(( lol )) ...and after further hushed consultation agrees that blowing up the stairwell and fleeing via the teleporter is a good short term solution...
Usul nods as they all discuss, adding, "It's not a permanent fix. But hopefully will keep the town safe tonight. We may need more BOOM later though." He then pauses and looks a bit concerned, adding, "So... who knows how to set that stuff?"
To Recap: (copied from before with new information added on)
Silverfair
Met with Sybil, learned that the regular undead that plague the region have dramatically risen in number. In addition, they have been joined by a new deadlier form of undead creatures, capable of turning their victims into undead as well.
Received a bag of explosives from the arcanist Elixyr, for blowing the mines if need be.
Left for the nearest mining settlement Feycrest. While on the road, discovered a slain runner with his throat slashed and eyes burned from the sockets. The runner was carrying messages from Feycrest councilman Paten Elway. Collected in the messages were correspondence between himself and the Baroness of Silverfair, as well as a desperate plea for help to King Lidae, the political leader of the entire Silvershard Region.
Feycrest
Upon arriving in Feycrest, you found it completely overrun with undead. Councilman Paten had rounded up the few survivors that remained and barricaded themselves in an inn. You picked up a few rumors from the folk here, eventually deciding to follow up on one.
A little girl mentioned seeing people run to a large manor on the southwest part of town. You found undead patrolling around the manor.
Inside, you've found two corpses that met similar fates to the runner you found on the road to Feycrest. One with a message carved into the back in a language you aren't familiar with.
While investigating the corpse, an arcane glyph trap was set off that briefly filled the room with a blank, black void, damaging and temporarily Velyra and Silthras.
Investigating the manor further, you eventually ran into a ghastly beast on the second floor. It released a devastating opening attack on the group(paralyzing some), before escaping and seemingly vanishing.
Several clues were found inside the manor, indicating that another group had been here before, investigating ruins discovered in the nearby mines. You found a cyphered book, a diagram that turned out to be activation words for certain parts of the ruin, a map of the mines, and of the region at large. Briefly, you made contact with someone using a Sending Stone located on one of the corpses. They requested you discover the fate of the original owner before contacting them again.
After doing a quick run through of the rest of the manor, you made your way down to the basement. You discovered a strange shrine, depicting the 8 gods revering an unrecognizable figure, as it had been defaced. Gore and corpses covered the basement. Also within was a teleportation platform, which ending up taking you into the mines, just outside of an ancient ruin.
The Mines/Ruins
The ruins turned out to be heavily enchanted, with doors that required command words, magical blue flames lighting the rooms, and arcane locks hiding whatever secrets it might hold. You came to a room distorted by an unnatural darkness - the source of which appeared to be a sphere leaking violet energy, holding open a doorway or portal of some kind.
Through the portal you discovered a hub of the same teleportation platforms you came to the ruins with, as well as a large room containing the ferocious clawed undead that originally drew your attention to the region.
Now
Kal would have been given instructions on how to set the explosives by Elixyr, the elvish woman who gave them to him back in Silverfair. Taking the explosives out of the bag, he begins to place two of the muckish, clay-like balls inside the staircase. Cutting off a length of fuse that he figures would give them enough time to escape, he ties the two together. After a final ready-check from the rest of the party(insert anything else you want to do in the room here), Kal returns to the stairs and strikes a flame to light the fuse.
Hurriedly, the party makes it's way to one of the teleportation pads Dib had explored through earlier. The tiny owl flies up to the top of a pillar in the room, latching onto a ledge to keep watch. The bubbling black liquid reacts as you're used to at this point as you step onto the platform, engulfing you in a cool sensation before slamming you with an intense feeling of vertigo. The world around you pop's back into existence, and you find yourselves just inside a tree-line, looking out to the familiar town of Feycrest.
Slow lumbering undead dot the cleared area between you and the town, but not so densely that you couldn't easily navigate around them. The sky has begun it's slow transition to orange as the sun begins to fall lower, but you still have well over an hour before nightfall.
Silthras breaths a sigh of relief, "So far so good. He looks around at the area to see if the path to town looks well travelled, "Anyone notice more tracks here, like ... the clawed things?"
(( Offering help to anyone who wants to do some tracking to assess if this is regularly/daily usaed... ))
While they investigate, he tries to take careful note of their location for later inclusion on a map of the general area, noting landmarks and position relative to building etc.
(( He has Cartography skills and kit, and will try to map it out later ))
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Coming through the gate, Usul takes a deep breath of the outside air, and somewhat nervously looks around. He then quickly nods, and gets to work investigating the ground with Silthras' help ((19)), before relaying what he finds. He then adds, hurriedly, "We...I'd like to get back to the Inn quickly to warn them, and relax."
Velyra sucks in a breath as the strange feeling that accompanies the teleportation takes hold, letting it out shakily as they land among the trees. "I don't think I'll ever start to enjoy that."
"I agree, back to the inn as quickly as possible. I'm fairly certain we'll have stopped those other undead from coming out...But I'll still don't want to be caught out here at night."
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Kal shakes the strange feeling from his limbs as they arrive in the woods, taking a moment to look back into the trees for movement while his companions ready themselves. "I think we're on the same page. Move quickly. And hopefully don't attract a mob on our way in."
Silthras is able to quite easily note the location, as you're currently almost directly south of the center of the town. There are a few distinctively tall trees he makes note of as well. As he and the gnome investigate the ground for tracks, they find the area trampled by an uncountable number of footprints. They vary in depth and age, but the vast majority lead out from the treeline, splitting into two large groups that goes east and west, but still towards Feycrest. A few(comparatively) lead away from the town, further into the woods in seemingly random directions.
The tracks are all humanoid, but from your experience in killing the creatures in Silverfair and encountering them here in Feycrest, you would know that's pretty much what you would expect their footprints to look like.
As Kal gazes out into the trees, he would be satisfied to find nothing living or dead lurking among them. For the time being at least, the party is safe.
Silthras finally allows himself a dose of optimism. "Well...it seems this is the place: Look at all these tracks! Tonight might be a little quieter."
He ponders where the errant tracks tracks into the forest, concluding that they are the wandering creatures occasionally encountered on the road, then turns to Kal, "Well, Sir Knight, I'd as happily head straighways for the inn, but we could elect to...'cull the herd' a little on the way." He nods at the slow-moving undead in the fields. "I will follow your lead, though the wine that Usul carries is calls to me..."
Kal follows the half-elf's gaze, raising an eyebrow at the creatures in the field. "If we have truly solved the problem, it might not be a bad idea to get started on that front. They'll need to be cleared eventually to retake the area."
"Are the two of you up for it?" He says, glancing at Usul and Velyra.
How many are there in the general area between us and Feycrest DM?
In your line of sight right now? ~ 50 or so in this fairly open plain/field between you and Feycrest. But keep in mind that's spread out over a large area, as you're currently looking at the entire southern end of the town. Unless you went out of your way to try and round them up first, you wouldn't have to engage but maybe 6-8 at a time.
"Though it's unlikely that we've actually solved the problem for good... you are right in that these zombies will need to be taken care of." Usul says with a sigh, really hoping to be able to rest.
Silthras nods as his hand starts to glow with a purple light. He scans the area for a undead between them and the Inn, and points to the nearest group. "How about them?"
He waits for Usul to ready his crossbow then launches an arcane energy at Usul's target if it remains standing, otherwise the nearest.
He waits patiently, scanning their targets. Better us than the villagers being forced to kill their loved ones. That's what mercenaries are paid for, so honest-and-proper families don't have to kill each other. At least this time they are already dead. He snorts and smiles grimly at the last thought. Silver lining.
Careful to draw in only a handful of the walking dead at a time, your group is able to easily(albeit slowly) clear a path across the field back into the town proper. When all is said and done, over 30 of the undead lay slain behind you. Using the same tactics, you make your way back to the town's center where the inn resides, climbing through the second floor window once more with an hour 'till darkness remaining.
Paten stands waiting for you in the inn room that has been turned into a make-shift entry, a puzzled look on his face. He leans against the door frame, a curious eyebrow raised. "It isn't that I'm unhappy to see you all again but..." He pauses, "this is a little soon. Did you run into an impasse before reaching the mines?"
Velyra brushes herself off after climbing through the window, casting a brief glance outside to gauge the amount of daylight left. "On the contrary councilman" she begins, turning to face him at last.
"You should thank Luri for that bit of information she gave our friend here about that manor," she says, gesturing to Silthras. "We uncovered many things, though they raised just as many new questions as those we answered, if not more."
"There are forces at work here far beyond what anyone would have imagined I think. Whatever has been going on with these undead is being headed by someone or something with a very strong grasp on magic. A network of teleportation platforms spread across the region can attest to that. It's possible we've delayed them, or stopped them altogether. We'll find out come nightfall."
Usul, barely knows what to say, he simply nods in agreement with his companion. Though he’d only known her a day or so, it already feels like a month. Pulling the bottle of wine from his pack, he sets it on the table as he enters the inn and immediately goes to find Muad. He gives each of the 6+3 ((that’s just far too low…)) children who had been playing the dog a silver piece, thanking them for watching over him. He then sits down on the floor, leaning back against his dog, who is far bigger than the gnome himself.
He is unusually quiet for the next short bit, still processing what all has happened, and distracts himself a bit with the puzzle cube he’d found ((investigation? 11)). ((It was nearing dark yeah?)) Once it is fully dark, he waits another 15 minutes or so, and pops Dib back to himself to check in and see what the weasel in owl form has seen after they disappeared from the caves. After seeing the images the Dib shares with him, he puts the cube away, gives Muad some pets, and goes back to the main room where he pours himself a glass from the bottle, which he assumes has been opened, downs it in a surprisingly adult manner for someone as young as himself, and sits back to join in the conversation and planning, sharing what he’d seen from the owl now perched on his shoulder.
"If it were just those slow brainless undead, do you think you would have enough able-bodied people to safely make a move out of town?" Kal asks, curious if their sabotage of the portals would allow the townspeople to flee to safety, at minimum back to Silverfair. "As Velyra implied... The problem may be on its way to be solved. We'll know better in the morning at least."
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After a time he says, "...perhaps it is best to leave quietly, relay what we have learned and develop a more considered plan."
(( lol )) ...and after further hushed consultation agrees that blowing up the stairwell and fleeing via the teleporter is a good short term solution...
Usul nods as they all discuss, adding, "It's not a permanent fix. But hopefully will keep the town safe tonight. We may need more BOOM later though." He then pauses and looks a bit concerned, adding, "So... who knows how to set that stuff?"
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
Silthras shrugs, "I've seen people set such things up to bring down castle walls, but I am no expert."
To Recap: (copied from before with new information added on)
Silverfair
Feycrest
The Mines/Ruins
Now
Kal would have been given instructions on how to set the explosives by Elixyr, the elvish woman who gave them to him back in Silverfair. Taking the explosives out of the bag, he begins to place two of the muckish, clay-like balls inside the staircase. Cutting off a length of fuse that he figures would give them enough time to escape, he ties the two together. After a final ready-check from the rest of the party(insert anything else you want to do in the room here), Kal returns to the stairs and strikes a flame to light the fuse.
Hurriedly, the party makes it's way to one of the teleportation pads Dib had explored through earlier. The tiny owl flies up to the top of a pillar in the room, latching onto a ledge to keep watch. The bubbling black liquid reacts as you're used to at this point as you step onto the platform, engulfing you in a cool sensation before slamming you with an intense feeling of vertigo. The world around you pop's back into existence, and you find yourselves just inside a tree-line, looking out to the familiar town of Feycrest.
Slow lumbering undead dot the cleared area between you and the town, but not so densely that you couldn't easily navigate around them. The sky has begun it's slow transition to orange as the sun begins to fall lower, but you still have well over an hour before nightfall.
Silthras breaths a sigh of relief, "So far so good. He looks around at the area to see if the path to town looks well travelled, "Anyone notice more tracks here, like ... the clawed things?"
(( Offering help to anyone who wants to do some tracking to assess if this is regularly/daily usaed... ))
While they investigate, he tries to take careful note of their location for later inclusion on a map of the general area, noting landmarks and position relative to building etc.
(( He has Cartography skills and kit, and will try to map it out later ))
Coming through the gate, Usul takes a deep breath of the outside air, and somewhat nervously looks around. He then quickly nods, and gets to work investigating the ground with Silthras' help ((19)), before relaying what he finds. He then adds, hurriedly, "We...I'd like to get back to the Inn quickly to warn them, and relax."
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
Velyra sucks in a breath as the strange feeling that accompanies the teleportation takes hold, letting it out shakily as they land among the trees. "I don't think I'll ever start to enjoy that."
"I agree, back to the inn as quickly as possible. I'm fairly certain we'll have stopped those other undead from coming out...But I'll still don't want to be caught out here at night."
Kal shakes the strange feeling from his limbs as they arrive in the woods, taking a moment to look back into the trees for movement while his companions ready themselves. "I think we're on the same page. Move quickly. And hopefully don't attract a mob on our way in."
Perception: 21
Silthras is able to quite easily note the location, as you're currently almost directly south of the center of the town. There are a few distinctively tall trees he makes note of as well. As he and the gnome investigate the ground for tracks, they find the area trampled by an uncountable number of footprints. They vary in depth and age, but the vast majority lead out from the treeline, splitting into two large groups that goes east and west, but still towards Feycrest. A few(comparatively) lead away from the town, further into the woods in seemingly random directions.
The tracks are all humanoid, but from your experience in killing the creatures in Silverfair and encountering them here in Feycrest, you would know that's pretty much what you would expect their footprints to look like.
As Kal gazes out into the trees, he would be satisfied to find nothing living or dead lurking among them. For the time being at least, the party is safe.
Silthras finally allows himself a dose of optimism. "Well...it seems this is the place: Look at all these tracks! Tonight might be a little quieter."
He ponders where the errant tracks tracks into the forest, concluding that they are the wandering creatures occasionally encountered on the road, then turns to Kal, "Well, Sir Knight, I'd as happily head straighways for the inn, but we could elect to...'cull the herd' a little on the way." He nods at the slow-moving undead in the fields. "I will follow your lead, though the wine that Usul carries is calls to me..."
Kal follows the half-elf's gaze, raising an eyebrow at the creatures in the field. "If we have truly solved the problem, it might not be a bad idea to get started on that front. They'll need to be cleared eventually to retake the area."
"Are the two of you up for it?" He says, glancing at Usul and Velyra.
How many are there in the general area between us and Feycrest DM?
In your line of sight right now? ~ 50 or so in this fairly open plain/field between you and Feycrest. But keep in mind that's spread out over a large area, as you're currently looking at the entire southern end of the town. Unless you went out of your way to try and round them up first, you wouldn't have to engage but maybe 6-8 at a time.
"Though it's unlikely that we've actually solved the problem for good... you are right in that these zombies will need to be taken care of." Usul says with a sigh, really hoping to be able to rest.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
Silthras nods as his hand starts to glow with a purple light. He scans the area for a undead between them and the Inn, and points to the nearest group. "How about them?"
He waits for Usul to ready his crossbow then launches an arcane energy at Usul's target if it remains standing, otherwise the nearest.
He waits patiently, scanning their targets. Better us than the villagers being forced to kill their loved ones. That's what mercenaries are paid for, so honest-and-proper families don't have to kill each other. At least this time they are already dead. He snorts and smiles grimly at the last thought. Silver lining.
"As long as we're back to the Inn by dark." Usul says, pulling his crossbow out.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
Careful to draw in only a handful of the walking dead at a time, your group is able to easily(albeit slowly) clear a path across the field back into the town proper. When all is said and done, over 30 of the undead lay slain behind you. Using the same tactics, you make your way back to the town's center where the inn resides, climbing through the second floor window once more with an hour 'till darkness remaining.
Paten stands waiting for you in the inn room that has been turned into a make-shift entry, a puzzled look on his face. He leans against the door frame, a curious eyebrow raised. "It isn't that I'm unhappy to see you all again but..." He pauses, "this is a little soon. Did you run into an impasse before reaching the mines?"
Velyra brushes herself off after climbing through the window, casting a brief glance outside to gauge the amount of daylight left. "On the contrary councilman" she begins, turning to face him at last.
"You should thank Luri for that bit of information she gave our friend here about that manor," she says, gesturing to Silthras. "We uncovered many things, though they raised just as many new questions as those we answered, if not more."
"There are forces at work here far beyond what anyone would have imagined I think. Whatever has been going on with these undead is being headed by someone or something with a very strong grasp on magic. A network of teleportation platforms spread across the region can attest to that. It's possible we've delayed them, or stopped them altogether. We'll find out come nightfall."
Usul, barely knows what to say, he simply nods in agreement with his companion. Though he’d only known her a day or so, it already feels like a month. Pulling the bottle of wine from his pack, he sets it on the table as he enters the inn and immediately goes to find Muad. He gives each of the 6+3 ((that’s just far too low…)) children who had been playing the dog a silver piece, thanking them for watching over him. He then sits down on the floor, leaning back against his dog, who is far bigger than the gnome himself.
He is unusually quiet for the next short bit, still processing what all has happened, and distracts himself a bit with the puzzle cube he’d found ((investigation? 11)). ((It was nearing dark yeah?)) Once it is fully dark, he waits another 15 minutes or so, and pops Dib back to himself to check in and see what the weasel in owl form has seen after they disappeared from the caves. After seeing the images the Dib shares with him, he puts the cube away, gives Muad some pets, and goes back to the main room where he pours himself a glass from the bottle, which he assumes has been opened, downs it in a surprisingly adult manner for someone as young as himself, and sits back to join in the conversation and planning, sharing what he’d seen from the owl now perched on his shoulder.
PbP 🎲: Tyekanik; Moneo Noree; Korba Muris; & occasional DM:
"If it were just those slow brainless undead, do you think you would have enough able-bodied people to safely make a move out of town?" Kal asks, curious if their sabotage of the portals would allow the townspeople to flee to safety, at minimum back to Silverfair. "As Velyra implied... The problem may be on its way to be solved. We'll know better in the morning at least."