Monstrous Compendium Vol. 1: Spelljammer Creatures
Frozen Sick
D&D Beyond Basic Rules
Basic Rules (2014)
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Monstrous Compendium Vol. 1: Spelljammer CreaturesFrozen SickD&D Beyond Basic RulesBasic Rules (2014)Sign in to view your library & saved favorites.
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(@Drache: Wow! There's a 0.25% chance of that happening. Well done, I guess...)
AHB and Harper gather a few items each and discuss their next steps. Harper and Brother Keefe then promptly share what they have learned about the griffon's collars and the party separates into two teams.
Brother Keefe and Olisara try to channel some basic magical energy into the collars with the intent of disrupting them. However, it seems they are both temporarily exhausted from the fight. Their ability to produce the desired effect simply does not pan out. It looks like they'll have to resort to AHB's magical sword or a stronger spell after all. Suddenly, the griffon cries in pain.
Chaab and Harper focus on the chest's lock. With fresh new tools in hand, the half-elf makes short work of the mechanism. Harper put his tools away and begins to open the chest's lid. As soon as he does so, a long and thin needle slips from the tiniest of gaps between the lid and the body of the wooden chest. It pricks the sorcerer and releases some sort of toxin into his bloodstream (OOC: We'll say that AHB is more than 10 feet away as Harper asked folks to step back.)
-> Harper's CON saving throw {DC 13} : 7 Damage: 5
Harper instinctively pulls back but it is too late. He feels his entire body burning from the inside for a solid 7 seconds. (Harper takes 5 poison damage.)
Once the pain subsides, he kicks the lid open. With Chaab's and AHB's help, the half-elf counts up to 600 gold pieces inside the chest, as well as two honey-colored garnets which Chaab promptly values at 30gp each. There is also a longsword in a leather scabbard, on which the word "Daydream" is stylishly burnt in Elvish script. (OOC: All but AHB can read it.)
The griffons all moan in pain but remain docile. The one struck by the the magical mishap begins bleeding as it lies on the ground. (OOC: We'll say that the first collar Olisara tried to release was not the one on the griffon that was already almost dead.)
'Last time I trust Oli' to have checked for traps' Harper mused and smirked as the coin count comes to an end. While giving the longsword another look, he then speaks up to the group. "Unless there's any objections, shall we make it an even-ish split? 120 gold to everyone. As for the garnets, as far as I'm concern we can either toss them to one of the other groups, or donate it to the local church. The sword though-..." The last sentence goes unfinished, as the Harper looked back to the griffons.
Initially confused, it didn't take long to piece together what happened assuming noone came forward with it. So, it is following a small sigh of exasperation that Harper collected whatever is agreed upon for the moment prior to making his way onward to the least injured griffon at that point. "Not that the mystery chest is out of the way for now, shall I got it a shot?" He asked casually of the two, seeming only mildly perturbed at the state of the griffons. For whether he admitted it or not, some lingering ill feelings perhaps actually remained over the debacle. The blame had just merely shifted.
(See spoiler if Harper given a chance:)
Arcana: 17. (help is assumed)
Using some of the most basic principles of Harper's Lightning Lure spell, the Harper held his finger tips over the markings. From there trusting Brother Keefe(or whoever assists) to keep the beast steady, he snapped his fingers a few times until the tips sparked with roving bands of electricity.
At the moment of contact with the collars, he disperses the magic into it to overload some of the sigils, and then pulled back the hand, drawing at least some of the backlash of energy to his palm; instinctively twisting and transmuting it into electricity more fitting for ease of control. At least ease for him...
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
Watching as Harper goes to work on the collars, AHB kneels by the injured griffon and extends her hand towards it, hoping it will accept her.
Assuming it will, she lays her hand upon it, imparting a small degree of healing.
Animal handling 14
Brother Keefe nods to Harper frantically.
"Yes, please! They are moaning in pain! I'll try to hold them steady."
Brother Keefe will once more help by trying to hold the collar steady.
Olisara, thinking of a different way to releasing at least one of the griffons, has an epiphany. She approaches the one the wizard was riding and extends a protective aura to it (Mantle of inspiration, 11 temp HP).
"A precaution, I assure you... Please trust me," She says.
Animal handling: 14
She then casts thunderclap, hoping the concussive blast would break the collar and not the winged beast.
Con save, DC15: 8 thunder damage
Extended Signature
Hearing no claims for the garnets, Chaab offers a counter offer to Harper: "I care not for such a long blade, but the four of you can each take 130gp instead if I can keep my own 80 pieces plus the two jewels. Everyone agrees?"
Everyone then moves on to join Brother Keefe and Olisara in trying to free the griffons, with one of them looking much weaker than the others and none of them looking healthy. Harper approaches the second most hurt griffon (the one Olisara accidentally damaged) and touches one of the runes on its collar as Brother Keefe holds it in place. With his other hand, the sorcerer snaps his finger repeatedly until he catches the exact magical frequency the runes are emitting and then, with a last snap, overloads the apparatus. It snaps open and Brother Keefe now has it in his hands. Harper understood enough of the magic to know that the runes cannot be reused.
Reencouraged by that display, Olisara approaches the dying griffon. AHB follows her and asks for a moment while she calms the beast and provides it with some basic magical healing. The creature responds with a soft cry of acceptance mixed with pain. Just to be sure, Olisara pumps the beast with a dose of temporary vigor and blasts the air around her with a soprano scream. The collar's runes flicker for a second and then the contraption drops to the ground. In fact, Olisara is close enough to the third beast (the least damaged of the three) such that her spell also destabilizes the final collar. Both griffons jump in place a bit after feeling some pain.
All three griffons survive the ordeal, one of them only thanks to the healing it received. Once the collars are out, they all regain some of their strength and constitution. They ruffle their feathers and lower their heads in an instinctual display of gratitude.
Chaab watches all of this from a few paces back. He seems indifferent to the griffon's situation.
(OOC: With that, we'll say this team decides to rest a bit to regain their own strength. Please go ahead and roll Hit Dice for your temporary characters. Also, let me know if you'd like to accomplish anything before we return to CRAP's camp. Finally, who's keeping the clearly magical longsword "Daydream"?)
(OOC Going to go ahead and roll all of AHB's hit die. Ten d10! So many dice! And it's...47 hit points!
If no one else will take daydream, AHB will. She already likes a longsword plus you can never have enough blades.)
---> SR Healing(R:3)(S:1): 24.
---> IF Song of Rest Applies: 2.
HP After Short Rest: 37.
Temp HP: 11, if Mantle of Inspiration extended to Harper as well. (Targets 4(1 excluded for Griffon))
Harper shrugged, not seeming to mind the offer. Even if it did net the drow at least ten gold more at face value, the Harper Agent collected more than enough elsewhere to not fill slighted in the least. And seeing that there was no counterpoint made for the spellbook, he adds that one to his collections as well for studying and/or passing along to a friend.
Beyond as much, he wouldn't get in the way of AHB taking the sword for sure, but instead make sure to compose two recording of events. One for relaying to the other teams, and the other to keep a hold of for his own recollection. "Consider'n how those thayan's can be, we might wish to destroy those bodies as well just in case. Can't have those necromancy loving friends of our pull a fast one us later now can we?" He suggested, a small smile playing at the edge of his lips. "And would you look at that. There's already decent campfire going. Unless you, brother Keefe, got some divine granted magics to prevent tampering with that lot?"
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
(Heck yes, song of rest applies)
Short rest: 50
Song of rest: 3
Total: 46 points restored
Bardic inspiration restored!
Extended Signature
Short Rest: 20
Song of Rest: 6
Brother Keefe nods at Harper.
"I do indeed. Let us stop this atrocity from occurring again."
Brother Keefe goes around placing a copper piece in each of the dead's eyes. He thing sprinkles a pinch of salt over each of them as he ritually casts gentle repose.
After, Brother Keefe will approach the freed griffons and pat each of them motioning for them to follow the group if they so choose to.
(@MB: You forgot to add the +2 per Hit Die rolled, so AHB actually recovers 66 HP from them alone. Let us also roll a Song of Rest die for her:
2. Oops, It should have been a d8: 5.)(@Grx: It looks like you also rolled a d6 for Song of Rest, so I'll need to change that for a d8: 6.)
(@All: We'll say that Olisara picked the following characters for her second Mantle of Inspiration: Harper, AHB, Olisara, and that one griffon. Brother Keefe still has some temporary HP from the first use of Mantle of Inspiration, and Chaab is doing fine on HP.)
(OOC: Chaab chooses to use no Hit Dice.)
The group settles for a well-deserved rest. Harper suggests that they do not leave the bodies intact lest they be used for foul purposes. Brother Keefe agrees and spends all of the resting period casting several instances of the gentle repose ritual. This makes the priest fell pretty good about himself, as he is well suited to counteract necromancers.
While Brother Keefe prays and protects the bodies, the rest of this team performs their own actions of choice. Harper makes good use of the furniture in the tent to sit and write two copies of the events his team has witnessed and participated in so far in this excursion. AHB unsheathes the newly found blade and spends a good deal of time studying it, practicing with it, and learning its secrets. Chaab separates the treasure they found into five pouches of pre-agreed weights. Olisara agrees to keep watch for the group.
The griffons seem content with Brother Keefe's suggestion and hang about.
(OOC: Everyone gets 130gp except for Chaab, who gets 80gp and two gems. AHB gets Daydream. Please see spoiler below.)
DAYDREAM
This is a longsword of Elven make. One of its edges has a slight curve to it, but the opposing flat edge is also sharp. It is kept in its own leather scabbard, on which the word "Daydream" is stylishly burnt in Elvish script.
You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon. It is also incredibly light, weighing about two-thirds as much as a regular longsword.
This longsword and its scabbard never get dirty. Dirt falls off it, blood slides way from it, grime never accumulates. Ironically, this makes it quite difficult to ever oil and maintain the blade properly, but its enchantment also makes it so it requires a lot less maintenance to begin with.
CRAP'S CAMP
Back at CRAP's temporary camp, the party is nearing the end of their resting period. They have gathered what items are of any use, buried the dead (even the ogre), and made sure the wagon's setup has been shifted to work with a single (undead) horse. It will surely move slower than it is supposed to, but it should still move. As the final preparations to leave camp take place, they receive a series of messages from the team dealing with the Thayan wizards. Utar, Neya, Doozey, Graxx, and Villonah learn the essential details of that other team's mission so far. It is up to CRAP whether to pass any of this information to Yalek and/or Rhonda.
(OOC: Let me know if the plan below has changed.)
They proceed as follows:
During the short rest, the group has had plenty of time to rummage through the wagon's contents. They even find the pieces that Yalek had managed to stow away, most of which the Zhentarim spy seems to be willing to give away. The items of interest are:
(Neya will take the sword if there are no objections)
Extended Signature
A part from Crap, Doozey leaves the dissemenation of what's been passed along to him to the others. While he trusted Yalek enough -- had to, for that matter for the job, but Rhonda's ongoing presence... still didn't sit well with him. So again, all the more reason to leave it to the others after drawing them aside for the details. Before they disperse to handle anything else, Doozey takes Graxx aside to finally give him those crossbow pointers promised last. Enough for the Barbarian to feel more comfortable in quickly loading and firing off that first shot in an emergency, and get comfortable with the perhaps awkward weight of it compared to other arms.
With that done, it is off to the barrel with Doozey. He absconds with the enchanted shortsword after a brief word with Neya. As he was retreating she would hear him say, "Apostle?"while looking at the runes along the way.
At some point during the trip itself Doozey dozes off. It's only for a few minutes at best. Long enough to catch a bit more shut eye, and not have to think about being so cramped a space; knowing only death and destruction awaited at the end of the trip, one way or another. During that time that he's curled up clutching Apostle to his chest, Taters stayed awake and alert, leery of the new environment. After some time however, the beast's attention is drawn to the sword. Curious and confused, he cocked head to the side at it initially, before crawling its way over and onto Doozey's arm. The closer he got to it, the more the blade began to faintly glow green from the seams of its sheathe, alluring Taters closer... and closer... and closer still. Until finally Tater's own eyes began to glow with the same faint color.
A moment later, he presses his nose against the sheathe of blade, stiffens suddenly as if struck by lightning, then goes completely limp and passes out. Unbeknownst to both Beast and Master, faintly glowing and curly markings appears about their eyes, face, neck, and arms for a few seconds, and then... disappear as if nothing happened. Nothing, except for their skin and respective coat perhaps being a shade lighter and cleaner then they were before, as if dust and other like impurities had been purged from them...
Meanwhile back in town, whichever brother happened to be keeping watch on Biscuit would notice the mastiff staring off at a wall in the rough direction of the forest, ears occasionally lifting as if listening for something. After a few minutes the same green light emanates from the dog's eyes for a split second before fading from view, leaving the dog lethargic for the remainder of the day.
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
After relinquishing the enchanted sword to Doozey, Neya takes some time to meditate.
After some rumination, she realized after casting her spells, some residual latent ki is still usable. Maybe for not something overly substantial, but enough for her to strike once more.
She then soon realizes since that ki is inherently the energy of life itself, it could perhaps be used to even close minor wounds. Even on the field of battle itself.
Further discoveries have her feel that while her own awareness of her opponents can even be extended further in an offensive capacity.
Extended Signature
(OOC: Nice RPing of the new features! Separately, I never got a confirmation on your plans. We'll move forward a bit but please confirm.)
Feeling that they have all learned something knew about themselves in addition to acquiring some new gifts and information, CRAP finally decides it is time to move on. Rhonda and Yalek lead the way, and the trek through the forest path takes another 25 to 30 minutes. Ten minutes after they start making their way, small forest critters begin to appear in the surrounding trees and overall landscape, once again.
Eventually, the forest rises over a series of rolling hills before revealing a massive stronghold. Even from a distance, you are able to gather some details about it and its surrounding. Freshly cut logs form a long wooden palisade wall around the stronghold and is interrupted periodically by guard towers. This palisade wall and the towers stand on earthen ramparts for added height and protection. Old ruins and massive trees rise beyond the walls, while the forest’s dark canopy continues uninterrupted overhead. The stronghold itself is the size of a medium village. There is a main gate on the western side of the palisade wall. It is toward this gate that Rhonda and Yalek are leading the wagon.
Villonah, Doozey, and Taters are mostly unaware of these developments as they hitch a ride inside barrels. Graxx, Neya, and Utar have a few moments to decide what to do next, if anything, before approaching the gate.
(OOC: If you haven't done so yet, please make sure to add 4,600 XP to your character as of the end of the Short Rest. You may also enable to optional class features from Tasha's at this point. Details are in the OOC chat.)
Drawing his cloak about him, Utar is sure to ensure his amulet and the mark of Torm upon his armour are covered. Remembering his last attempts to pass himself off as a member of the Cult of the Dragon didn't exactly fool anyone for very long...
Looking around the rest of CRAP, Utar knows there aren't many he'd trust enough that he'd be willing to walk into something like this with.
"Are we ready?"
(OOC Is it possible for Utar to have burnt a channel divinity on restoring a level 2 spell slot? Should have done it earlier but here we are... Also, I'm guessing we are going to try and infiltrate the camp, try to turn the two parts of the Cult against each other and if it all goes wrong we use our usual idiom of smashing our way out? Do we have a Team America secret signal four when things go south?)
Graxx grips his Pike. He is not manacled and his black hair and blue eyes he hopes will look enough like a Sky Pony that he should blend in.
Graxx goes over to the barrel Doozey is in. He lightly knocks on it and leans down like he is resting on the barrel.
”Alright Doozey... We’re here... ‘Bout to head in. Remember if you get a chance to slip off all sneaky to find that horn go for it.”
Graxx stands back up straight and goes to Utar.
”Ready as we can be. If y’all start hearing me shout to Tempus come a running.” Says Graxx.
Doozey quickly stirs at the knock, and after listening to Graxx, acknowledged in kind with a single knock of his own. After taking a few moments to work out at least a few kinks in his joints, he found himself smiling for the first time in.... well, he couldn't rightly remember when was the last time he smiled without it being laced with some negative emotion. Soon enough, any concern with the oddity gets brushed off in favor of simply enjoying the moment. Today was gonna be a great day!
Taters too looked especially jittery and alert from the way his ears kept moving this way and that to catch as much noise as possible. Fortunately, Doozey is able to somewhat call the critter with a few well meaning pets along the back of his neck for a few moments. Soon after however, the stoutling had to devote the majority of his attention towards listening closely, and using whatever small hole they might've been able to dig out to at least spy out into the word from one direction.
(@MB: The Crap has hit the fan is a pretty good signal. :P But if looking for something more secretive, it could include such words as 'Little Friends' or whatever. Up to you guys top side)
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.