As HELIOS spins away and takes the blow from the massive leathcheann he quickly asses the situation. "This ones size gives it a strength and speed that was unexpected" Putting about a 10ft distance between himself and the monster the energy in his hands flares up in a great intensity.
"The size of this thing can only get it so far. Undead entities cower at the glory of the sun. A few well placed attacks to the legs should topple the creature if its flesh can even withstand the radiance. This threat is not as dire as it would seem." HELIOS releases 2 orbs of radiant light at the leathcheann #6
Attack Rolls - 26, 22
The first bolt of sunlight strikes the creatures leg throwing it off balance, seeing it begin to fall forward HELIOS releases the second bolt directly at the creatures face (critical hit)
Damage Rolls - 6, 9 (Double damage due to radiant vs undead = (7+14)*2 = 42)
Seeing the behemoth of an undead fall, HELIOS turns and sprints back towards the group, spotting the 2 creatures that charged up to Xantlin.
"Two monsters in the face of a holy man is unacceptable. These two appear much smaller than the first and should be no match for the power of the sun. Guide me Pelor." The bracelet around HELIOS' wrist glows and two more balls of energy form in his hands. (Using 1 ki point to make 2 radiant sunbolt attacks as a bonus action) They fly towards leathcheann #4 and slam directly into its torso.
Attack Rolls - 27, 19
Damage Rolls - 6, 9 (Double damage due to radiant vs undead = (8+6)*2 = 28)
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Ryloos catches her balance and turns to face her attacker. The claw wounds burn and she can feel warm dribble of blood begin to make its way down her arm. As leathceann #3 draws near, she braces herself, holds her rapier with both hands out in front of her, and lunges forward sticking the blade up through the beast's skull.
Xantlin spits the blood from his mouth. After seeing the devastation caused by his mechatronic companion, he resists the urge to get revenge on his attacker, instead deciding to again attempt to finish off what Ryloos started. "Helios will blast the ****er for me," he thinks to himself. Xantlin jumps to Ryloos's side, set to torch another piece of zombie scum. Clutching his Holy Amulet and whispering to the Gods, he casts Word of Radiance on leathceann #3.
Con save from leathceann #3 - 10 (Spell save DC required 15) (I'm assuming we're cool with us rolling for the baddies rather than Matt to save time?)
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Buoyside grins as he looks down on the oblitereted zombie, laughing deeply at it's futile attempt to paw at his enormous foot. "You stinking chump, you rotten c u nt. I would leave you to decompose in the unbearable heat of Pelor's rays, but you are scuffing my boots!" He raises his enormous sword high above him, readying a final strike.
To hit: 18
He strikes down on the rotten meat, again blowing out the land.
Damage: 61
He smashes the zombie into pulp, his heart is filled. He feels joy.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
The battle is going well. "Make noise soldiers. We might not be able to see, but we can hear each other just fine." He begins to beat his spear on the side of his shield, hanging back and peering into the fog. Years on campaign have made him wary. This could just be a handful of leathceann. It could also be the edge of a much larger force, or the escort for some terrifying abomination.
Spotting Leathceann is difficult. You have to look for where the fog hangs heaviest and listen for the silence of death.
Perception check: 21I'll always roll my lucky dice second, I have to spend a point to use it.9In this case I don't need to spend my lucky, I'll be using the 21 I got originally. The manipulated dice rolls is because I tried to roll 2d20+2 thinking it would give me two dice rolls, but it just added them together.
I want to know if more enemies are coming, and where the breach we're heading for is in case we need to move.
You lift your enormous, immense blade from the crater you've created, bits of jellied leathcheann flesh stuck to the blade. The leathcheann is really and truly dead.
LEATHCHEANN 3 - RYLOOS
The beasts reels, a gaping wound gutting it from nape to navel. Necrotic, discolored bowel eviscerates from the wound. The leathcheann's combat prowess, however, seems unmitigated. It rears up to attack you. Just then, you feel a great outpouring of warmth from Xantlin. His words are honeyed and beautiful and yet also weighty, and they strike you with a physical and emotional force. Strange ruins form in the earth around him, glowing a warm, yellow color briefly before disappearing.
The leathcheann is less fortunate. Its body catches fire, though the flames are golden-white in color and emit only a gentle, comforting warmth. The creature writhes soundlessly as it collapses to then ground. Dope spell use, Xantlin. F.Y.I., next time, know that "Word of Radiance" actually affects all creatures that you can see/in earshot. You potentially could have done some major AOE damage. No biggy.
LEATHCHEANN 4 - XANTLIN
Blasts of radiant energy come rocketing out of the mist and lancinate through the leathcheann's cadaver, blasting pieces of flesh away. The wounds glow a faint yellow color at their edges, a divine burn that eats away at the rotting bone. The monster collapses, the grave calling it home.
LEATHCHEANN 5 - ALSO XANTLIN
Unfortunately, the other monstrosity remains unmolested and unmarred. It continues to assail Xantlin mercilessly.
Having overshot you in its initial attack, the beast turns and charges once again, limbs dangling lifelessly at its sides. Once again, however, you manage to outmaneuver the leathcheann. Almost comically, its inertia carries it past you. With the dogged perseverance of the undead, the beasts attempts to stop suddenly its momentum instead causing it to tumble to the ground. As it struggles to drag itself to its feet - while yet lacking the higher order motor function necessary to do so - a massive, clawed paw descends from the mist and smashes the leathcheann into the ground. The paw extends up into the mist beyond what you can see; all you can appreciate is a vague, ominous shadow in the fog towering above you.
LEATHCHEANN 6 - HELIOS
This one is just straight, plain ol' dead. Multiple blasts of radiant energy strike the beast, instantly sublimating it into a fine ash.
LOFTY
There are, unfortunately, no distinctive landmarks near you. However, you are able to discern the rough direction of the castle based on the siege engine's tracks. While keenly studying your surroundings, however, you note several other dark silhouettes moving in the mist. Several of which seem to move in slow, deliberate, menacing strides toward your party.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
"This claw must belong to the creature that destroyed the siege engine. Probability of defeating this beast is low currently. I recommend we flee for cover. Get the others out of here Sergeant, I will distract this beast and catch up." HELIOS projects his voice louder than you would expect is possible and then charges around the the beast to the side away from the rest of the party throwing two orbs of energy at the beast as he passes.
Attack Rolls - 24, 27
The first ball of energy slams into the paw of the monstrosity but the second arcs wide as HELIOS continues to move and create distance between himself and the rest of the party.
Damage Roll - 11
"Hopefully if I focus the attacks in one spot it will get the beasts attention" he says as he forms and throws a third sunbolt, aiming for the same spot the first impacted.
Attack Roll - 17
This bolt misses the target hitting the claw of the beast instead of the paw and seemingly having no effect.
"This ****er got guts all over my boots," Ryloos says aloud as she looks from the burning corpse to her boots covered in rotten, black goop. She snaps her head around at the sound and sensation of something massive hitting the ground. What she thought was Buoyside striking for a third time rushed from her mind as she witnessed the giant paw lift back into the mist. She stands there, head back, mouth agape bewildered at the enormous, veiled shadow until she realizes she can't see any of her companions. Remembering Lofty's words to make noise, she sheaths her rapier and wields her daggers. She begins to hit them together as she runs off in the last direction she saw leathceann #5 move towards Xantlin.
Personality roll (1-9 good, 11-20 bad, 10 is my choice) 10wow. I'll switch to "good" for a change of pace.
Buoyside begins swinging his sword about him in an attempt to clear some of the fog, he swings high enough to ensure he won't accidentally harm any of his friends. He also stomps an enormous foot into the ground, repeatedly. "The tremors and concussive sound you hear are from me, your big friend! I'm mowing the air in an attempt to clear the mist, can anyone see me? I've missed you all!"
Perception check 9What can I detect/see/hear in the mist?
The sergeant watches with horror as Helios bounds off into the fog. The damn brave idiot was gonna get himself killed.
A second Helios hurries after the first. A poor imitation, it doesn't shine with holy light or make any noise, but it might be enough to confuse a predator flying high and fast.
"We have a mission, we can't get bogged down here. Helios is giving us some breathing room, lets use it!" The sergeant shouts orders and hammers on his shield as he backpedals towards the breach, one eye on the sky. "Xantlin, with Helios gone I want you on point, if anything gets between us and the breach, fry it. They seem to stay dead when you hit em. This is a fighting retreat, we need to lure that thing inside where it can't run circles around us."
Despite your increased size, you unfortunately are unable to see anything in the mist. Your attempts at perturbing the fog with your blade do little but tire you out. The spell dissipates abruptly as Lofty turns to aid HELIOS, and you are returned to normal size.
RYLOOS
Like lofty, you too appreciate strange shapes moving in the fog. You are unable to discern any more detail given the mist's density but you appreciate that the entities are large. And definitely not human.
LOFTY
Your illusory HELIOS takes off after the first. It is a comically rough reinterpretation of your colleague, like something drawn by a child, but it is functional and perhaps enough to fool a large, poor-sighted, dim-witted beast. You beat your shield, attempting to rally your companions...though you fear that the added noise seems to draw the creatures to you, their pace no longer ambling but purposeful.
HELIOS
Your radiant energy strikes the creature's leg, a piece of chitinous armor breaking free to clatter on the ground. Up close, you appreciate the size of the monstrosity: it towers over you, the leg disappearing into the fog above your head.
A second massive leg crashes down beside you, driving through the illusory HELIOS and burying itself into the earth. Mud and deracinated grass goes flying as the ground trembles from the impact.
ALL
As you bang your weapons together, you feel the earth move and shake about you. Out of seemingly nowhere, however, you hear footsteps racing in your direction. The landsknecht commander bursts from the mist, a harried, anxious look in his eyes. His armor is filthy with mud and what appears to be blood, the vivid colors of his livery mixed with detritus.
"Quiet, you fools! They're drawn to the sound. We cannot hope to engage them here - follow me, lads!" He takes off running, illuminated by a glowing beacon in his left hand.
After what felt like miles, Ryloos reaches Lofty. Something about the mist affects her breathing as a run like this wouldn't typically tire her like this. As soon as she places her hands on her knees in an attempt to catch her breathe, the landsknecht appears, spits his pieces, and returns into the mist. Ryloos looks at Lofty wide-eyed. Something about the landsknecht's appearance tells her to run. She rolls her eyes, spits and takes off after him honing her focus on his ever-dimming beacon.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Lofty wanted to point out that while they may be drawing some unwanted attention, he wasn't the one wandering alone in the mist. He bites back his pride and wishes the old soldier well. The landsknecht had just survived every commander's worst nightmare. He lost his command and had the ill luck to walk away from it. That's a guilt that can crush a man.
"We're heading the other way friend. Get out while you can, we'll keep em busy." Lofty turns and begins to sing in a raspy tenor. "Though the crush of the battle is pressing - though the bodies lie piled around - I've no wounds in need of a dressing - and they'll never put me in the ground." His pace quickens and he hefts his spear for a throw as he carries on singing.
Readying my attack for the first thing that gets in our way. Hit: 18 Dmg: 3 + 3
Though his curiosity of what happened to the landsknecht commander is overwhelming, Xantlin would never disobey an order from the Sarge. Xantlin finds Lofty through the maddening fog from his shield banging, and is prepared to follow him to the breach. "Lead on to the breach Sargent, I will do what I can to quiet any Undead beast in our path."
Readying Word of Radiance. Damage 3 ((lawl) if they fail Con save)
Buoyside is regular sized now, and he's not thrilled. He sighs heavily, unconsciously he still raises and slams his foot into the mud, hardly making a sound. He looks to his blade and winks, "Eh, 9 feet is still nothing to scoff at, my love." He spends a moment digging around in the mug till he finds his discarded sheathe, though he's unable to slide it over the sharpened length alone. He carries them both and hurries towards the sound of Lofty's banging. He's relieved to find not only him, but Xantlin and Ryloos. "My friends, it is I! Your small friend, Buoyside Zinfandel! I'm so happy you're alive!" He nearly hugs them, though he's unable to angle his arms in anyway that allows his sword and sheath to clear the ground without dropping and reorienting his hands. "Lead the way, we will not falter in our courage!"
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Seeing and hearing his allies all scatter away from the giant beast in the fog HELIOS pulls his bagpipes off his back playing a few loud notes and inflating the bags to capacity. “If they are drawn to the sound then I will give them the greatest sound I know to chase after.”
Helios spins and tosses the bagpipes in the opposite direction that the party fled.
Athletics Check - 6
The bag pipes fly in the air arcing away about 12 feet. While at the peak of the arc HELIOS launches a bolt of radiant energy in attempt to pierce the bag.
Attack Roll - 27
As soon as the bolt releases from his hand HELIOS turns and sprints towards his companions. Confident in his abilities he doesn’t even turn to see if the shot makes contact, but is greeted with the satisfying sound of the bags deflating in one last glorious and loud note. He waits until he has met back up with the party before quietly saying aloud “Do not fear my friends, I will acquire a new instrument upon our return so that you may enjoy my music once more!”
HELIOS' bag pipe explodes behind you; the noise draws the attention of some of the figures in the fog. The massive beast slams its claw down a second time, much closer to you. Xantlin is given a good view of the monstrosity's arm, realizing that the claw is more of a stump ending in hundreds of unsettlingly human like-hands that, in turn, end in smaller hands. A tinge of madness claws at the back of your mind, but your faith and resolution tamp it down into the darker, uninhabited parts of your psyche.
Your team collectively flees, following Lofty. You run as fast as your legs carry you, though the fog seems to slow your movements. You can still hear sounds of battle around you over your ragged breaths, but the fog is impenetrable as ever and obscures your view. You appreciate that its color has faded from a gray-white to a deep, lurid blue-green, pierced by occasional flashes of brilliant light. It is hard to breathe.
You nearly run head-long into the castle wall. It is massive, an imposing structure built of shorn whitestone, its bricks bound by a divine mortar borne of rite and ritual. The current segment is flat stretch running between two turreted bastions. Unfortunately, you have seemingly no indication of where along the castle's perimeter you are, nor where the east wall is with relation to your position. As you begin to despair however, Ryloos notices a series of obscure graffiti and symbols carved on the stone. It is a thieves' cant, and it suggests that there is a ground-level water channel by which you might enter the city several hundred yards to your left.
Realizing her instinct to follow the landsknecht, Ryloos halted her sprint and doubled back to catch up with her friends.
Ryloos, wtih her back against the great wall, feels some sort of comfort being this close to home but it is distorted. Like seeing a familiar face after a long time but the face is drained from illness. Noticing the graffiti, she has a rough idea of where they are outside of the city. She used to watch ships come and go in the night from adjacent roof tops and alleyways.
She leans over and speaks to the rest of the party, "There's an entrance not far from here. It won't put us at our exact intended entrance but close enough. Follow me." She turns and begins running to left swiftly and silently.
You race along the base of the wall, eventually coming across a small grill built into its base. Some delicate manipulation of its hinges with Ryloos’ lockpocks- followed by a firm kick from Lofty - sends it clattering to the ground. One by one, you crawl on your stomach through the storm drain and into the sewers undermining the city. Lofty, ever the committed leader, is the last to pass into the tunnel; as he turns to leave, he feels the earth shudder. Glancing over his shoulder, he briefly glimpses a heavy, quivering mass of muscle and spines
At the end of the tunnel you drop down into a massive pool of waist-high water, its expanse disappearing into the distance, broken only by intermittent support arches. The water has a gentle current to it, a residual of the mighty river Ogma. As noted previously, Cionn tSáile was once at the forefront of technological prowess having rerouted the river Ogma to run through the city, providing a rudimentary form of plumbing via its elaborate sewer system. Unfortunately, you have little time to appreciate the elegance of the city’s infrastructure. Instead, you are disappointed to find that the fog is no less thick here in the sewers, its suffocating weight somehow augmented by the humidity of the reservoirs. Submersed to your belts in cool water, you struggle to convince yourself that you aren’t drowning.
The massive reservoir is oppressively quiet, the silence broken only by the occasional dripping of water and the gentle gurgle of the current. Or maybe you appreciate a heavy splash echoing in the distance? The absence of noise is deafening. You take a small solace in that the current seems to keep the water from stagnating, and that it is relatively free of grime or algal growths.
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As HELIOS spins away and takes the blow from the massive leathcheann he quickly asses the situation. "This ones size gives it a strength and speed that was unexpected" Putting about a 10ft distance between himself and the monster the energy in his hands flares up in a great intensity.
"The size of this thing can only get it so far. Undead entities cower at the glory of the sun. A few well placed attacks to the legs should topple the creature if its flesh can even withstand the radiance. This threat is not as dire as it would seem." HELIOS releases 2 orbs of radiant light at the leathcheann #6
Attack Rolls - 26, 22
The first bolt of sunlight strikes the creatures leg throwing it off balance, seeing it begin to fall forward HELIOS releases the second bolt directly at the creatures face (critical hit)
Damage Rolls - 6, 9 (Double damage due to radiant vs undead = (7+14)*2 = 42)
Seeing the behemoth of an undead fall, HELIOS turns and sprints back towards the group, spotting the 2 creatures that charged up to Xantlin.
"Two monsters in the face of a holy man is unacceptable. These two appear much smaller than the first and should be no match for the power of the sun. Guide me Pelor." The bracelet around HELIOS' wrist glows and two more balls of energy form in his hands. (Using 1 ki point to make 2 radiant sunbolt attacks as a bonus action) They fly towards leathcheann #4 and slam directly into its torso.
Attack Rolls - 27, 19
Damage Rolls - 6, 9 (Double damage due to radiant vs undead = (8+6)*2 = 28)
H.E.L.I.O.S - Warforged Sun Soul Monk
AC - 19
Ryloos catches her balance and turns to face her attacker. The claw wounds burn and she can feel warm dribble of blood begin to make its way down her arm. As leathceann #3 draws near, she braces herself, holds her rapier with both hands out in front of her, and lunges forward sticking the blade up through the beast's skull.
Attack roll - 30
Damage roll - 9
Xantlin spits the blood from his mouth. After seeing the devastation caused by his mechatronic companion, he resists the urge to get revenge on his attacker, instead deciding to again attempt to finish off what Ryloos started. "Helios will blast the ****er for me," he thinks to himself. Xantlin jumps to Ryloos's side, set to torch another piece of zombie scum. Clutching his Holy Amulet and whispering to the Gods, he casts Word of Radiance on leathceann #3.
Con save from leathceann #3 - 10 (Spell save DC required 15) (I'm assuming we're cool with us rolling for the baddies rather than Matt to save time?)
Radiance damage - 9 x 2 (radiance vs undead) = 18
Xantlin Pegason (imgur)
33/33 HP
4/4 level 1 spells, 3/3 level 2 spells, 2/2 level 3 spells
AC = 15, Spell attack bonus = 7, spell save DC = 15
Buoyside grins as he looks down on the oblitereted zombie, laughing deeply at it's futile attempt to paw at his enormous foot. "You stinking chump, you rotten c u nt. I would leave you to decompose in the unbearable heat of Pelor's rays, but you are scuffing my boots!" He raises his enormous sword high above him, readying a final strike.
To hit: 18
He strikes down on the rotten meat, again blowing out the land.
Damage: 6 1
He smashes the zombie into pulp, his heart is filled. He feels joy.
Character Sheet
AC: 16
The battle is going well. "Make noise soldiers. We might not be able to see, but we can hear each other just fine." He begins to beat his spear on the side of his shield, hanging back and peering into the fog. Years on campaign have made him wary. This could just be a handful of leathceann. It could also be the edge of a much larger force, or the escort for some terrifying abomination.
Spotting Leathceann is difficult. You have to look for where the fog hangs heaviest and listen for the silence of death.
Perception check: 21 I'll always roll my lucky dice second, I have to spend a point to use it. 9 In this case I don't need to spend my lucky, I'll be using the 21 I got originally. The manipulated dice rolls is because I tried to roll 2d20+2 thinking it would give me two dice rolls, but it just added them together.
I want to know if more enemies are coming, and where the breach we're heading for is in case we need to move.
Character Sheets: Page1 Page2 Page3
HP: 35 AC: 20 Saves: Str+2 Dex+0 Con+4 Int+2 Wis+2 Cha+6
LEATHCHEANN 2 - BUOYSIDE
Is the zombie dead? (DC 5+17 = 22) 20
You lift your enormous, immense blade from the crater you've created, bits of jellied leathcheann flesh stuck to the blade. The leathcheann is really and truly dead.
LEATHCHEANN 3 - RYLOOS
The beasts reels, a gaping wound gutting it from nape to navel. Necrotic, discolored bowel eviscerates from the wound. The leathcheann's combat prowess, however, seems unmitigated. It rears up to attack you. Just then, you feel a great outpouring of warmth from Xantlin. His words are honeyed and beautiful and yet also weighty, and they strike you with a physical and emotional force. Strange ruins form in the earth around him, glowing a warm, yellow color briefly before disappearing.
The leathcheann is less fortunate. Its body catches fire, though the flames are golden-white in color and emit only a gentle, comforting warmth. The creature writhes soundlessly as it collapses to then ground. Dope spell use, Xantlin. F.Y.I., next time, know that "Word of Radiance" actually affects all creatures that you can see/in earshot. You potentially could have done some major AOE damage. No biggy.
LEATHCHEANN 4 - XANTLIN
Blasts of radiant energy come rocketing out of the mist and lancinate through the leathcheann's cadaver, blasting pieces of flesh away. The wounds glow a faint yellow color at their edges, a divine burn that eats away at the rotting bone. The monster collapses, the grave calling it home.
LEATHCHEANN 5 - ALSO XANTLIN
Unfortunately, the other monstrosity remains unmolested and unmarred. It continues to assail Xantlin mercilessly.
Zombie attack? (Xantlin AC 15) 9
Having overshot you in its initial attack, the beast turns and charges once again, limbs dangling lifelessly at its sides. Once again, however, you manage to outmaneuver the leathcheann. Almost comically, its inertia carries it past you. With the dogged perseverance of the undead, the beasts attempts to stop suddenly its momentum instead causing it to tumble to the ground. As it struggles to drag itself to its feet - while yet lacking the higher order motor function necessary to do so - a massive, clawed paw descends from the mist and smashes the leathcheann into the ground. The paw extends up into the mist beyond what you can see; all you can appreciate is a vague, ominous shadow in the fog towering above you.
LEATHCHEANN 6 - HELIOS
This one is just straight, plain ol' dead. Multiple blasts of radiant energy strike the beast, instantly sublimating it into a fine ash.
LOFTY
There are, unfortunately, no distinctive landmarks near you. However, you are able to discern the rough direction of the castle based on the siege engine's tracks. While keenly studying your surroundings, however, you note several other dark silhouettes moving in the mist. Several of which seem to move in slow, deliberate, menacing strides toward your party.
"This claw must belong to the creature that destroyed the siege engine. Probability of defeating this beast is low currently. I recommend we flee for cover. Get the others out of here Sergeant, I will distract this beast and catch up." HELIOS projects his voice louder than you would expect is possible and then charges around the the beast to the side away from the rest of the party throwing two orbs of energy at the beast as he passes.
Attack Rolls - 24, 27
The first ball of energy slams into the paw of the monstrosity but the second arcs wide as HELIOS continues to move and create distance between himself and the rest of the party.
Damage Roll - 11
"Hopefully if I focus the attacks in one spot it will get the beasts attention" he says as he forms and throws a third sunbolt, aiming for the same spot the first impacted.
Attack Roll - 17
This bolt misses the target hitting the claw of the beast instead of the paw and seemingly having no effect.
H.E.L.I.O.S - Warforged Sun Soul Monk
AC - 19
"This ****er got guts all over my boots," Ryloos says aloud as she looks from the burning corpse to her boots covered in rotten, black goop. She snaps her head around at the sound and sensation of something massive hitting the ground. What she thought was Buoyside striking for a third time rushed from her mind as she witnessed the giant paw lift back into the mist. She stands there, head back, mouth agape bewildered at the enormous, veiled shadow until she realizes she can't see any of her companions. Remembering Lofty's words to make noise, she sheaths her rapier and wields her daggers. She begins to hit them together as she runs off in the last direction she saw leathceann #5 move towards Xantlin.
Personality roll (1-9 good, 11-20 bad, 10 is my choice) 10 wow. I'll switch to "good" for a change of pace.
Buoyside begins swinging his sword about him in an attempt to clear some of the fog, he swings high enough to ensure he won't accidentally harm any of his friends. He also stomps an enormous foot into the ground, repeatedly. "The tremors and concussive sound you hear are from me, your big friend! I'm mowing the air in an attempt to clear the mist, can anyone see me? I've missed you all!"
Perception check 9 What can I detect/see/hear in the mist?
Character Sheet
AC: 16
As Ryloos runs towards what she hopes is her nearest companion, she observes what she believes to be shadows but they fade in and out of her sight.
Perception check - 7
The sergeant watches with horror as Helios bounds off into the fog. The damn brave idiot was gonna get himself killed.
A second Helios hurries after the first. A poor imitation, it doesn't shine with holy light or make any noise, but it might be enough to confuse a predator flying high and fast.
"We have a mission, we can't get bogged down here. Helios is giving us some breathing room, lets use it!" The sergeant shouts orders and hammers on his shield as he backpedals towards the breach, one eye on the sky. "Xantlin, with Helios gone I want you on point, if anything gets between us and the breach, fry it. They seem to stay dead when you hit em. This is a fighting retreat, we need to lure that thing inside where it can't run circles around us."
Character Sheets: Page1 Page2 Page3
HP: 35 AC: 20 Saves: Str+2 Dex+0 Con+4 Int+2 Wis+2 Cha+6
BUOYSIDE
Despite your increased size, you unfortunately are unable to see anything in the mist. Your attempts at perturbing the fog with your blade do little but tire you out. The spell dissipates abruptly as Lofty turns to aid HELIOS, and you are returned to normal size.
RYLOOS
Like lofty, you too appreciate strange shapes moving in the fog. You are unable to discern any more detail given the mist's density but you appreciate that the entities are large. And definitely not human.
LOFTY
Your illusory HELIOS takes off after the first. It is a comically rough reinterpretation of your colleague, like something drawn by a child, but it is functional and perhaps enough to fool a large, poor-sighted, dim-witted beast. You beat your shield, attempting to rally your companions...though you fear that the added noise seems to draw the creatures to you, their pace no longer ambling but purposeful.
HELIOS
Your radiant energy strikes the creature's leg, a piece of chitinous armor breaking free to clatter on the ground. Up close, you appreciate the size of the monstrosity: it towers over you, the leg disappearing into the fog above your head.
Creature attack? (1,3,5=HELIOS 2,4,6=Illusory HELIOS) 4
A second massive leg crashes down beside you, driving through the illusory HELIOS and burying itself into the earth. Mud and deracinated grass goes flying as the ground trembles from the impact.
ALL
As you bang your weapons together, you feel the earth move and shake about you. Out of seemingly nowhere, however, you hear footsteps racing in your direction. The landsknecht commander bursts from the mist, a harried, anxious look in his eyes. His armor is filthy with mud and what appears to be blood, the vivid colors of his livery mixed with detritus.
"Quiet, you fools! They're drawn to the sound. We cannot hope to engage them here - follow me, lads!" He takes off running, illuminated by a glowing beacon in his left hand.
After what felt like miles, Ryloos reaches Lofty. Something about the mist affects her breathing as a run like this wouldn't typically tire her like this. As soon as she places her hands on her knees in an attempt to catch her breathe, the landsknecht appears, spits his pieces, and returns into the mist. Ryloos looks at Lofty wide-eyed. Something about the landsknecht's appearance tells her to run. She rolls her eyes, spits and takes off after him honing her focus on his ever-dimming beacon.
Lofty wanted to point out that while they may be drawing some unwanted attention, he wasn't the one wandering alone in the mist. He bites back his pride and wishes the old soldier well. The landsknecht had just survived every commander's worst nightmare. He lost his command and had the ill luck to walk away from it. That's a guilt that can crush a man.
"We're heading the other way friend. Get out while you can, we'll keep em busy." Lofty turns and begins to sing in a raspy tenor. "Though the crush of the battle is pressing - though the bodies lie piled around - I've no wounds in need of a dressing - and they'll never put me in the ground." His pace quickens and he hefts his spear for a throw as he carries on singing.
Readying my attack for the first thing that gets in our way. Hit: 18 Dmg: 3 + 3
Character Sheets: Page1 Page2 Page3
HP: 35 AC: 20 Saves: Str+2 Dex+0 Con+4 Int+2 Wis+2 Cha+6
Though his curiosity of what happened to the landsknecht commander is overwhelming, Xantlin would never disobey an order from the Sarge. Xantlin finds Lofty through the maddening fog from his shield banging, and is prepared to follow him to the breach. "Lead on to the breach Sargent, I will do what I can to quiet any Undead beast in our path."
Readying Word of Radiance. Damage 3 ((lawl) if they fail Con save)
Xantlin Pegason (imgur)
33/33 HP
4/4 level 1 spells, 3/3 level 2 spells, 2/2 level 3 spells
AC = 15, Spell attack bonus = 7, spell save DC = 15
Buoyside is regular sized now, and he's not thrilled. He sighs heavily, unconsciously he still raises and slams his foot into the mud, hardly making a sound. He looks to his blade and winks, "Eh, 9 feet is still nothing to scoff at, my love." He spends a moment digging around in the mug till he finds his discarded sheathe, though he's unable to slide it over the sharpened length alone. He carries them both and hurries towards the sound of Lofty's banging. He's relieved to find not only him, but Xantlin and Ryloos. "My friends, it is I! Your small friend, Buoyside Zinfandel! I'm so happy you're alive!" He nearly hugs them, though he's unable to angle his arms in anyway that allows his sword and sheath to clear the ground without dropping and reorienting his hands. "Lead the way, we will not falter in our courage!"
Character Sheet
AC: 16
Seeing and hearing his allies all scatter away from the giant beast in the fog HELIOS pulls his bagpipes off his back playing a few loud notes and inflating the bags to capacity. “If they are drawn to the sound then I will give them the greatest sound I know to chase after.”
Helios spins and tosses the bagpipes in the opposite direction that the party fled.
Athletics Check - 6
The bag pipes fly in the air arcing away about 12 feet. While at the peak of the arc HELIOS launches a bolt of radiant energy in attempt to pierce the bag.
Attack Roll - 27
As soon as the bolt releases from his hand HELIOS turns and sprints towards his companions. Confident in his abilities he doesn’t even turn to see if the shot makes contact, but is greeted with the satisfying sound of the bags deflating in one last glorious and loud note. He waits until he has met back up with the party before quietly saying aloud “Do not fear my friends, I will acquire a new instrument upon our return so that you may enjoy my music once more!”
H.E.L.I.O.S - Warforged Sun Soul Monk
AC - 19
ALL
HELIOS' bag pipe explodes behind you; the noise draws the attention of some of the figures in the fog. The massive beast slams its claw down a second time, much closer to you. Xantlin is given a good view of the monstrosity's arm, realizing that the claw is more of a stump ending in hundreds of unsettlingly human like-hands that, in turn, end in smaller hands. A tinge of madness claws at the back of your mind, but your faith and resolution tamp it down into the darker, uninhabited parts of your psyche.
Your team collectively flees, following Lofty. You run as fast as your legs carry you, though the fog seems to slow your movements. You can still hear sounds of battle around you over your ragged breaths, but the fog is impenetrable as ever and obscures your view. You appreciate that its color has faded from a gray-white to a deep, lurid blue-green, pierced by occasional flashes of brilliant light. It is hard to breathe.
You nearly run head-long into the castle wall. It is massive, an imposing structure built of shorn whitestone, its bricks bound by a divine mortar borne of rite and ritual. The current segment is flat stretch running between two turreted bastions. Unfortunately, you have seemingly no indication of where along the castle's perimeter you are, nor where the east wall is with relation to your position. As you begin to despair however, Ryloos notices a series of obscure graffiti and symbols carved on the stone. It is a thieves' cant, and it suggests that there is a ground-level water channel by which you might enter the city several hundred yards to your left.
Realizing her instinct to follow the landsknecht, Ryloos halted her sprint and doubled back to catch up with her friends.
Ryloos, wtih her back against the great wall, feels some sort of comfort being this close to home but it is distorted. Like seeing a familiar face after a long time but the face is drained from illness. Noticing the graffiti, she has a rough idea of where they are outside of the city. She used to watch ships come and go in the night from adjacent roof tops and alleyways.
She leans over and speaks to the rest of the party, "There's an entrance not far from here. It won't put us at our exact intended entrance but close enough. Follow me." She turns and begins running to left swiftly and silently.
ALL
You race along the base of the wall, eventually coming across a small grill built into its base. Some delicate manipulation of its hinges with Ryloos’ lockpocks- followed by a firm kick from Lofty - sends it clattering to the ground. One by one, you crawl on your stomach through the storm drain and into the sewers undermining the city. Lofty, ever the committed leader, is the last to pass into the tunnel; as he turns to leave, he feels the earth shudder. Glancing over his shoulder, he briefly glimpses a heavy, quivering mass of muscle and spines
At the end of the tunnel you drop down into a massive pool of waist-high water, its expanse disappearing into the distance, broken only by intermittent support arches. The water has a gentle current to it, a residual of the mighty river Ogma. As noted previously, Cionn tSáile was once at the forefront of technological prowess having rerouted the river Ogma to run through the city, providing a rudimentary form of plumbing via its elaborate sewer system. Unfortunately, you have little time to appreciate the elegance of the city’s infrastructure. Instead, you are disappointed to find that the fog is no less thick here in the sewers, its suffocating weight somehow augmented by the humidity of the reservoirs. Submersed to your belts in cool water, you struggle to convince yourself that you aren’t drowning.
The massive reservoir is oppressively quiet, the silence broken only by the occasional dripping of water and the gentle gurgle of the current. Or maybe you appreciate a heavy splash echoing in the distance? The absence of noise is deafening. You take a small solace in that the current seems to keep the water from stagnating, and that it is relatively free of grime or algal growths.