Before Krinix gets more than 100 feet away, his familiar alerts him. Krinix will view the new set of runes through his familiar’s eyes to see if they say anything new.
(Apologies on the inactivity, work has picked up the past few days and I haven’t been able to sneak in a post. I’ll definitely make a post tonight - don’t let me keep you waiting!)
Krinix hears of Qiran's discovery and goes to him, bringing the familiar, hoping to have already learned something from the new runes, if possible. Krinix says,
"Looks like my familiar Glide can fit in that seam and try to see what's down there. He can see a little in the dark. I'll send him in and scout it out."
Glide's relevant abilities are darkvision 30' and 20' climbing speed. Krinix can view through his familiar's eyes (instead of his own) so long as they are max 100' apart and murmur to the group what he sees.
Glide creeps into the seam and carefully moves about in ever larger circles, trying to get a sense of the dark area. Krinix will murmur aloud what he sees through the lizard's eyes.
Qiran nods, acknowledging Krinix's plan. It was a sound one, but there was a tiny part of him that wanted to tear his way in and go storming off into the dark unknown. Sha'sal Khou or not, he was a githyanki, after all. Letting the glory of a new discovery go to. . . a familiar. . . he bristled at the idea. It was safer, though. Few intelligent threats would care about a lizard, and it was better that it trigger any trap than for himself to do so.
Acknowledging his impatience and trying to keep it in check, he casually moves to one of the sets of handholds. Slinging his quarterstaff through a loop on his pack, he dries his palms on his tunic. This shall be an interesting test.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.
The familiar is small enough to get down through the rigging slots and in the dark, a curious machine can be seen with wheels where chains used to be looped. Most likely, there was once a structure above the stage that could be used to pull the chains and raise and lower the stage.
The good news is, however, that the machine looks to be still in working order, not completely fused with rust, and that some of the gears look ratcheted, so that when the stage is lifted, the gears catch and keep it from falling back down. It might even be able to be lifted by hand.
The walls of the area under the stage is hewn from stone in a perfect cylinder, and the area beneath the machine isn't too deep, though there are gutters in the floor that would keep rainwater from pooling. The roots from four different trees seem to have been interconnected and spiral inward until they form a platform. From the chamber floor to the beams holding the machine under the stage, there is about 12 feet of clearance.
It seems as if over the years, even this chamber has been disturbed by the elements. Strewn about the floor at the base of the root platform are several objects that look like they were once connected, but even with night vision, it's a little hard to see how they were once put together.
It's a good thing, then, that apparently this 'luminous chamber' was designed to have maintenance done on it. Whatever it was used for, it was used quite frequently.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Qiran listens while Krinix describes what he sees. Perhaps it was the secondhand description of a lizard's perspective, but he was having a hard time picturing the scene.
"Thinking of lift by hand? Yes, I can help."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.
Faerieth thanks the trees for their assistance, along with their dedication to their cause. "You have done well during this time," she says, going to join the party. "What do... you wish to do?"
”From what I can gather, if we can apply force to lift up the platform, the ratcheted gears below will keep it from falling back down. All we need to do is apply enough force to lift the platform. If our own physical strength is not enough, then perhaps a lever could be applied. Let us all stand at intervals around the platform and attempt to lift it.”
Krinix positions himself at another one of the handhold spots and prepares to lift once everyone’s ready.
Chroma raises her brow at Krinix's summoning of the lizard. It would turn out to be a neat - and useful - trick. "You seem more versed in the nature of these machinations than I, so I will be glad to defer to your recommendations. If physical force is needed, I will be happy to provide," she says, taking a position near one side of the platform.
Chroma and Qiran manage to get the platform moving, then with Faerieth and Krinix's help, keep it going until with a 'klunk' under the platform, the ratchet catches and sets the platform. In this way, the group continues moving it up bit by bit until the platform is raised high enough for everyone to drop past the lifting mechanism and down into the space below. The whole process is exhausting (it IS a huge stone slab, after all) and takes about an hour of intense lifting, resting, and lifting again. Jules helps too, for what it's worth, until he falls unceremoniously down after losing his footing and trying to contribute. He lands with a clatter and groans.
"It's safe to come down." he grumbles, trying to organize the supplies that fell out of his pack. There's just enough sunlight to illuminate the inner chamber, but it's getting quite close to sunset. It seems the items that were hidden by the pitch black are several coloured chunks of crystal, two circular, shining plates, and finally a platform with moving rings, much like a code wheel. There's ancient draconic runes on the rings as well as several long-empty eggs. Seems that whatever made a home here is what caused the contraption to break in the first place. There are grooves in between the rings that seem like they would fit the plates now filled with dirt, and a deep groove in the center of the platform.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Krinix would like to study the runes to see if he can read them. Meanwhile his familiar can look around to see if there are any passages or such down here, or is it just a pit?
It's definitely a 'room' but it's more like a maintenance area than anything else. Cramped, but functional. Krinix's familiar finds a seam in the floor. There's too much debris overtop to tell where the handle is, but there seems to be a hatch in the floor. The gutters also drain down into darkness, where the lizard is able to hear running water in the distance.
Meanwhile, the runes seem to be the final instructions for the spell, but a full translation, again, would take quite a while. Preliminary efforts, however, suggest that this contraption is the 'source' of the 'beacon' and that the 'combined light' must be 'shared throughout'.
Krinix also finds something of significant interest to him. On the outer ring of the platform, separate from the spell runes, is an inscription in ancient draconic, but it's simple enough that he can recognize the words. Jules' mouth hangs open, shuffling up on his hands and knees beside him as he reads the inscription as well.
"Dedicated to my firstborn, Srossar, 397 CR" Jules says, taking a moment to process. "That would place this site at just about thirty years after Phlan's foundation, when it was the home of a great alliance between humans, dwarves, elves, and 'the woodfolk'." he says aloud, then stands up.
"You all keep working here! I'm going to report this to Jarvo! This is a major find!" he says, comically struggling to get up and out of the room.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Before Krinix gets more than 100 feet away, his familiar alerts him. Krinix will view the new set of runes through his familiar’s eyes to see if they say anything new.
Qiran alerts the others to the discovery.
"It appears we can move this. Entrance?"
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.
(Apologies on the inactivity, work has picked up the past few days and I haven’t been able to sneak in a post. I’ll definitely make a post tonight - don’t let me keep you waiting!)
Krinix hears of Qiran's discovery and goes to him, bringing the familiar, hoping to have already learned something from the new runes, if possible. Krinix says,
"Looks like my familiar Glide can fit in that seam and try to see what's down there. He can see a little in the dark. I'll send him in and scout it out."
Glide's relevant abilities are darkvision 30' and 20' climbing speed. Krinix can view through his familiar's eyes (instead of his own) so long as they are max 100' apart and murmur to the group what he sees.
Glide creeps into the seam and carefully moves about in ever larger circles, trying to get a sense of the dark area. Krinix will murmur aloud what he sees through the lizard's eyes.
Qiran nods, acknowledging Krinix's plan. It was a sound one, but there was a tiny part of him that wanted to tear his way in and go storming off into the dark unknown. Sha'sal Khou or not, he was a githyanki, after all. Letting the glory of a new discovery go to. . . a familiar. . . he bristled at the idea. It was safer, though. Few intelligent threats would care about a lizard, and it was better that it trigger any trap than for himself to do so.
Acknowledging his impatience and trying to keep it in check, he casually moves to one of the sets of handholds. Slinging his quarterstaff through a loop on his pack, he dries his palms on his tunic. This shall be an interesting test.
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.
The familiar is small enough to get down through the rigging slots and in the dark, a curious machine can be seen with wheels where chains used to be looped. Most likely, there was once a structure above the stage that could be used to pull the chains and raise and lower the stage.
The good news is, however, that the machine looks to be still in working order, not completely fused with rust, and that some of the gears look ratcheted, so that when the stage is lifted, the gears catch and keep it from falling back down. It might even be able to be lifted by hand.
The walls of the area under the stage is hewn from stone in a perfect cylinder, and the area beneath the machine isn't too deep, though there are gutters in the floor that would keep rainwater from pooling. The roots from four different trees seem to have been interconnected and spiral inward until they form a platform. From the chamber floor to the beams holding the machine under the stage, there is about 12 feet of clearance.
It seems as if over the years, even this chamber has been disturbed by the elements. Strewn about the floor at the base of the root platform are several objects that look like they were once connected, but even with night vision, it's a little hard to see how they were once put together.
It's a good thing, then, that apparently this 'luminous chamber' was designed to have maintenance done on it. Whatever it was used for, it was used quite frequently.
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Qiran listens while Krinix describes what he sees. Perhaps it was the secondhand description of a lizard's perspective, but he was having a hard time picturing the scene.
"Thinking of lift by hand? Yes, I can help."
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.
Faerieth thanks the trees for their assistance, along with their dedication to their cause. "You have done well during this time," she says, going to join the party. "What do... you wish to do?"
Elra Skylash - Human Cleric | Vanzaren Tanidoni - Half Elf Wizard
Mindartis Liadon - Eladrin Barbarian | Naivara Siannodel - Half Elf Ranger
Arrila Evenwood - Half Elf Paladin | Callaphe of Setessa - Human Rogue
Katernin Nemetsk - Aasimar Cleric | Melody - Tiefling Bard
Krinix says:
”From what I can gather, if we can apply force to lift up the platform, the ratcheted gears below will keep it from falling back down. All we need to do is apply enough force to lift the platform. If our own physical strength is not enough, then perhaps a lever could be applied. Let us all stand at intervals around the platform and attempt to lift it.”
Krinix positions himself at another one of the handhold spots and prepares to lift once everyone’s ready.
Chroma raises her brow at Krinix's summoning of the lizard. It would turn out to be a neat - and useful - trick. "You seem more versed in the nature of these machinations than I, so I will be glad to defer to your recommendations. If physical force is needed, I will be happy to provide," she says, taking a position near one side of the platform.
Strength/Athletics: 11
Qiran, seeing everyone take up their position, nods his head.
"Let us attempt the lift."
If necessary, Strength check: 7
Another medical problem. Indefinite hiatus. Sorry, all.
If necessary, athletics/strength (same for Krinix):
15
(just need one more roll!)
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Krinix calls out to Faerieth “give us a hand at lifting this!”
Faerieth seems to have zone out, "Hmm? Oh... yes of course." She goes to assist everyone.
Elra Skylash - Human Cleric | Vanzaren Tanidoni - Half Elf Wizard
Mindartis Liadon - Eladrin Barbarian | Naivara Siannodel - Half Elf Ranger
Arrila Evenwood - Half Elf Paladin | Callaphe of Setessa - Human Rogue
Katernin Nemetsk - Aasimar Cleric | Melody - Tiefling Bard
Chroma and Qiran manage to get the platform moving, then with Faerieth and Krinix's help, keep it going until with a 'klunk' under the platform, the ratchet catches and sets the platform. In this way, the group continues moving it up bit by bit until the platform is raised high enough for everyone to drop past the lifting mechanism and down into the space below. The whole process is exhausting (it IS a huge stone slab, after all) and takes about an hour of intense lifting, resting, and lifting again. Jules helps too, for what it's worth, until he falls unceremoniously down after losing his footing and trying to contribute. He lands with a clatter and groans.
"It's safe to come down." he grumbles, trying to organize the supplies that fell out of his pack. There's just enough sunlight to illuminate the inner chamber, but it's getting quite close to sunset. It seems the items that were hidden by the pitch black are several coloured chunks of crystal, two circular, shining plates, and finally a platform with moving rings, much like a code wheel. There's ancient draconic runes on the rings as well as several long-empty eggs. Seems that whatever made a home here is what caused the contraption to break in the first place. There are grooves in between the rings that seem like they would fit the plates now filled with dirt, and a deep groove in the center of the platform.
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Krinix would like to study the runes to see if he can read them. Meanwhile his familiar can look around to see if there are any passages or such down here, or is it just a pit?
It's definitely a 'room' but it's more like a maintenance area than anything else. Cramped, but functional. Krinix's familiar finds a seam in the floor. There's too much debris overtop to tell where the handle is, but there seems to be a hatch in the floor. The gutters also drain down into darkness, where the lizard is able to hear running water in the distance.
Meanwhile, the runes seem to be the final instructions for the spell, but a full translation, again, would take quite a while. Preliminary efforts, however, suggest that this contraption is the 'source' of the 'beacon' and that the 'combined light' must be 'shared throughout'.
Krinix also finds something of significant interest to him. On the outer ring of the platform, separate from the spell runes, is an inscription in ancient draconic, but it's simple enough that he can recognize the words. Jules' mouth hangs open, shuffling up on his hands and knees beside him as he reads the inscription as well.
"Dedicated to my firstborn, Srossar, 397 CR" Jules says, taking a moment to process. "That would place this site at just about thirty years after Phlan's foundation, when it was the home of a great alliance between humans, dwarves, elves, and 'the woodfolk'." he says aloud, then stands up.
"You all keep working here! I'm going to report this to Jarvo! This is a major find!" he says, comically struggling to get up and out of the room.
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Krinix's familiar also smells something pretty foul coming from the gutters... and the smell is coming closer.
DM, professional illustrator and comic artist, suffering from severe spinal stenosis, married, middle aged, and nerdy.
Faerieth helps Jules, before going to look around, curious about the runes.
Elra Skylash - Human Cleric | Vanzaren Tanidoni - Half Elf Wizard
Mindartis Liadon - Eladrin Barbarian | Naivara Siannodel - Half Elf Ranger
Arrila Evenwood - Half Elf Paladin | Callaphe of Setessa - Human Rogue
Katernin Nemetsk - Aasimar Cleric | Melody - Tiefling Bard