Torke's Eldritch blast sails across the room towards the ax blade like a lightning rod and explodes out the tip, splattering the ghoul all over the wall.
Combat is over.
Everyone feels a surge of inspiring vigor and enthusiasm.
The weapon in your hand feels stronger, the spells in your mind feel clearer, and the destiny you seek to build within your grasp.
(Everyone go to level 2!)
When the high fades you all feel a sense of time running out. While Prosinet and Frostbite were busy discovering the secrets of regrowing human limbs, Sam and Torke were partying with the dwavres. Meanwhile, time has slowly passed to just before evening, and Mr. Wilcox will be ready to leave soon.
If there's anywhere else you'd like to go before you leave, run!
Sam shrugs his shoulders and sheathes his long sword. He pats Torke on the shoulder. "Glad we could help! Ha!"
He surveys the room, and seeming disinterested, turns back toward the hall. "Any other spots you lot want to check out? I've been to the Crafting Hall and Brew Cellar already. Kind of getting hungry."
Is it possible to copy the spell into my spell book? Or even better take the book with me? And Prosinet will take any of the ingredients that he can that he recognizes will create helpful, or beneficial concoctions.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
Torke takes the liberty of slashing the remains of the ghoul once more before sheathing the black-metal longsword in a scabbard. The healing from the curse he inflicted upon the ghoul tries to take effect, but to his alarmed, cautious, yet still quite resilient form, it loses the effect. Turning their focus toward Sam the Human,"Maybe we can return to the food-eating area? I wandered into the kitchen and it looked they prepared food for us." Torke replies while drawing his longsword and wiping off a bit of the ghoul's remains on the blade with the gloves, wiping those off aswell afterwards before sheathing it again. Torke gestures to the rest to follow him as he speed-walks back to the dining hall, remembering the layout by his sharpened senses due to his background.
The area Torke ultimately wiped the tiny bit of ghoul's remains off of the gloves on is heavily stained a dark oily color.
The remaining form of the ghoul splashes to the floor in an instant. A puddle of brown viscous water surrounds a rib cage and spine that were formerly connected to a now melted shoulder and skull. The liquid steams away as the bones shatter to brown dust that evaporates in the hazy air.
Prosinet follows the team but buries his face in the tome he took from the lab. To the point that he falls behind the rest and bumps into any furniture. He is totally engrossed in what he found.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
As soon as the creature was splattered against the wall the barbarian spun on the spot to see if the new comers were hostil towards him. Focusing on Torke, FrostBite drops his rage instantly.
"Thanks for your assistance. Maybe we should be wearier of the warnings placed in this building." Looking around the room once more FrostBite heads for the door. "I agree with getting out of this place but with this smell lingering in my nose, I don't seem too partial to some food right now. Maybe that will change once I have something to drink."
The Dragonborn would follow the others out of the room towards the dining hall.
Torke begins to head off to the dining hall with Sam followed closely behind. Sam smells the stain on Torke's clothes a bit, but its not that bad.
Frostbite kind of shrugs his shoulders and heads off behind them too, the smell of the green haze being replaced with the fresh air in the hallway is wonderful. Fortunately, he's far enough from Torke that he can't smell the stain.
Curiously, the green haze fades as Prosinet steps out of the room with the book. The room clears and it looks as if its just a normal potion lab, with the exception of the enormous ax gouge in the wall. Heading down the stairs behind everyone, the book keeps Prosinet's interest.
Prosinet has enough time between the alchemy lab and the dining hall to read the recipe for Necrotic Regeneration fully and has started on the Essence of the Flaming Skull before reaching the dining hall. From what he can tell, The Essence of the Flaming Skull has very little to do with essences, fire, or, bones of any kind. So far, it has been nothing but identifying and tracing magical auras that are incredibly faint.
He mulls it over with everyone as they drink and eat their fill of a evenly distributed meal of: lean fish, a once again enormous selection of fruits and vegetables, and, a curiously cold and fresh barrel of Dwarven ale, stamped with a hammer smacking a mountain head.
This is a cask of the Dwarven Mining Guild's Personal Selection, and is extremely valuable. The wood is so well crafted, you can no leaks. The metal so well kept, the steel rivets shined and blackened bands were lustrous. The ale is so refreshing, so mindbogglingly well made, that each who drinks cannot help but smile.
As you do, Mr. Wilcox walks in the door and makes an announcement.
“You know, not many people would bring strangers into their house and let them roam about because they are skilled craftsmen. I have to be honest, I was concerned you'd rob me, and I'm pleasantly surprised you didn't. Instead, you killed the mad Doctor and helped me get my alchemy lab back. I heard the screaming, and when the laughing in the walls stopped, I knew the disturbance had left the room.”
-he looks at Prosinet, doesn't say anything, then goes back to addressing everyone-
“I would very much like to take all of you to the point where the observatory was looking from. I have a feeling that you will all benefit much from both the journey and the destination. Its quiet literally through a forest, over a river, and up a mountain but there's a town before peak, and I've made the trip before, so we should be fine.”
He then tells those who accept to pack their things, and be ready for a night excursion. You leave in an hour. He walks out, and you feel like you could probably wander about the mansions first and second floors for a bit before an hour is up, it doesn't take that long to pack.
"Dang, was kind of hoping to sleep for a bit, but I'm not going to turn down the invitation," Sam finishes his ale with a deep gulp. "Say...what the hell happened up there, anyway? Where did that...thing come from?"
Torke is now exceptionally still quite energized, scoffing down the fish and vegetables for a try, intrigued and feeling more of a hunger that pushes him to eat slightly more than usual. The ale, however, he takes a good pint of, and is immediately encapsulated by the taste. Torke eventually goes through around a dozen and a half of pints, he seems to be at the peak of his limit. Only by his immunity to poison and alcohol is he not drunk.
Torke stands up, quite full after Mr. Wilcox had spoken, taking his cured leather knapsack and slinging it over him and realizes the stain. He mutters under his breath, "I should clean this if the others complain of its look." Torke begins searching for an area in Mr. Wilcox's mansion to clean the stained clothes, content with the meal given at dinner while striding to find this location.
Before leaving, Wilcox answered Sam's question to the group. He explained that it was an apprentice of a long line of herbalists studying under his the legendary Alchemist Professor Anthony Goddard. Goddard was a pioneer in the field and something of a mythical figure to those who study alchemy's more traditional roots.
Torke and Prosinet recognizes Professor Goddard from the fungi. Torke saw it in the garden and Wilcox tells him that he was actually in the Hall of the Ancients at the same time and remarks that its unfortunate that you did not have have had a chance to talk. Prosinet does not speak about how he knows the name specifically, referring to him as a fellow alchemist and Wilcox kind of notices but doesn't seem to make much of it.
The apprentice was a Doctor of Medicine who had been here for quiet some time playing around with Wilcox's Garden and Alchemy labs under the guise of producing a study for the Professor. Recently, he had begun to see less and less of the Doctor who had started to steal from the forge, causing Wilcox to increase how much of his personal selection needed to be melted for new materials. It was odd because he stole scrap like powdered metals and bars of silver.
Being a smith himself, Sam recognizes that powdered metal specifically comes from grinding, which is usually finish work for weapons and armor but neither appear to be made here. He does know that they make bars and concurs that Wilcox must grind bars for his powdered metal. Wilcox agrees and Sam gets some more insight as to why they needed to melt so many swords.
Nevertheless, Wilcox confronted the Doctor, who insisted he was not stealing anything. Wilcox saw the powdered metal on the table, and waited till the doctors back was turned to push it to the corner of the desk.
Prosinet exclaims that Wilcox moving the iron across the table removed the component needed for that spell, and even if there was a glow or magical aura, it would not have been successful. Wilcox lets a grin slide over his face and continues.
The doctor poured a liquid he had boiled into a vial, attempted to cast a spell, and drank the potion. He sliced a thumb off, and it grew back. Vindicated, he threw his hands in the air laughing to Wilcox saying that he had replicated the first of four vial concoctions from a book he'd bought from a Necromancer for all of his life's savings. The book began to spew a foul green haze the moment the Doctors thumb returned spilling into the visible side of the room, Wilcox drew back in fear and ran into the hallway. The madman laughed until he started to choke and wheeze, and finally scream. Wilcox slammed the door and locked it, trying to keep the haze out of his home, the madman had damned himself!
Moments later, a slamming at the door turned to pulling turned to slamming again. The man scream from behind the door eventually slumping against it and sliding to the floor.
An hour passed, and Wilcox sat in the hallway nearly in tears. He finally crept up the courage to ask for the man, and a foul gurgle emerged. the man was no more, and he began to slam at the door, such that Wilcox immediately ran to the Forgemaster's hall and asked that they locked the beast behind it. They did, and told him that the chains cannot be broken from within, but are fairly simple to destroy from the outside. They advised him to seek help, and he said he had other concerns at the moment so long as the beast was locked away. They assured him it was and he left it at that.
He waves it all off into the dusts of the past and bid you all good packing with an enthusiastic smile and jog out of the doorway.
After leaving the dining hall, Torke is guided to an unlisted washroom to the left at the end of the hall instead of the right that leads to the stairs going up. No matter how hard you try to wash the stain off, it won't come clean or get brighter. It doesn't smell, but you have a feeling its the 12 gallons of boiling hot cleaning liquid you've dumped on it, not the scent actually lessening.
All the same, about 10 minutes later, you come out of the washroom smelling like pine trees. Everyone in a 10 foot radius catches a whiff, with those in a 1 foot radius overpowered by it.
Still plenty of time to pack and wander a little, third floor definitely would make you late though, those stairs are a pain.
Torke dashes his way back to the group once more, quite displeased at the sight of the stain still hanging on his clothes. Sighing, he seems to wait for the rest of the group to continue on forward.
Prosinet quickly gathers his things, and then waits for everyone at the entrance to the home, his head buried in the book. He is trying to learn as much as he can about the process of creating the first two potions, as well as carefully labelling the Necrotic Regeneration vial with the ink and inkwell from the lab.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
At the table FrostBite only picks at the food, favouring the drink over everything else.
Returning to his room to gather his equipment he swings by the washroom to freshen up a bit after the fight. Then he meets up with Prosinet to await the rest.
Torke moved swiftly and quietly, and uneventful enterprise.
Sam dragged his feet abit but got moving.
Frostbite moved along, having drained a sizable portion of the fresh ale.
Prosient ran to his room and did a little more work with the mad Doctor's publication...
...You re-read the recipe for Necrotic Regeneration and perfectly produces the spell needed to finish your Elixir. You grab the iron dust from your pocket and blow it on the paper, casting the spell on the vial, a glow slowly warming over the glass and then disappearing, the liquid turns blue.
The moment it does, you feel a sharp and painful sheering screech of a howl rattled through your ears into your mind and back again. It drops you to your knees its so loud, and you immediately recognize this is a physic scream affecting only you when nothing around you seems even remotely disturbed by this vicious wailing that WONT STOP-
-A moment later its over.
You look up from the ground, spit dribbling from your lip, and the book is open to page 11, right in front of you. You remember that not only were you not on page 11, the book is supposed to be on the table across the room. You can feel a hatred, a truly malevolent force of unrelenting suffering willingly pushing its invisible force towards you...
...then it stops, retreats, and the book closes.
Undeterred, you open the book back up, and move on from the first elixir, driven by curiosity.
You learn that the Essence of the Flaming Skull is training you to detect the tombstones of dead wizards in graveyards. You do this by targeting the weak magical aura of a specific type of lichen that grows on the stone and absorbs the dead casters power over time.
It instructs you to dig up the casket, remove the protection seals, and funnel the remaining magic into the lichen. Rebury, harvest the lichen, and take it back to a lab to perform a type of distillation with alcohol. There are arcane markings running through all the pages some of which you recognize as Detect Magic some of which looks like [Tooltip Not Found]. They have been modified from their traditional symbols, but still look functional.
You finally decide to get moving, and head out.
Well fed, and admittedly a bit tired, you all manage to pack your things, maybe wash up, and head back to the front room where Wilcox's primary assistant lead you.
He asks each of you whether or not you'd like to bring your masterpiece. The place you are going is far, and will not be kind to the hauling of such precious items, but some cannot part with what is dear to them. It will be your individual choice to bring them or not. It will be safe and taken care of for the duration of the journey and back but you will not have access to it.
Wilcox is now in well taken care of and broken in hiking gear. He has a large pack strapped to his shoulders and waist, with a sturdy hat atop his head. His shoes, vest, shirt, and pants all look incredibly durable, and movable. Finally, he is carrying a dagger. The sheath has a lock, and it is secured directly to his leg in multiple areas. It almost looks like you couldn't remove it if you needed it, but he assures you that its a survival weapon only. Wilcox does not intend to stab anyone or anything, he's even a vegetarian.
You set out into the dark world, the first time you've ever willingly walked into the shadows of night since the morning before. The sun has gone completely, and Wilcox holds his hand high casting Light on his chest pointing forward like a man sized lantern. He heads around the side of his home, oddly away from the path to the front that leads to the door and gates. You continue around the side behind him, and the light is beaming into a large hedge leading into a thicket of dense woods.
You all feel the similar intense aura from the woods that you felt the night you left on the ship. Though it was much more fleeting then, the terror in these woods is tangible, something you can quiet literally reach out and touch with the barest consideration of what is making that feeling.
Wilcox does not seem to recognize any of it, and is walking into the woods like its a simple stroll in the middle of the day.
You follow behind for some time, the moonlight barely passing through the trees, and the mansion fading from view. Wilcox's light filled chest continues to be the only source of illumination in the forest, and its very clear things are watching you the deeper in the woods you get.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Torke Aldrehas
Torke briefly speaks to the assistant after the option to bring our masterpieces along is given, opting to have it brought during their journey.
Torke strides a few paces forward from Mr. Wilcox, ensuring that their journey may not be fraught with wild-animal incursions, and as attuned to the wild as he is, he knows much of how that feels. Torke scans the area around for tracks, as well as looking for any subtle motions that can be betrayed as a hostile animal or creature. He is unfazed of the effects of dusk, and can see well-enough.
Torke calls back at Mr. Wilcox whilst walking ahead, "A confident posture in this trek? You must be versed in the forestry well. I however, had lived in these conditions. I believe I know better." Torke speaks in a non-condescending tone, rather in his own confidence.
((rolling skill checks, and since my background is an outlander, I'll grant advantage on the survival check. If not, I'm rolling a separate non-advantage roll))
Prosinet also carries his masterpiece with him tucked securely in with his things. The instant the group is of the beaten path, he makes sure he stays close to Frostbite. And his eyes are darting around furiously and his coat is tightened around him.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Sam leaves his precious sword back at the mansion, opting instead to use the old long sword he's been practicing with. Why lose his life's work out on some crazy expedition?
"I'm not a cowardly man," Sam says confidently as they hike into the darkness. "But something about this just don't feel right."
He peers back-and-forth to their sides as they walk along. Perception: 6
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM - Above & Below
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Torke's Eldritch blast sails across the room towards the ax blade like a lightning rod and explodes out the tip, splattering the ghoul all over the wall.
Combat is over.
Everyone feels a surge of inspiring vigor and enthusiasm.
The weapon in your hand feels stronger, the spells in your mind feel clearer, and the destiny you seek to build within your grasp.
(Everyone go to level 2!)
When the high fades you all feel a sense of time running out. While Prosinet and Frostbite were busy discovering the secrets of regrowing human limbs, Sam and Torke were partying with the dwavres. Meanwhile, time has slowly passed to just before evening, and Mr. Wilcox will be ready to leave soon.
If there's anywhere else you'd like to go before you leave, run!
Sam shrugs his shoulders and sheathes his long sword. He pats Torke on the shoulder. "Glad we could help! Ha!"
He surveys the room, and seeming disinterested, turns back toward the hall. "Any other spots you lot want to check out? I've been to the Crafting Hall and Brew Cellar already. Kind of getting hungry."
DM - Above & Below
Is it possible to copy the spell into my spell book? Or even better take the book with me? And Prosinet will take any of the ingredients that he can that he recognizes will create helpful, or beneficial concoctions.
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
Prosinet takes the book and ingredients...
General Info about the book:
This is an Alchemist's ledger. It contains a dedicated list of curated ingredients for a selection of recipes. It is entitled The Lich's Acolyte.
Its 40 pages long, and contains 4 recipes with their appropriate magical precautions.
Necrotic Regeneration (1-10), Essence of the Flaming Skull (11-20), Untitled Pestilence (21-34), Unfinished Untitled (34-40).
Materials Gained:
One Finished Elixir of Necrotic Regeneration in a not yet inscribed vial
An inkwell
A pen
The table also contained the ingredients for the spell Protection from Evil and Good
1x Powdered Iron
The book was open to:
Finding the specific fungus and herb needed
Herb: Creeping Lush Perception roll. Anything higher than these in a forest where they occur will find at least (1).
10 Daytime
12 Nighttime
Fungus: Goddard's's Glowcap Perception roll. Anything higher than these in a forest where they occur will find at least (1).
16 Daytime
10 Nighttime
Both can be bought from places that sell Necromancy spell components. Herb costs 20 silver each, Fungus costs 1 gold.
The spell: Protection from Evil and Good
The method of crating the elixir from scratch:
1st Day. Plant Herbs.
2nd Day. Gather Flesh
4th Day. Grow Fungus.
7th Day. Add (1) Fungus to (1) Flesh as needed.
Relabel as "Flesh+"
12th Day Perform Ritual of Necrotic Infusion on Flesh+ as needed
14th Day
Harvest Herbs,
combine (1) Necrotic Flesh for every (5) Herbs in vessel.
Add water.
Boil.
Reduce till just before burnt, cool rapidly.
store in PROPERLY INSCRIBED vials.
How to Perform The Ritual of Necrotic Infusion
This allows Goddard's's Glowcap specifically to eat away at flesh more rapidly than normal by infusing its growth into the center of the object.
It creates (1) Necrotic Flesh at a rate of (1) Fungus and (1) Flesh per every hour
Make a Constitution saving throw while doing so. Cannot be used in combat.
Torke Aldrehas
Torke takes the liberty of slashing the remains of the ghoul once more before sheathing the black-metal longsword in a scabbard. The healing from the curse he inflicted upon the ghoul tries to take effect, but to his alarmed, cautious, yet still quite resilient form, it loses the effect. Turning their focus toward Sam the Human,"Maybe we can return to the food-eating area? I wandered into the kitchen and it looked they prepared food for us." Torke replies while drawing his longsword and wiping off a bit of the ghoul's remains on the blade with the gloves, wiping those off aswell afterwards before sheathing it again. Torke gestures to the rest to follow him as he speed-walks back to the dining hall, remembering the layout by his sharpened senses due to his background.
The area Torke ultimately wiped the tiny bit of ghoul's remains off of the gloves on is heavily stained a dark oily color.
The remaining form of the ghoul splashes to the floor in an instant. A puddle of brown viscous water surrounds a rib cage and spine that were formerly connected to a now melted shoulder and skull. The liquid steams away as the bones shatter to brown dust that evaporates in the hazy air.
The stain does not disappear.
Prosinet follows the team but buries his face in the tome he took from the lab. To the point that he falls behind the rest and bumps into any furniture. He is totally engrossed in what he found.
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
FrostBite | Dragonborn Barbarian | Rage 0/2 | Cold Breath (Con 12) 0/1
___________________________________________________________________________________________
As soon as the creature was splattered against the wall the barbarian spun on the spot to see if the new comers were hostil towards him. Focusing on Torke, FrostBite drops his rage instantly.
"Thanks for your assistance. Maybe we should be wearier of the warnings placed in this building." Looking around the room once more FrostBite heads for the door. "I agree with getting out of this place but with this smell lingering in my nose, I don't seem too partial to some food right now. Maybe that will change once I have something to drink."
The Dragonborn would follow the others out of the room towards the dining hall.
Torke begins to head off to the dining hall with Sam followed closely behind. Sam smells the stain on Torke's clothes a bit, but its not that bad.
Frostbite kind of shrugs his shoulders and heads off behind them too, the smell of the green haze being replaced with the fresh air in the hallway is wonderful. Fortunately, he's far enough from Torke that he can't smell the stain.
Curiously, the green haze fades as Prosinet steps out of the room with the book. The room clears and it looks as if its just a normal potion lab, with the exception of the enormous ax gouge in the wall. Heading down the stairs behind everyone, the book keeps Prosinet's interest.
Prosinet has enough time between the alchemy lab and the dining hall to read the recipe for Necrotic Regeneration fully and has started on the Essence of the Flaming Skull before reaching the dining hall. From what he can tell, The Essence of the Flaming Skull has very little to do with essences, fire, or, bones of any kind. So far, it has been nothing but identifying and tracing magical auras that are incredibly faint.
He mulls it over with everyone as they drink and eat their fill of a evenly distributed meal of: lean fish, a once again enormous selection of fruits and vegetables, and, a curiously cold and fresh barrel of Dwarven ale, stamped with a hammer smacking a mountain head.
This is a cask of the Dwarven Mining Guild's Personal Selection, and is extremely valuable. The wood is so well crafted, you can no leaks. The metal so well kept, the steel rivets shined and blackened bands were lustrous. The ale is so refreshing, so mindbogglingly well made, that each who drinks cannot help but smile.
As you do, Mr. Wilcox walks in the door and makes an announcement.
“You know, not many people would bring strangers into their house and let them roam about because they are skilled craftsmen. I have to be honest, I was concerned you'd rob me, and I'm pleasantly surprised you didn't. Instead, you killed the mad Doctor and helped me get my alchemy lab back. I heard the screaming, and when the laughing in the walls stopped, I knew the disturbance had left the room.”
-he looks at Prosinet, doesn't say anything, then goes back to addressing everyone-
“I would very much like to take all of you to the point where the observatory was looking from. I have a feeling that you will all benefit much from both the journey and the destination. Its quiet literally through a forest, over a river, and up a mountain but there's a town before peak, and I've made the trip before, so we should be fine.”
He then tells those who accept to pack their things, and be ready for a night excursion. You leave in an hour. He walks out, and you feel like you could probably wander about the mansions first and second floors for a bit before an hour is up, it doesn't take that long to pack.
"Dang, was kind of hoping to sleep for a bit, but I'm not going to turn down the invitation," Sam finishes his ale with a deep gulp. "Say...what the hell happened up there, anyway? Where did that...thing come from?"
DM - Above & Below
Torke Aldrehas
Torke is now exceptionally still quite energized, scoffing down the fish and vegetables for a try, intrigued and feeling more of a hunger that pushes him to eat slightly more than usual. The ale, however, he takes a good pint of, and is immediately encapsulated by the taste. Torke eventually goes through around a dozen and a half of pints, he seems to be at the peak of his limit. Only by his immunity to poison and alcohol is he not drunk.
Torke stands up, quite full after Mr. Wilcox had spoken, taking his cured leather knapsack and slinging it over him and realizes the stain. He mutters under his breath, "I should clean this if the others complain of its look." Torke begins searching for an area in Mr. Wilcox's mansion to clean the stained clothes, content with the meal given at dinner while striding to find this location.
Before leaving, Wilcox answered Sam's question to the group. He explained that it was an apprentice of a long line of herbalists studying under his the legendary Alchemist Professor Anthony Goddard. Goddard was a pioneer in the field and something of a mythical figure to those who study alchemy's more traditional roots.
Torke and Prosinet recognizes Professor Goddard from the fungi. Torke saw it in the garden and Wilcox tells him that he was actually in the Hall of the Ancients at the same time and remarks that its unfortunate that you did not have have had a chance to talk. Prosinet does not speak about how he knows the name specifically, referring to him as a fellow alchemist and Wilcox kind of notices but doesn't seem to make much of it.
The apprentice was a Doctor of Medicine who had been here for quiet some time playing around with Wilcox's Garden and Alchemy labs under the guise of producing a study for the Professor. Recently, he had begun to see less and less of the Doctor who had started to steal from the forge, causing Wilcox to increase how much of his personal selection needed to be melted for new materials. It was odd because he stole scrap like powdered metals and bars of silver.
Being a smith himself, Sam recognizes that powdered metal specifically comes from grinding, which is usually finish work for weapons and armor but neither appear to be made here. He does know that they make bars and concurs that Wilcox must grind bars for his powdered metal. Wilcox agrees and Sam gets some more insight as to why they needed to melt so many swords.
Nevertheless, Wilcox confronted the Doctor, who insisted he was not stealing anything. Wilcox saw the powdered metal on the table, and waited till the doctors back was turned to push it to the corner of the desk.
Prosinet exclaims that Wilcox moving the iron across the table removed the component needed for that spell, and even if there was a glow or magical aura, it would not have been successful. Wilcox lets a grin slide over his face and continues.
The doctor poured a liquid he had boiled into a vial, attempted to cast a spell, and drank the potion. He sliced a thumb off, and it grew back. Vindicated, he threw his hands in the air laughing to Wilcox saying that he had replicated the first of four vial concoctions from a book he'd bought from a Necromancer for all of his life's savings. The book began to spew a foul green haze the moment the Doctors thumb returned spilling into the visible side of the room, Wilcox drew back in fear and ran into the hallway. The madman laughed until he started to choke and wheeze, and finally scream. Wilcox slammed the door and locked it, trying to keep the haze out of his home, the madman had damned himself!
Moments later, a slamming at the door turned to pulling turned to slamming again. The man scream from behind the door eventually slumping against it and sliding to the floor.
An hour passed, and Wilcox sat in the hallway nearly in tears. He finally crept up the courage to ask for the man, and a foul gurgle emerged. the man was no more, and he began to slam at the door, such that Wilcox immediately ran to the Forgemaster's hall and asked that they locked the beast behind it. They did, and told him that the chains cannot be broken from within, but are fairly simple to destroy from the outside. They advised him to seek help, and he said he had other concerns at the moment so long as the beast was locked away. They assured him it was and he left it at that.
He waves it all off into the dusts of the past and bid you all good packing with an enthusiastic smile and jog out of the doorway.
After leaving the dining hall, Torke is guided to an unlisted washroom to the left at the end of the hall instead of the right that leads to the stairs going up. No matter how hard you try to wash the stain off, it won't come clean or get brighter. It doesn't smell, but you have a feeling its the 12 gallons of boiling hot cleaning liquid you've dumped on it, not the scent actually lessening.
All the same, about 10 minutes later, you come out of the washroom smelling like pine trees. Everyone in a 10 foot radius catches a whiff, with those in a 1 foot radius overpowered by it.
Still plenty of time to pack and wander a little, third floor definitely would make you late though, those stairs are a pain.
Torke Aldrehas
Torke dashes his way back to the group once more, quite displeased at the sight of the stain still hanging on his clothes. Sighing, he seems to wait for the rest of the group to continue on forward.
Prosinet quickly gathers his things, and then waits for everyone at the entrance to the home, his head buried in the book. He is trying to learn as much as he can about the process of creating the first two potions, as well as carefully labelling the Necrotic Regeneration vial with the ink and inkwell from the lab.
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
FrostBite | Dragonborn Barbarian | Rage 0/2 | Cold Breath (Con 12) 0/1
___________________________________________________________________________________________
At the table FrostBite only picks at the food, favouring the drink over everything else.
Returning to his room to gather his equipment he swings by the washroom to freshen up a bit after the fight. Then he meets up with Prosinet to await the rest.
Torke moved swiftly and quietly, and uneventful enterprise.
Sam dragged his feet abit but got moving.
Frostbite moved along, having drained a sizable portion of the fresh ale.
Prosient ran to his room and did a little more work with the mad Doctor's publication...
...You re-read the recipe for Necrotic Regeneration and perfectly produces the spell needed to finish your Elixir. You grab the iron dust from your pocket and blow it on the paper, casting the spell on the vial, a glow slowly warming over the glass and then disappearing, the liquid turns blue.
The moment it does, you feel a sharp and painful sheering screech of a howl rattled through your ears into your mind and back again. It drops you to your knees its so loud, and you immediately recognize this is a physic scream affecting only you when nothing around you seems even remotely disturbed by this vicious wailing that WONT STOP-
-A moment later its over.
You look up from the ground, spit dribbling from your lip, and the book is open to page 11, right in front of you. You remember that not only were you not on page 11, the book is supposed to be on the table across the room. You can feel a hatred, a truly malevolent force of unrelenting suffering willingly pushing its invisible force towards you...
...then it stops, retreats, and the book closes.
Undeterred, you open the book back up, and move on from the first elixir, driven by curiosity.
You learn that the Essence of the Flaming Skull is training you to detect the tombstones of dead wizards in graveyards. You do this by targeting the weak magical aura of a specific type of lichen that grows on the stone and absorbs the dead casters power over time.
It instructs you to dig up the casket, remove the protection seals, and funnel the remaining magic into the lichen. Rebury, harvest the lichen, and take it back to a lab to perform a type of distillation with alcohol. There are arcane markings running through all the pages some of which you recognize as Detect Magic some of which looks like [Tooltip Not Found]. They have been modified from their traditional symbols, but still look functional.
You finally decide to get moving, and head out.
Well fed, and admittedly a bit tired, you all manage to pack your things, maybe wash up, and head back to the front room where Wilcox's primary assistant lead you.
He asks each of you whether or not you'd like to bring your masterpiece. The place you are going is far, and will not be kind to the hauling of such precious items, but some cannot part with what is dear to them. It will be your individual choice to bring them or not. It will be safe and taken care of for the duration of the journey and back but you will not have access to it.
Wilcox is now in well taken care of and broken in hiking gear. He has a large pack strapped to his shoulders and waist, with a sturdy hat atop his head. His shoes, vest, shirt, and pants all look incredibly durable, and movable. Finally, he is carrying a dagger. The sheath has a lock, and it is secured directly to his leg in multiple areas. It almost looks like you couldn't remove it if you needed it, but he assures you that its a survival weapon only. Wilcox does not intend to stab anyone or anything, he's even a vegetarian.
You set out into the dark world, the first time you've ever willingly walked into the shadows of night since the morning before. The sun has gone completely, and Wilcox holds his hand high casting Light on his chest pointing forward like a man sized lantern. He heads around the side of his home, oddly away from the path to the front that leads to the door and gates. You continue around the side behind him, and the light is beaming into a large hedge leading into a thicket of dense woods.
You all feel the similar intense aura from the woods that you felt the night you left on the ship. Though it was much more fleeting then, the terror in these woods is tangible, something you can quiet literally reach out and touch with the barest consideration of what is making that feeling.
Wilcox does not seem to recognize any of it, and is walking into the woods like its a simple stroll in the middle of the day.
You follow behind for some time, the moonlight barely passing through the trees, and the mansion fading from view. Wilcox's light filled chest continues to be the only source of illumination in the forest, and its very clear things are watching you the deeper in the woods you get.
Torke Aldrehas
Torke briefly speaks to the assistant after the option to bring our masterpieces along is given, opting to have it brought during their journey.
Torke strides a few paces forward from Mr. Wilcox, ensuring that their journey may not be fraught with wild-animal incursions, and as attuned to the wild as he is, he knows much of how that feels. Torke scans the area around for tracks, as well as looking for any subtle motions that can be betrayed as a hostile animal or creature. He is unfazed of the effects of dusk, and can see well-enough.
Torke calls back at Mr. Wilcox whilst walking ahead, "A confident posture in this trek? You must be versed in the forestry well. I however, had lived in these conditions. I believe I know better." Torke speaks in a non-condescending tone, rather in his own confidence.
((rolling skill checks, and since my background is an outlander, I'll grant advantage on the survival check. If not, I'm rolling a separate non-advantage roll))
Survival- roll w/ advantage value- 22
Survival- roll w/out advantage value- 11
Perception- roll value- 1
Prosinet also carries his masterpiece with him tucked securely in with his things. The instant the group is of the beaten path, he makes sure he stays close to Frostbite. And his eyes are darting around furiously and his coat is tightened around him.
Trumann Bloth | Loxodon Grave Cleric | War of the Green
Prosinet Fizzlepurtet | Gnome Wizard | The Wilcox Experiment
Sam leaves his precious sword back at the mansion, opting instead to use the old long sword he's been practicing with. Why lose his life's work out on some crazy expedition?
"I'm not a cowardly man," Sam says confidently as they hike into the darkness. "But something about this just don't feel right."
He peers back-and-forth to their sides as they walk along. Perception: 6
DM - Above & Below