyes flare with a faint glow as the sorcery running through her veins awakens. Following his example, she pulls a wand from her belt, casting a Sleep spell upon those across from her.
Action - Sleep WIS DC 16 Bonus Action - Innate Sorcery
On the opposite side of the street, one of the cloaked figures begins to sway as Selyne'sSleep takes hold of them. The two unaffected thusfar move forward, gesturing with their free hands and intoning words in the harsh tongue they spoke in.
Two spectral blades manifest in the street: one behind Bastian, the other behind Zeril. Both swords arc down, and the pair barely escape the attack. Lifting their own jagged swords, the cultists strike at Arthurand Selyne. The young nobleman deflects the blow handedly with his own sword - but the elvish noble is not so lucky.
"Here we go now." The tiefling mumbles sarcastically. He pulls the crystal from his pocket and holds it up, shouting the words to the spell. A bolt of web launches out in an arc from the glowing gem, landing between those cloaked figures affected by the sleep spells, and those unaffected. When it impacts, the bolt explodes, stringing webs along the cobblestones and from wall to wall. Pushing out with his mind, he shoves telekinetically against the one in front of Arthur.
Action| Web DC 14 Dex Save, 20 ft cube centered such that Arthur+ Selynearen't entangled in it. Bonus Action| Telekinetic Shove DC 14 Str Save
A barrier of arcane energy flickers into place between Selyneand the jagged sword, blocking the attack.
As the mess of webs fill the street beyond you, the two cultists already Incapacitated by the Sleep magic try to stumble forward, immediately becoming ensnared in the webs.
[ Sleep and Web affected enemies are outlined in Purple. Web affected are outlined in Red. Sleep affected are outlined in Blue. Initiative Group 1 is back up.]
"Ahh...Good call Zeril!"Arthursays over his shoulder, focusing his attention on the assailant next to Selynenow. Fingers wrapped around the sword's hilt, he touches his fist to his chest, then taps the flat of his blade to his forehead as he crosses the street. The sword gleams with an azure light, and a light frosty armor coats his vital areas.
The blade's glow shifts to gold as he quickens his step, thrusting forward at the cloaked figure with a quick strike.
"Be careful not to stumble into the webs yourself Arthur." The aasimar says flatly, raising his sunburst amulet once more. He intones a divine word, and the light shifts to a fiery orange as three scorching rays shoot out from it, slamming into the same cultist Arthur had attacked.
Ray 1: 19 to hit. 6 damage. Ray 2: 26 to hit. 4 damage. Ray 3: 16 to hit. 7 damage.
Again, Selyne spares Arthur as suspicious glance as he moves next to her, striking at the attacker in front of her with magic. Then her attention returns to the fight, and she flicks the wand, casting a scorching ray spell.
Action(targeting the enemy in front of her, moving to the other restrained one if this one goes down) - Scorching Ray 28 to hit, 8 damage | 18 to hit, 7 damage | 16 to hit, 7 damage
Arthur stumbles out of the circle as it breaks, drawing in deep breaths. He wipes the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, turning around to gesture with both arms at the dispersing dancers. "There Selyne, we all danced. Satisfied?" The young swordsman sways on his feet once, then steadies himself. He runs his hands down his face, then glances to the street leading west. "I think Clearspring Tor had something going on. Shall we?"
"Mm, something about fortune tellers wasn't it?" Zeril says, drawing his outer coat tighter as they step away from the crowd. "Not too interested in knowing my future, but I'll tag along."
The four of you peel away from Amberside’s blaze, following the stream of festival-goers west. The noise of drums and fiddles fades behind you, replaced by the hum of voices as people drift toward Clearspring Tor. Lanterns hang between buildings here, their glow catching on the wet cobblestones and the high, leaning roofs that seem to close in above the street.
Vendors still ply their trade along the way with roasted chestnuts, steaming stew, spiced nuts wrapped in paper cones...but the crowd thins as you push further, laughter and music growing patchy. A group of singers passes by, their song trailing off into the night, and suddenly the street is quiet.
Arthur: It’s in that quiet you hear it: a muffled thump, like something heavy dropped against stone, followed by a low murmur of voices. The sound bleeds from a narrow side-street between two tall houses, where the torchlight doesn’t quite reach. As you pass-by, you glance down to see four cloaked and masked figures standing at the end, huddled over some misshapen form on the ground. When you do a double take, you recognize the form to be a person - or perhaps the corpse of one.
"Hold on," Arthur says quietly to his friends, holding up a hand as he himself comes to a stop. He nods down the sidestreet, then slowly starts to walk towards the huddled group. "Everyone okay over here?" He calls out cautiously, hands splayed out at his sides in a non-threatening manner.
"En-ithar, wait!" The elvish sorceress hisses quietly, stepping quickly to catch up with Arthur as he starts down the street. "You—we're half-drunk! Not the time to be looking for trouble!" She continues, scolding him in hushed tones.
Bastian walks slowly after his two friends, casting a meaningful glance at Zeril. Old habits indeed.
"Perhaps this situation requires illumination?"
He ponders aloud, lifting the sunburst amulet he wears aloft as he casts Light on it.
"Careful now." Zeril calls softly his friends as they start down the side-street, tilting his head to the side curiously as he follows with his hands in his coat pockets. A fist curls around the crystal waiting inside one of the pockets.
At the sound of Arthur’s voice, the cloaked figures go still. Four heads lift in eerie unison, white-painted masks turning toward you. In the glow of Bastian’s amulet, you catch the gleam of red smears across their gloves, across the cobbles. The shape at their feet is a man, his eyes wide and glassy, throat opened ear to ear.
One of the figures straightens slowly, a jagged blade dangling loose in hand. Another hisses to the rest in a language half-swallowed by the night, its cadence more like a beastly growl than speech. Only Arthur understands the words spoken in Draconic. "Witnesses," they rasp. "Leave none standing."
They do not answer his question. They do not flee. Instead, as the light spreads down the alley, all four step back from the body at once, jagged blades glinting in the light from Bastian's spelled amulet.
They fan out in the narrow street, approaching with severe intent.
[ Roll initiative and place yourself somewhere within the outline orange box in the map. The VTT is up. Remember Bastian has that Weapon of Warning. Selyne and Arthur are still poisoned. ]
[ Initiative Group 1: Arthur, Bastian, and then Selyne. ]
"Half drunk or not, trouble's found us." Arthur mutters to the elf next to him, stumbling to the side to reach the opposite wall. Under his breath he mumbles words in another language, and lines of pale azure light race across the empty air at his side, sketching the outline of a weapon like a blueprint. Sparks flare as if steel is being hammered in an unseen forge. Then the glow collapsed inward, and a slender longsword takes shape.
He points the weapon like a wand at the two assailants diagonal from him, arcane words of power flowing from his lips next.
Action: Sleep - DC 14 WIS Save
Movement: 5 ft SE
The cloaked figure closest to you shakes their head slightly as the spell begins to take effect, swaying on their feet.
[ Outlined in Blue means they're under the effects of the spell. ]
Bastian steps closer behind Arthur, brow furrowing slightly as his old friend summons a blade from air. A question for later perhaps.
Enhancing his voice thaumaturgically, the cleric calls out in a booming voice.
"Guards! To us! There's been a murder!"
Selyne's eyes narrow suspiciously. "Arthur, since when can yo—" she cuts herself off, refocusing on the fight in front of them. Her eyes flare with a faint glow as the sorcery running through her veins awakens. Following his example, she pulls a wand from her belt, casting a Sleep spell upon those across from her.
Action - Sleep WIS DC 16
Bonus Action - Innate Sorcery
On the opposite side of the street, one of the cloaked figures begins to sway as Selyne's Sleep takes hold of them. The two unaffected thusfar move forward, gesturing with their free hands and intoning words in the harsh tongue they spoke in.
Two spectral blades manifest in the street: one behind Bastian, the other behind Zeril. Both swords arc down, and the pair barely escape the attack. Lifting their own jagged swords, the cultists strike at Arthur and Selyne. The young nobleman deflects the blow handedly with his own sword - but the elvish noble is not so lucky.
Selyne: 20 to hit if you have a reaction.
[ Initiative Group 2: Zeril ]
"Here we go now." The tiefling mumbles sarcastically. He pulls the crystal from his pocket and holds it up, shouting the words to the spell. A bolt of web launches out in an arc from the glowing gem, landing between those cloaked figures affected by the sleep spells, and those unaffected. When it impacts, the bolt explodes, stringing webs along the cobblestones and from wall to wall. Pushing out with his mind, he shoves telekinetically against the one in front of Arthur.
Action| Web DC 14 Dex Save, 20 ft cube centered such that Arthur + Selyne aren't entangled in it.
Bonus Action| Telekinetic Shove DC 14 Str Save
Selyne will Shield to block the attack.
A barrier of arcane energy flickers into place between Selyne and the jagged sword, blocking the attack.
As the mess of webs fill the street beyond you, the two cultists already Incapacitated by the Sleep magic try to stumble forward, immediately becoming ensnared in the webs.
[ Sleep and Web affected enemies are outlined in Purple. Web affected are outlined in Red. Sleep affected are outlined in Blue. Initiative Group 1 is back up.]
"Ahh...Good call Zeril!" Arthur says over his shoulder, focusing his attention on the assailant next to Selyne now. Fingers wrapped around the sword's hilt, he touches his fist to his chest, then taps the flat of his blade to his forehead as he crosses the street. The sword gleams with an azure light, and a light frosty armor coats his vital areas.
The blade's glow shifts to gold as he quickens his step, thrusting forward at the cloaked figure with a quick strike.
Bonus Action: Armor of Agathys
Movement: 5 ft NW
Action: True Strike to hit - 15, 13 radiant damage.
"Be careful not to stumble into the webs yourself Arthur."
The aasimar says flatly, raising his sunburst amulet once more. He intones a divine word, and the light shifts to a fiery orange as three scorching rays shoot out from it, slamming into the same cultist Arthur had attacked.
Ray 1: 19 to hit. 6 damage.
Ray 2: 26 to hit. 4 damage.
Ray 3: 16 to hit. 7 damage.
Again, Selyne spares Arthur as suspicious glance as he moves next to her, striking at the attacker in front of her with magic. Then her attention returns to the fight, and she flicks the wand, casting a scorching ray spell.
Action(targeting the enemy in front of her, moving to the other restrained one if this one goes down) - Scorching Ray 28 to hit, 8 damage | 18 to hit, 7 damage | 16 to hit, 7 damage