Rush perception 24

 Perception roll:23

((Did I do this correctly?  A d20 + perception?)

Quote from Dipstick10 >>

 Perception roll:23

 

((Did I do this correctly?  A d20 + perception?)

 Yup! :)  You did that right.

Snapping out of it as Duncan squeezes his shoulders, Kwisatz looks around, now clearly aware that this isn't just a field trip from the library.

perception 14

Oban is having a hard time holding down a gag reflex, the fine red mist covering face. ((YUCK!!))

Rush and Sael notice that set into the south wall of the smaller western part of the room is a brass lever in the down position.

Sael yells ahead "Look, there!"  She points at the south wall into the smaller western portion or the room.  "Do you see the brass lever?  Perhaps someone should push it up?"

“I don’t think I have anything for that.”
Rush opens his water skin, and - using shape water - does his best to wipe Oban’s face clean. Afterwards, he whooshes the water back into the water skin, and sits down to ritually cast purify food and drink to clean the water again.

AKGrimmReaper907, roll a Constitution Saving Throw for Oban to see if he snaps out of his shock.

Nodding, though still silent as he processes what he just saw, Kwisatz casts a mage hand and sends it over to flip the lever that Sael pointed out.

Kwiz, clearly much less jovial than he was a moment ago, with a flourish of his hand and a barely whispered spell cast mage hand. A spectral, floating hand appeared right next to the lever and pulled it up. The sound of the engines turning the turbines cut out with only the sound of the whirling blades as momentum carried them on for a minute or so before settling into place. With the turbines off, the party is able to walk between them as if they were turnstiles at a theme park. 

You make your way through, then around the curve in the next hallway into a large open room with various workbenches, scraps of doodads and bits and pieces. In the middle of the room, noticing your arrival as you walk in are a male and female gnome that were having an argument about, apparently, the best way to cure one of their kings of his madness - the male was proposing a "sanity ray" and, downplaying that idea as dumb, the female was wanting to invent something called a "straitjacket". 

"Oh! We've got visitors, Fibblestip," the female says to the male. The male, who you assume must be Dabbledob puts the item he was tinkering with down on the workbench in front of him. He turns, looks at each of you critically and smiles, at first. Noticing the somber look on the party member's faces, he expression changes to one of concern. Getting straight to the point, he says, "I can see it on your faces. What happened?"

In Gnomish Kwisatz finally lets it out "What kind of research institution are you running here?! Giant whirling blades! That's just designed to be malicious! There are simple ways to keep visitors at the door while you check identity without turning them into a...a.. MIST!!!"

Fibblestip takes a moment to put two and two together. His eyes glance towards the turbines, then he looks towards the back of the room. You didn't notice before, but the mad rock gnome that was shooting the crossbow at you is back there, lost in their work.

"Ah. Facktoré must have turned our waterfall mist converter on. That device was invented to take the mist coming off of the waterfall and turn it into drinking water. When a couple of our clanmates went missing about ten days ago, we realized it could be an effective defensive tool. You see, the kings have gone mad since our clansmen went missing, ranting and raving about a shapechanger. So, while our kings have had the whole clan on edge, guarding against this supposed shapechanger, Dabbledob and I have been trying to come up with a way to help the kings. We're hitting a stone wall, though." 

After a brief pensive pause, he says, "I'm sorry for your lost companion. Sincerely. Considering our recently missing gnomes, we can relate to the sense of loss. I need to ask, though, why have you come?"

Kwisatz sighs, and replies, in Common so everyone can understand "Have you any evidence of this shapechanger? It seems you don't have much faith that it actually exists. We come from the town just a couple hours from here, as we've heard someone here may have some thing that can help deal with dragons. It's all rather vague really... I am Kwisatz of the Tabr tribe. Can I be of assistance in your research?"

CON save 11

((Oban is still somewhat in shock, for the moment.))

Dabbledob chimes in, "Evidence of the shapechanger? Well, no. All we know for sure is that when King Korboz lost his mind, he basically took King Gnerkli prisoner. They're holed up in their room up behind the throne room." She points in the direction of their room, which is to the northwest of where you are now. "Ever since then, we've been working on trying to figure out how to cure King Korboz of this madness. The King Korboz won't let anyone in the room, but if there is any evidence of a shapechanger, the Kings would have it...if you can get them to talk to you."

"I still think we need to make a sanity ray," Fibblestip says. 

Dabbledob just gives him a frustrated look, "No, the straitjacket..."

The two of them begin to go back and forth again a little bit, but then Dabbledob stop abruptly and says, "Oh! You know what? There's a book around here, somewhere..." She start flipping things over looking for something. She stops looking for a moment to look at Kwiz, and then says, "Yes, this book might actually help you in your search for dragons. Actually, while I mention it, why are you looking for dragons? Before this madness with the kings we were starting to work on some things that, I guess if taken out of context might help with a dragon, but that wasn't their intended purpose."

Anyone that would like to can roll an investigation check to try and help Dabbledob look for the book. 

Sael rolls investigation:  8

Sael saw that Dabbledob was looking for something and decided to help. She scanned the room to get the lay of it and her eyes landed on a pedestal up on a 10' ledge that is overlooking the room from the northwestern part of the room. Sitting on the pedestal is a leather bound book. Sael points at it, looking at Dabbledob, and asks, "Is that it?" 

Dabbledob's eyes follow where Sael is pointing and gets excited, "Oh yes! I forgot we had put it up there. Yes, indeed. That's the one. That book is Magick of Gnomengarde. It has a handful of spells in there for you to study, if you'd like," she says looking at Kwiz. "But, before I can give it to you, I'm going to need you to help me with our kings. If you can help us, that book, and very possibly some other treasures may be in it for you."

Sael slowly steps forward.  "What do you need us to do?  It sounds like they should be checked on at the very least.  If your King has gone mad though, that'll likely take magic that I'm not sure we have, and by your description they may just assume we're all shape-shifters."

"If you ask me," Fibblestib says, "we need to barge in and restrain King Korboz. But, maybe you can start by seeing first if they will talk with you."