Silthras asks Velyra to repeat the words a few times so that he can mark them down in his notes for the map. He follows along cautiously, looking for signs that anyone has been here in recent times.
Investigation: 14
"Do you all think we are the first down here in a while? See any signs of undead, or explorers?" he asks.
Looking around the entrance, and the hall you're currently in, you can't really see any signs of recent activity. The stone is bare, and there's not enough dirt or grime to really create tracks. Silthras would be smart enough to know that short of someone leaving behind physical belongings, he wouldn't really be able to tell if someone else had been here or not.
To Kal, the darkness seems almost smothering. Those with darkvision would lose color as they step foot into the room, and even they would notice a faint opaqueness in the air around them. To Silthras, whose vision remains the same across the entire room, he would distinctly see the darkness as a type of black fog, made of tiny particulate matter that swirls through the room. You can see the room goes about eighty feet back, supported by great stone pillars. There are a number of pedestals in the room, though they hold nothing ontop of them, save for one...
Lashes of violet, purple energy extend from a glowing orb sitting on the non-empty pedestal, tethering onto to the four corners of another doorway on the southern wall. A rectangular black void outlines this entryway, through which you can see blackstone floors and a towering marble pillar that blocks the rest of your view.
Usul, looking into the room, waves his hand as a, visible, magical replica of it appear next to his and floats towards the orb. Stopping it just shy he says with a grin, “Should we poke it?”
Silthras looks around the room, "This darkness is strange. It is not so much a magical effect as an absence...I can see clearly in magical darkness, but this...it's like small paricles of nothing."
He looks more closely at the particles, trying to make sense of them. "The trap the blinded us and this" he waves his arm to include the room, "may be related."
(( @DM: is the above correct? He can see in magical darkness and both of the effects were 'dark' to his eyes? ))
The effect here is two-fold. For someone like Kal, he doesn't seen any particles, it's just dark. For Silthras, the darkness doesn't affect him(he still sees full brightness) but he can see these fine little particles in the air, about the thickness of a thin fog.
Velyra shrugs, gesturing towards the sphere. "By all means, give it a poke. What's the worst that could happen?"
After Usul's experiment, she'll move closer into the room, towards the doorway it seems to be affecting. "If it's related to the trap that blinded us...That would mean the creature is responsible. So we're in the right place."
"I've got a hunch..." Careful to avoid the tethers of magical energy, she inspects the the doorway, running a finger along the stone and stopping before the void-like outline. Hesitantly, she puts a hand through the doorway.
@DM Velyra is essentially checking to see if this is another portal. Is there a sensation when her hand passes through the door? Air different on the other side or anything like that?
The spectral hand floats towards the crystalline sphere glowing with a violet energy. It gives the object a sharp poke... And then suddenly, the room is filled with the roars of 15 ancient red dragons
The sphere is quite obviously solid, as the spectral hand simply bounces off of it. It doesn't budge from the pedestal, nor does it react defensively in anyway. As Velyra sticks her hand through the doorway, the air in that entryway shimmers and ripples, as if it were made of water. She feels a cool sensation as her hand pushes through the threshold. The tethers of violet energy crackle and brighten as she does so, dimming back down as she pulls her hand back.
Silthras watches with the rippling barrier with a growing sense of being out of his depth, then turns to Usul, "Another job for the fearless Dib?" he asks. "The other side ... might be a long way away...and there may not be a way back..."
Usul blinks his eyes a few times to make sure the half flash of a dozen dragons really was just in his head, and then nods, saying, "He certainly is better equipped to deal with this type of portal? than the rest of us. Let's hope we can find him some snacks along the way..."He then sends his spectral hand towards the barrier to test it out first, and if nothing happens directs his, now, feathered friend towards it to see if there is anything on the other side.
While Velyra steps aside, the mage hand floats forward. As it touches the threshold, it once again ripples, but is able to pass through completely. Erring on the side of caution, Usul waits out a full minute to see if anything was triggered. After nothing happens, he nods to the tiny owl, which flits from his shoulder and through the shimmering doorway.
Sensing through the familiar, Usul is struck by how cold the other side is, dropping to a temperature you might atop a summit. Dib turns and lands on the stone floor briefly, looking back the way he came. While the side the party is on looks like a normal entryway, save for the shimmering threshold, on Dib's side it is very clearly a portal. Two stone half-arches hold up blocks covered in symmetric and runic carvings, powering a portal that glows bright white around the boundaries.
As the owl turns to fly further in, there are two very familiar platforms to either side of it before it goes around the pillar. The stone, circular teleportation pads found in the manor's basement, bubbling with black liquid. Dib flies around the pillar, going deeper inside. The architecture here is strikingly different from the ruin, with noticeably more jagged, hostile features. The stone floors are blasted black, and the walls a very dark gray. Also noticeable is how undamaged everything is.
Now 40 feet in, Dib passes another pair of the teleportation platforms, one tucked away in an alcove on each side. 20 feet further in, another pair. Beyond that, the walls narrow diagonally on each side until it turns into a hallway, ten feet across. The hallway doesn't run straight for very long before turning into a staircase, ascending into darkness(noting that Dib has dark vision out to 120 feet).
Usul relays this to the group, adding, "This place is a maze of portals! We'll never make it back to the surface at this point!"He's clearly a bit worried and feeling trapped.
Silthras nods slowly at Usul's comment, "This is much bigger than a few undead in a mine" he says, his tone resigned. "I....I find myself wondering what we are to do...and how."
He looks back the way they have come, then at the portal through which Dib went, "I think perhaps that we should let Dib explore some more, but then return to where we started, and at least check what lies above us."
He glances down at his notes, and the book with the map before continuing, "If there is a more obvious source of undead, then that will simplify our task. This..." he waves at the portal, ".. this may well lead to the other mines, or to the cause of the undead, but I can not see it can lead to the local source...perhaps the cause...but not the source. They could not cross the hallowed ground. Unless...gods...unless one of the other portals leads back to the house."
"Consolidate and then advance, that's the rule." He nods, finding comfort in falling back on old habits, "We've made a bold move by coming here, now I think we should explore what is behind us, before moving further forward."
"There was what, a total of six of those platforms in the room? That could be two for each town affected." Kal crosses his arms, getting close to the portal but not touching it. "I agree, we should let the familiar explore further in. But that means we also have to go through, no?"
"But after that, making sure we have a good way out of here sounds like the right move to me."
Happy to have people who seem to know what the hell is going on, Usul nods and says, "Finishing exploring here, and perhaps finding a way out, before going further in is a good idea. We can easily return."
While the others discuss, Velyra idly pokes her hand in and out of the portal, wondering over the cool sensation. "Your plans are making sense to me. So we'll have to move inside here a little bit yes? So Dib can explore further in?"
"We've come this far," Usul says, feeling a bit anxious to get back to the surface. "Let's see what's in there!" He then heads into the gate and starts slowly and quietly creeping forward, still leading through Dib's eyes as he silently flaps ahead of the group.
((Let me know who all is going through the gate, and who is staying behind. I assume at least Usul is going through.
Staying just outside of it, Dib would be able to reach like 10 feet up the staircase at the end before going out of the 100 ft range for Usul to see through his eyes. The stairs themselves go on for over 120 feet.))
Map for reference, 5 feet squares:
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Silthras asks Velyra to repeat the words a few times so that he can mark them down in his notes for the map. He follows along cautiously, looking for signs that anyone has been here in recent times.
Investigation: 14
"Do you all think we are the first down here in a while? See any signs of undead, or explorers?" he asks.
Looking around the entrance, and the hall you're currently in, you can't really see any signs of recent activity. The stone is bare, and there's not enough dirt or grime to really create tracks. Silthras would be smart enough to know that short of someone leaving behind physical belongings, he wouldn't really be able to tell if someone else had been here or not.
To Kal, the darkness seems almost smothering. Those with darkvision would lose color as they step foot into the room, and even they would notice a faint opaqueness in the air around them. To Silthras, whose vision remains the same across the entire room, he would distinctly see the darkness as a type of black fog, made of tiny particulate matter that swirls through the room. You can see the room goes about eighty feet back, supported by great stone pillars. There are a number of pedestals in the room, though they hold nothing ontop of them, save for one...
Lashes of violet, purple energy extend from a glowing orb sitting on the non-empty pedestal, tethering onto to the four corners of another doorway on the southern wall. A rectangular black void outlines this entryway, through which you can see blackstone floors and a towering marble pillar that blocks the rest of your view.
Usul, looking into the room, waves his hand as a, visible, magical replica of it appear next to his and floats towards the orb. Stopping it just shy he says with a grin, “Should we poke it?”
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
Silthras looks around the room, "This darkness is strange. It is not so much a magical effect as an absence...I can see clearly in magical darkness, but this...it's like small paricles of nothing."
He looks more closely at the particles, trying to make sense of them. "The trap the blinded us and this" he waves his arm to include the room, "may be related."
(( @DM: is the above correct? He can see in magical darkness and both of the effects were 'dark' to his eyes? ))
The effect here is two-fold. For someone like Kal, he doesn't seen any particles, it's just dark. For Silthras, the darkness doesn't affect him(he still sees full brightness) but he can see these fine little particles in the air, about the thickness of a thin fog.
Velyra shrugs, gesturing towards the sphere. "By all means, give it a poke. What's the worst that could happen?"
After Usul's experiment, she'll move closer into the room, towards the doorway it seems to be affecting. "If it's related to the trap that blinded us...That would mean the creature is responsible. So we're in the right place."
"I've got a hunch..." Careful to avoid the tethers of magical energy, she inspects the the doorway, running a finger along the stone and stopping before the void-like outline. Hesitantly, she puts a hand through the doorway.
@DM
Velyra is essentially checking to see if this is another portal. Is there a sensation when her hand passes through the door? Air different on the other side or anything like that?
Usul sends his magical hand at the sphere to poke at it and see how it reacts, ducking a bit behind one of the pillars as he does so.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
"Something to be found here after all." Grimacing at the sudden darkness, Kal follows the others inside, taking cover as Usul begins his experiment.
The spectral hand floats towards the crystalline sphere glowing with a violet energy. It gives the object a sharp poke...
And then suddenly, the room is filled with the roars of 15 ancient red dragonsThe sphere is quite obviously solid, as the spectral hand simply bounces off of it. It doesn't budge from the pedestal, nor does it react defensively in anyway. As Velyra sticks her hand through the doorway, the air in that entryway shimmers and ripples, as if it were made of water. She feels a cool sensation as her hand pushes through the threshold. The tethers of violet energy crackle and brighten as she does so, dimming back down as she pulls her hand back.
Silthras watches with the rippling barrier with a growing sense of being out of his depth, then turns to Usul, "Another job for the fearless Dib?" he asks. "The other side ... might be a long way away...and there may not be a way back..."
Usul blinks his eyes a few times to make sure the half flash of a dozen dragons really was just in his head, and then nods, saying, "He certainly is better equipped to deal with this type of portal? than the rest of us. Let's hope we can find him some snacks along the way..." He then sends his spectral hand towards the barrier to test it out first, and if nothing happens directs his, now, feathered friend towards it to see if there is anything on the other side.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
While Velyra steps aside, the mage hand floats forward. As it touches the threshold, it once again ripples, but is able to pass through completely. Erring on the side of caution, Usul waits out a full minute to see if anything was triggered. After nothing happens, he nods to the tiny owl, which flits from his shoulder and through the shimmering doorway.
Sensing through the familiar, Usul is struck by how cold the other side is, dropping to a temperature you might atop a summit. Dib turns and lands on the stone floor briefly, looking back the way he came. While the side the party is on looks like a normal entryway, save for the shimmering threshold, on Dib's side it is very clearly a portal. Two stone half-arches hold up blocks covered in symmetric and runic carvings, powering a portal that glows bright white around the boundaries.
As the owl turns to fly further in, there are two very familiar platforms to either side of it before it goes around the pillar. The stone, circular teleportation pads found in the manor's basement, bubbling with black liquid. Dib flies around the pillar, going deeper inside. The architecture here is strikingly different from the ruin, with noticeably more jagged, hostile features. The stone floors are blasted black, and the walls a very dark gray. Also noticeable is how undamaged everything is.
Now 40 feet in, Dib passes another pair of the teleportation platforms, one tucked away in an alcove on each side. 20 feet further in, another pair. Beyond that, the walls narrow diagonally on each side until it turns into a hallway, ten feet across. The hallway doesn't run straight for very long before turning into a staircase, ascending into darkness(noting that Dib has dark vision out to 120 feet).
Usul relays this to the group, adding, "This place is a maze of portals! We'll never make it back to the surface at this point!" He's clearly a bit worried and feeling trapped.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
Silthras nods slowly at Usul's comment, "This is much bigger than a few undead in a mine" he says, his tone resigned. "I....I find myself wondering what we are to do...and how."
He looks back the way they have come, then at the portal through which Dib went, "I think perhaps that we should let Dib explore some more, but then return to where we started, and at least check what lies above us."
He glances down at his notes, and the book with the map before continuing, "If there is a more obvious source of undead, then that will simplify our task. This..." he waves at the portal, ".. this may well lead to the other mines, or to the cause of the undead, but I can not see it can lead to the local source...perhaps the cause...but not the source. They could not cross the hallowed ground. Unless...gods...unless one of the other portals leads back to the house."
"Consolidate and then advance, that's the rule." He nods, finding comfort in falling back on old habits, "We've made a bold move by coming here, now I think we should explore what is behind us, before moving further forward."
"There was what, a total of six of those platforms in the room? That could be two for each town affected." Kal crosses his arms, getting close to the portal but not touching it. "I agree, we should let the familiar explore further in. But that means we also have to go through, no?"
"But after that, making sure we have a good way out of here sounds like the right move to me."
Happy to have people who seem to know what the hell is going on, Usul nods and says, "Finishing exploring here, and perhaps finding a way out, before going further in is a good idea. We can easily return."
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
While the others discuss, Velyra idly pokes her hand in and out of the portal, wondering over the cool sensation. "Your plans are making sense to me. So we'll have to move inside here a little bit yes? So Dib can explore further in?"
Sithras looks expectantly at Usul, "Maybe if we get closer to the door, he can explore without us going through?"
(( Happy to wait while a little remote exploration occurs ))
"We've come this far," Usul says, feeling a bit anxious to get back to the surface. "Let's see what's in there!" He then heads into the gate and starts slowly and quietly creeping forward, still leading through Dib's eyes as he silently flaps ahead of the group.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
((Let me know who all is going through the gate, and who is staying behind. I assume at least Usul is going through.
Staying just outside of it, Dib would be able to reach like 10 feet up the staircase at the end before going out of the 100 ft range for Usul to see through his eyes. The stairs themselves go on for over 120 feet.))
Map for reference, 5 feet squares: