Above & Below

Moving at a good pace, it doesn't take long for you to cross the meadow and enter the forest. Cadmael keeps you up to date on how far the tower is, and as you approach, he notes that there's not fighting outside anymore. The Dark Forest member lies dead outside with a stab wound in his side. There are sounds coming from inside but they're muffled and tough to make out.

You can get close enough to get a look without fully exposing yourselves. The tower is completely wooden, standing around five stories tall. There seems to be one main entrance on the ground floor, with single windows alternating sides on each of the floors above it. The structure itself doesn't exactly look impressive - you get the sense that maybe the builders were perhaps trying to emulate lordly towers they had seen somewhere but didn't have the knowledge or skill to actually pull it off. 

Eventually you get close enough that you do hear some commotion inside. Footsteps, the clunking sound of something heavy. Pip crouches down, drawing out his bow and looking at you all for direction. 

Is the door closed?  If so, Brask will walk up to it and kick it in.

It was going to be open, but it's more cinematic if Brask just kicks it in. :)

The door snaps off the hinges and falls into the middle of the room. Inside, you find more chaos. Two more dead bodies - one with bones, the other wearing a black cloak. There's blood splattered around the room and knocked over crates everywhere. It seems like at least some of them were holding drugs. Vials with different powders and liquids spill out of them onto the floor. A heavy crate lies open with assorted weapons inside - daggers, mostly. You hear voices coming from upstairs. Maybe from the second or third floor. Then you hear footsteps coming down.

Effort whispers a prayer for guidance, and then slips into the room, trying to take cover and hide behind a crate.

Stealth: 21

Realizing that at least one person needed to be present at the bottom of the stairs due to their entrance, Kurama told Pip to hide before standing at the ready with Brask (presumably).  Though he wasn't looking particularly hostile, he was standing on the balls of his feet, ready to jump out of the way should they decide to start attacking immediately.

• Dodge action just in case whoever finds us comes out swinging :)

Brask stands just a little behind Kurama, but his action is a readied attack with his maul if anyone probably hostile comes within melee range.

Pip rushes to hide under the stairs as the footsteps get louder: 23

You all just get a weird feeling about this place. Effort - and Kurama to a lesser extent - you're especially aware of the strange energies that are pulsing throughout this tower.

The footsteps finally reach the bottom of the steps, and three men step forward. Two of them wear black armor with long swords drawn...in their other hand, though, you see each one holds a small, burning ball of red energy. It flickers like a flame as they hold it out in the direction of Brask and Kurama. The third man wears a black cloak. Behind the hood, you can see a face filled with long, deep scars. They seem to have a glow to them, somewhat similar to the flickering energy of the others. He wastes no time. "Kill them."

Everyone, roll initiative. Effort & Pip will receive surprise rounds first.

An arrow flies out from behind the steps at the cloaked figure:

Attack: 10 Damage: Unable to parse dice roll.

He leans away from it at the last moment as the arrow sticks into the wall behind Brask.

Pip's initiative: 3

Cloaked figure: 22

"Knights": 13

Brask's initiative:  15

We've had a rest since our last combat, right?

(Mobile)

Kurama initiative: 14

Yeah, you've definitely long rested.

Effort 16 

Cadmael  14

Effort weaves her hands together and casts hypnotic pattern before all three of the figures on the steps.(wis 16 or charmed)

Knight / Knight / Cloak saves: 12 4 9

All three men pause, looking confused for a moment, and then their faces all go blank. 

Round 1: Pip > Effort & Cadmael > Knights & Cloak > Brask > Kurama

Pip comes out from behind the stairs, cocks his head as he waits for them to do something, and then looks over at Effort. 

(I'm taking liberties here, but I suppose we're out of combat until the minute is up? XD)

Effort stands up from behind the crate.  "Take them out one by one," she says quickly.  "We have only a minute."

Cadmael flies in to give advantage to Kurama's next attack. (he goes after Brask I think, if we're in init order)

Yeah let's stay in initiative order since they'll come out of it with damage. Are you not attacking on your turn so they don't get to act, Effort? If so, Brask is up - let me know which one of the three you're targeting.

Brask saunters up to scar-hood-kill-them guy, and swings his maul: 

Attack: 21 Damage: 13
Attack: 11 Damage: 12

Immediate action surge:

Attack: 27 Damage: 12
Attack: 24 Damage: 13 

That should be 38 points of bludgeoning damage, if three of the attacks hit.

(Oh, I forgot I had another turn. aeffor readies an eldritch blast on the one Brask attacks, which happened :)

blast 1 26, 8 force

blast 2 24, 11 force

"We should tie one of them up while they are incapacitated to question them.  Can you handle that Pip?" Kurama replied as he approached their tranced foes.  Though it felt a bit distasteful to Kurama to attack them as they were, he knew their enemies wouldn't have any qualms with it were the "shoe on the other foot".  

• Attack (first time without his astral arms I think): Hit - 24/ Damage- 8 bludgeoning 
• Extra Attack: Hit - 20/ Damage- 3 bludgeoning 
• Bonus Action Unarmed strike: Hit - 22/ Damage- 6 bludgeoning 

Brask swings with great fervor. The hooded figure is immediately knocked to the ground and comes out of his trance. His eyes go wide as he sees the maul coming down on him again. And again. With this third strike, Brask can hear the man's sternum snapping. He spits up blood, but as he dies, something startling happens...the scars on his face, now splattered with his own blood, glow even more. They glow until they pulse light out from his body, and then - BOOM! His body explodes with fire shooting outward toward you all. Everyone make a DC13 dexterity-saving throw or take 10 damage. Take half damage on a successful save.

Brask DEX save:  7

He barks a loud laugh as he mostly dodges the fire.  Well that's new!  

Then he turns to look for Pip.