Bjorn will lob a bomb into the largest group of enemies that is near the platform to create a distraction, and then move swiftly but quietly to the platform and cut the ropes.
No, there are no enemies left. I am just waiting to see what the group is planning to do.
So what is everyone doing? The platform is filled with supplies and is tethered in place. If you do cut the tether then it will slide down the ropes and into the fissure below. The ropes are at an angle downward into the fissure.
Tyrkoris will stick with the group, keeping a careful eye on the mindflayers, "I assume we will have to travel through that fissure, anyone have a familiar they can send?"
For now the mind flayers are staying back, leaving you room to move on to the fissure.
There are no supplies on the platform that will aid you in the combats ahead. You do move some off for the girl, and someone carries some back to her and her brother, where they have blocked themselves into the warding room.
With nothing left to do you approach the fissure and are sucked through.
The party wakes up on a beach - or at least something that appears to be a beach. The sand beneath them is coal-black, and rather than water waves of thick grey mist crash upon the beach, with wisps boiling off into the air and forming drifting banks of fog.
Strange, alien keenings and wails ring out from the depths and strange, vast shadows seem to be moving, half-seen just beneath the surface.
Far above them the ruined spires of an ancient city peek from the clouds, though whether they’re dangling from the underside of some floating landmass or the laws of gravity simply don’t apply here is uncertain.
The only structure within sight - and not floating through the sky - is a tall, dark tower that twists its way through the sky without care for orientation or reason. Doors open onto vertical drops, walls spiral in on themselves and features flow as though they’ve melted in a hot sun.
The structure is roughly 100 ft. across and some 500 ft. tall. There are numerous small towers surrounding it, some of which seem to float in the air with bases consumed by mist.
As the party gather their bearings, a cloud of torn papers drift down from the central tower, seemingly coming from a large open area towards the top that glows with a flickering blue light.
(Everyone can consider themselves to have had a long rest.)
Bjorn will attempt to collect some of the torn papers and try to make sense of them. How far is the tall dark tower? What is between us in the tower? Can any signs of life be seen at the tower?
Bjorn will attempt to collect some of the torn papers and try to make sense of them. How far is the tall dark tower? What is between us in the tower? Can any signs of life be seen at the tower?
Perception 22
Give me a straight Dex check to see if you can catch the papers.
The chamber that the paper came from, and that is glowing, is likely the Ritual Chamber, where Tempani is working on her massive magical project to ‘save the world’.
Iorythas will move towards the rest of the group, looking for everyone else carefully as he watches Bjorn attempt to gather the papers. "So what is our next course of action? I do not think we should linger here long if we are to put a stop to this."
A large arched door a few hundred feet away leads to the interior of the tower.
The interior of the Black Tower is a mind-shattering mess of impossible geometry and twisted gravity. The dimensions seem to twist and buckle before your eyes, with staircases turning in space so that they appear to lead to doors turned sideways.
The only part that seems to really make sense is the central spiral staircase, which climbs all the way up the tower. Dozens of wooden doorways lead off the stairs, even as it twists and spirals in a way that would clearly take it upside down or running along perpendicular to the wall.
All around the tower are dozens of white-robed priests and angels. To a man, they sit huddled against walls or study their hands or feet intensely. It’s clear that something dreadful has happened to their minds, and they cannot put up and threat to the adventurers.
Interrogating any of the residents is difficult, and they only mumble about spirals, eyes and oozing troughs of broken time.
All the rooms in the tower are filled with unsorted scrolls and books of all kinds. Tempani’s Ritual Chamber awaits at the very top of the building.
Ritual Chamber
The ritual chamber is a vast room with black tiles on the floor and a peaked, triangular ceiling that stretches up from 50 ft. high and is supported by a dozen thick pillars. The room is lit by braziers than hang from the rafters and burn with a flickering purple light.
It’s open to the air at both ends, one of which looks out on the sea of mist far below. The other opens onto a surprisingly normal blue sky, complete with white clouds and the faint warmth of the sun. This is a portal back to the material plane.
In the very centre of the room are several strange things. The first of these is Tempani herself. The fallen Solar is incredibly tall with a body that radiates power and strength. Ragged white wings grow from her shoulders and she wears a torn robe trimmed with gold and purple. She chants at the centre of a circle etched with hundreds of complex runes that flicker with ethereal light.
Above her, suspended from the ceiling by thick chains, is an aberration of terrifying proportions.
The creature is maybe 50 ft. tall and superficially resembles a giant humanoid, though one that has had its flesh melted and warped. Instead of legs it has a mass of tentacles, no two of which are the same, and its arms end in long, delicate fingers with three or four joints each and bare red flesh where nails should be. Its head is egg-shaped with snake-like slit of a nose that sits above a lipless black hole of a mouth. Two huge eyes stare out from the head, but they are angled vertically and their inky pupils swivel independently.
The chains look to be made of black iron as thick as a man’s forearm, and each link it etched with glowing runes.
Across the centre of the creature’s chest, where all the chains meet, is a large lock.
Tyrkoris will enter the chamber cautiously, "Tempani, you must stop this madness. Using what is forbidden to fight madness will endanger what you seek to protect. You must stop now, help us kill this thing, and then we can seek to purge you of darkness."
"I can feel the hum of chronomancy on you..." The angel says as she turns to face you. "I assume you were sent by Ahmzael." Looking the group over she shrugs. "Do not be foolish and try to stop me, this is beyond your understanding or power."
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The crates seem to be filled with a variety of normal supplies. There are food supplies, camping supplies, cooking supplies, etc.
Bjorn will lob a bomb into the largest group of enemies that is near the platform to create a distraction, and then move swiftly but quietly to the platform and cut the ropes.
Perception +6 15
Stealth +4 23
(I thought there were no enemies left?)
No, there are no enemies left. I am just waiting to see what the group is planning to do.
So what is everyone doing? The platform is filled with supplies and is tethered in place. If you do cut the tether then it will slide down the ropes and into the fissure below. The ropes are at an angle downward into the fissure.
Iorythas will mov to the platform, moving to set supplies aside for the brother and sister of they plan to stay in the temple.
What are the mindflayers doing?
Tyrkoris will stick with the group, keeping a careful eye on the mindflayers, "I assume we will have to travel through that fissure, anyone have a familiar they can send?"
If there are any supplies that could help in the cause Real will take them perception: 11 as he searches for anything worth using in the battles.
Lot's of stuff ...
For now the mind flayers are staying back, leaving you room to move on to the fissure.
There are no supplies on the platform that will aid you in the combats ahead. You do move some off for the girl, and someone carries some back to her and her brother, where they have blocked themselves into the warding room.
With nothing left to do you approach the fissure and are sucked through.
The party wakes up on a beach - or at least something that appears to be a beach. The sand beneath them is coal-black, and rather than water waves of thick grey mist crash upon the beach, with wisps boiling off into the air and forming drifting banks of fog.
Strange, alien keenings and wails ring out from the depths and strange, vast shadows seem to be moving, half-seen just beneath the surface.
Far above them the ruined spires of an ancient city peek from the clouds, though whether they’re dangling from the underside of some floating landmass or the laws of gravity simply don’t apply here is uncertain.
The only structure within sight - and not floating through the sky - is a tall, dark tower that twists its way through the sky without care for orientation or reason. Doors open onto vertical drops, walls spiral in on themselves and features flow as though they’ve melted in a hot sun.
The structure is roughly 100 ft. across and some 500 ft. tall. There are numerous small towers surrounding it, some of which seem to float in the air with bases consumed by mist.
As the party gather their bearings, a cloud of torn papers drift down from the central tower, seemingly coming from a large open area towards the top that glows with a flickering blue light.
(Everyone can consider themselves to have had a long rest.)
Bjorn will attempt to collect some of the torn papers and try to make sense of them. How far is the tall dark tower? What is between us in the tower? Can any signs of life be seen at the tower?
Perception 22
Give me a straight Dex check to see if you can catch the papers.
The chamber that the paper came from, and that is
glowing, is likely the Ritual Chamber, where Tempani is
working on her massive magical project to ‘save the
world’.
It is atop the tower not far away from you.
Bjorn tries to catch the papers. Dexterity 6
Iorythas will move towards the rest of the group, looking for everyone else carefully as he watches Bjorn attempt to gather the papers. "So what is our next course of action? I do not think we should linger here long if we are to put a stop to this."
Tyrkoris will head towards the tower, "Seems thats our goal, and only option."
You almost get them, but they swirl at the last moment and disappear into the mist.
"that does seem our logical destination." Saralyssa agrees, eyeing the tower with the rest of them.
A large arched door a few hundred feet away leads to the interior of the tower.
The interior of the Black Tower is a mind-shattering mess of impossible geometry and twisted gravity. The dimensions seem to twist and buckle before your eyes, with staircases turning in space so that they appear to lead to doors turned sideways.
The only part that seems to really make sense is the central spiral staircase, which climbs all the way up the tower. Dozens of wooden doorways lead off the stairs, even as it twists and spirals in a way that would clearly take it upside down or running along perpendicular to the wall.
All around the tower are dozens of white-robed priests and angels. To a man, they sit huddled against walls or study their hands or feet intensely. It’s clear that something dreadful has happened to their minds, and they cannot put up and threat to the adventurers.
Interrogating any of the residents is difficult, and they only mumble about spirals, eyes and oozing troughs of broken time.
All the rooms in the tower are filled with unsorted scrolls and books of all kinds. Tempani’s Ritual Chamber awaits at the very top of the building.
Ritual Chamber
The ritual chamber is a vast room with black tiles on the floor and a peaked, triangular ceiling that stretches up from 50 ft. high and is supported by a dozen thick pillars. The room is lit by braziers than hang from the rafters and burn with a flickering purple light.
It’s open to the air at both ends, one of which looks out on the sea of mist far below. The other opens onto a surprisingly normal blue sky, complete with white clouds and the faint warmth of the sun. This is a portal back to the material plane.
In the very centre of the room are several strange things. The first of these is Tempani herself. The fallen Solar is incredibly tall with a body that radiates power and strength. Ragged white wings grow from her shoulders and she wears a torn robe trimmed with gold and purple. She chants at the centre of a circle etched with hundreds of complex runes that flicker with ethereal light.
Above her, suspended from the ceiling by thick chains, is an aberration of terrifying proportions.
The creature is maybe 50 ft. tall and superficially resembles a giant humanoid, though one that has had its flesh melted and warped. Instead of legs it has a mass of tentacles, no two of which are the same, and its arms end in long, delicate fingers with three or four joints each and bare red flesh where nails should be. Its head is egg-shaped with snake-like slit of a nose that sits above a lipless black hole of a mouth. Two huge eyes stare out from the head, but they are angled vertically and their inky pupils swivel independently.
The chains look to be made of black iron as thick as a man’s forearm, and each link it etched with glowing runes.
Across the centre of the creature’s chest, where all the chains meet, is a large lock.
Tyrkoris will enter the chamber cautiously, "Tempani, you must stop this madness. Using what is forbidden to fight madness will endanger what you seek to protect. You must stop now, help us kill this thing, and then we can seek to purge you of darkness."
"I can feel the hum of chronomancy on you..." The angel says as she turns to face you. "I assume you were sent by Ahmzael." Looking the group over she shrugs. "Do not be foolish and try to stop me, this is beyond your understanding or power."