Benito takes his cue from Bukowyr's frustration, and unsheathes his great sword to break the door since, in fact, he is also frustrated by how much trouble this cupboard is giving them.

athletics:23
or (not sure how this works if im just trying to smash the door into splinters)
Attack: 8 Damage: 11

(OOC - Kai's right, wasn't offering to break the door again. But I can roll with it =D. DM - I'll let you decide if I do this before leaving the trophy room or not)

Kai hears the boys attempts at opening the cabinet behind her as she leaves the room, her words lost to the deaf ears of determined boys. She will slightly shake her head with a smile and hope that Kayla is standing between the trophy room and dining room as a relay.

Benito's attack does the job and after a explosion of splinters of wood and little metal pieces they have access to an "open" cabinet that  holds a two bear traps, a heavy crossbow, a light crossbow, a hand crossbow, and 20 bolts for each weapon. 

Bear Trap info

"Well... that puts the issue to bed. If any of you are looking for crossbows and/or bolts, you found them. I think the bear traps can be useful, I'll take one of them if any of you wants the other."

Watching the 'opening' of the cabinet with amusement and a little embarrassment at the looting, Kayla non the less moves forward out of curiosity.

"Traps, bolts and bows.  I suppose it makes sense in a trophy room," Kayla mutters and shakes her head at the mess they'd made of the cabinet but then raises her voice.  "I wouldn't mind the bolts for the hand crossbow."

Kai shakes her head with a smile at the noise of the others and looks to Torvus. "Do you need any of that? I prefer my magic for ranged attacks." Kai will investigate the diningroom door, checking for traps but doubting there would be any in such a public place.

Investigation: 16

If she finds none, she will lead the way into the dining room and record ththe layout on her map sketch.

 (I'll be way less active tomorrow due to a family reunion. Just assume Kai is recording her map quietly throughout the house and in combat situations, its mainly repeated sacred flames unless someone goes down. If you find any magic items she'll want to see them.)

Torvus shakes his head. "Thank you, but I've got all the bolts I need right here." He taps the side of his head with an index finger and grins.

Kai nods and smiles "Agreed. Now let's see whats in this dining room." After making sure the door is not trapped, Kai will lead the way inside the dining room.

Bukowyr Geogazer | Svirfneblin | Ranger | Level 1 | AC 15 | HP 12/12 |

_____________________________________________________________________

"Traps are useful to heart beasts. Nice finding. I will take this hand crossbow because it is beautiful and subtle. Of course I could make use of the bolts. This light crossbow is in better condition than mine." - smiling at the new items, Bukowyr proceeds to the next room with everybody else. One of the rare occasions the Svirfneblin is seen smiling.

Benito follows Kai into the dining room. "That cupboard was getting on my nerves... I couldn't let it go." Benito says with a playful grin.

He follows and sheathes his great sword but still rests his hand on the hilt, ready to draw his weapon at any time.

The centerpiece of this wood-paneled dining room is a carved mahogany table surrounded by eight high-backed chairs with sculpted armrests and cushioned seats. A crystal chandelier hangs above the table, which is covered with resplendent silverware and crystalware polished to a dazzling shine. Mounted above the marble fireplace is a mahogany-framed painting of an alpine vale.

The wall paneling is carved with elegant images of deer among the trees. Red silk drapes cover the windows, and a tapestry depicting hunting dogs and horse-mounted aristocrats chasing after a wolf hangs from an iron rod bolted to the south wall.

The silverware tarnishes, the crystal cracks, the portrait fades, and the tapestry rots if removed from the house.

Although very fine, Kayla is fairly certain this room doesn't hold the answers they seek.  Still, they should check.

"Should you check for traps and secret entrances, good deep gnome?" Kayla asks realizing they still hadn't been introduced.  "If nothing is found... perhaps we head upstairs?"

Kai looks around the room and updates her sketch, speaking almost casually. "There is the kitchen next door to this. That may be of some interest. We should inspect each room for anything that may be important to this beast." As she is sketching, she will look around for anything with magical properties quietly.

"This certainly doesn't seem to be the abode of a monster. Where are the claw marks, or dragon's fire, or ravenous ghouls? Everything seems quite in order, if a bit dusty. You'd think a monster would have torn the place to shreds, no?" He ambles out of the room and peeks up the winding staircase.

Kai tilts her head and looks to Torvus. "Not all creatures are mindless destructive beings. It is actually more worrying that the place it in order than if it was torn apart. That can mean two things. Either the monster hasn't gotten to here yet, meaning it is above or below us, or this creature is very intellegent. Either way, we should be cautious."

Torvus nods at Kai's remark. "Indeed. Or perhaps the monster isn't a monster at all, but something else. Rose and Thorn are children — illusory children, but let's put that aside for a moment. When you were a child were there ever 'monsters' in your closet or under the bed that turned out to be something else quite entirely? I wonder if perhaps the same thing is happening here." Torvus taps the side of his head thoughtfully.

Kai shrugs and looks around. "My monsters were very real. Trust me. Just not the typical kind you'd expect." Once she is done with this room sketch, She will let the others investigate the dining room and move to investigate the coat closet in the main hall, searching the robe pockets and the closet for anything of interest.

Investigation: 11 

From within the closet, Kai smiles. "but I get your point Torvus."

Listening to her companions consider the problem, Kayla thought Torvus had a point.  No matter what the children had said, they could not fully rely upon it.  At least the others seemed to have things well in hand.  Still, if there was a monster...

"Could it be too large to move between levels?  Or perhaps not be able to use stairs?  The house is built to human size," Kayla considered.  "If it is somehow confined to one part of the house, that might explain why the rest of it hasn't been disturbed."

Kai nods in agreement with Kayla and shrugs. "That is also very possible. But then that leaves the question of how it got in the house in the first place doesn't it."