[Game Thread] Final Round

[roaddog41]

OODM: settign note This campaign is set up with a slightly different planar system than the core D&D. There is little distinction between demons and devils, and both are treated as the big Evil or the planes. They are not terrible foes like they are in Core, and they inhabit a plane that is an amalgamation of the 9 layers of Hell and the Abyss. This plane is Officially called The Netherworld, but can also be called Hell, the Abyss, or simple Down Below. Positionally the planes form a sphere, with each plane inhabiting a cross section of the cube, and The Netherworld fits into the "lowest" spot in the spatial arrangement. The Astral Plane surrounds the Sphere, and acts as a transfer medium for any noncontiguos planar travel. The Abyss is one of the places where mortal souls are sent after death, and while the process by which the locations for these souls are determined is not fully understood, it is typically stated that "The gods send the evil beings down, and the good beings up". There are numerous ways around this particular "Law". There are 6 primary levels of Hell, and each layers is made up of numerous sub layers and regions. Only one layer of hell has a single ruler, and that is the individual known as Vecna. Often referred to as a God, it is a known fact that he was once mortal and somehow he was able to not only accumulate enough power to gain control of an entire layer of the Abyss, but he was able to bring this power with him into the afterlife. Whatever he is he rules the first layer of Hell with an iron fist, and he made many enemies when he took over the layeys. While his feat is impressive, it is a known fact that the deeper one goes into Hell, the more powerful the denizens become, and it is theorized that Most evil gods such as Erythnull, Hextor, and Grummsh make their residences upon these lower layers. Any spell like effect that touches either the Infinite Abyss or the 9 layers of Hell in the original setting are considered to refer to The Netherworld. This is not a mechanical change with the exception that Demons, devils, and other typical of evil outsiders are not locked into any particular alignment on the law v chaos axis. Some demons can be lawful, and may have a DR reflecting that, and some Demons can be chaotic with DR reflecting this.

It was a truly splendid day in the city of towers. People were out and about in the streets, and an aura of relief seemed to infuse the very air. Spontaneous bouts of revelry were exploding up throughout the city, even as the army began to repair the damaged curtain wall. The source of this jubilation was obvious to all. The siege had been lifted. The horde had been defeated, its leader's killed in single combat outside the walls. The band of heroes that had killed the demon Krisverak were virtual unknowns, but whoever they had been they had broken the back of the siege. Without their leader the demon spawned goblinoids had fled back into the hills.

In the southern part of the wharf district is a small seedy looking tavern that can boast but two things. There is always an empty table for the right price, and there is always a good strong drink for those who want one. Named simply "The rotten oaf" this little tavern is not a place for the faint of heart or the weak of limb. It is mid afternoon, not the busiest time but in a city like this no tavern is ever truly empty. Seated at the bar is an old man whose beard is swimming in his eighth pint of golden ale. He is mumbling to himself as he draws intricate runes upon the bar in dust. The barkeep is seated at a table with his account book, carefully adding up column after column of numbers. Two barmaids are at work preparing for the dinner rush, and form the kitchen waft the dubious smells of frying grease, fish, and the heavy spices that are typical of the region. The days menu states simply "Fish" upon the blackboard behind the bar. Its corner has been broken off for months, and at this point no one remembers how it happened.
Seated at a table by the window is a ship's captain. He appears to be waiting for someone as he is carefully nursing a gin and tonic. Dressed in a predominantly southern style, the half-elf keeps glancing out the window, and then glances up at the hourglass on the mantle. Its fairly simple to figure out that his lunch appointment is late.
I the corner sitting along in a booth meant for six is a rather comely woman looking quite bored. Holding a small dagger she carefully cleans her nails, although since she has been through each nail a good dozen times you can guess that it is simply an activity to keep her hands busy.
Next to the lone woman are a pair of tavern girls. These ladies of ill repute, a human with astounding cleavage, and a gnomish woman whose long legs are concealed not at all by the short bit of material that might be called a skirt. They are sharing a plate of the leavings from lunch, and apparently discussing the previous nights work.
It is the group at the center table that is by far the most interesting however. It is not often you see a drow elf sitting at a table with a Half-orc paladin, three humans and a halfling. The tavern's occupants would have been nervous about the drow had the half-orc not been wearing the obvious garb of a powerful paladin. Still in any other bar in the city of towers that group would have had the common occupants of the bar leaving as quietly as possible.

[Embrodak]

Vanai sat at the table with his new companions, companions born from the dire need to save the city.
The half-orc was giant of a man, both in height and girth. When standing he was easily over six feet in height, and his frame was powerfully built with a barrel chest and arms thick with cords of muscles. Adding to his natural girth is a suit of silvery full plate armor. The armor was covered with a white surcoat with a quad-shield design. In the upper right quadrant was a deep red background with outline of a raging lion, the Coat of Arms of Keoland. The upper left contains a simple field of silver with a silver lightning bolt clutched in a fist, the symbol of Heironeous. In the lower right was a field of purple with a knight standing on guard and two swords floating overhead, the symbol of the Justice Knights a loose confederation of Paladins and Knights loyal to the Keoish crown. Lastly in the bottom left quadrant is a field of green, a close match to Van's skin tone. Overlaid is the symbol of Haven a city founded by half-orc and half-elves in the southern portion of Keoland. A shield with the same coat of arms and made of similar metal hangs loosely draped from the back of his chair.

Having cleaned up from the battle with Krisverak, Vanai sports a fresh haircut and shave. His coarse hair is cropped short on the sides with mutton chop sideburns. His freshly washed skin is a light shade of green and his eyes are a dark yellow, a strange combination, but the two complement each other well. He is looking around the room with a broad smile, that is slightly disconcerting despite the happiness it seems to project given the set of tusks jutting from the lower jaw. He is looking around the room with his yellow eyes and he seems to take everyone in account.

The half-orc remains quiet as he takes in the room and sighs despite his smile "Oh Grynner, I wish you were here with me to celebrate."

[GleefulNihilism]

Archibald DePyre, seems relaxed at the table as well- for perhaps the first time in a very long time.

Decidedly human in appearence his heavily tanned skin seems a bit strange in juxtaposition with his brownish red hair but from your memories of the battle from yesterday you probably can't say you are surprised. The fire mage may have seemed a little prone to admiring his handiwork, but the fiery inferno that came with him had a marked effect on the enemy. The fire mage's clothes were cleaned up from yesterday, a surprising feat given the ash and singe stains they have to have aquired. Fire is definitely the theme, mostly consisting of reds and golds and abstract flame designs. The dark circles under his eyes seem much less pronouced then they were yesterday, and he does seem to be in a better mood.

The fire mage produces a cigar from underneath his cloak and somewhere between his cloak and his mouth the tip lights seemingly on it's own. He takes a long drag, savoring the moment like he'll never get another.

"How's the old saying go? Be merry today, for tomarrow we die?" he seems to say from nowhere. He leans back, tilting his chair and putting his feet up.

"Speaking of which, anyone else feel like a smoke? I may be convinced to part with one or two."

[Zhefonyll]

Sitting atop the table, Blazbert is on a level where he actually gets to talk to the others eye to eye - plus, it's a form of casual rebellion to sit on the table instead of at it. He'll save the good manners for when they're needed.

"I think it's 'for tomorrow you die' - some dwarf making a joke about human life-spans or some-such. At least, it doesn't make any sense to say that tomorrow I die - I may have put on a few years, but I've got a long time to go yet - and maybe I'll snag a reincarnation before the end, get a druid to start me over as almost a kid. That would be great."

"But, no, no cigs for me. I never could get the hang of having the smoke inside me, you know, and it hasn't gone any better when I've tried over the last few years. I wouldn't mind seeing some of your new fire-tricks when we go outside again, though - those are always fun. Ooh, or maybe you could see what the old guy's runes mean?"

He doesn't wait for an answer and continues on in his companionable voice. "And can Halflings pick a tavern or what? There's nobody fawning over us, the food's good, the drinks are nice, and that guy by the window looks like he may try to steal my shirt if we're not careful. There's no way this isn't a good place!"

After events the day before, few at the table are likely to overlook that the tavern is also ripe with shadowy corners and located between two larger buildings - meaning that there's plenty of places to disappear nearby. Still, the little guy seems completely at ease, sitting the closest to Malyssatryx than any of the others. He seems strangely fascinated with the oil-black elf, and keeps looking over her outfit and face as though trying to find something.

Randomly pointing at one of the Drow's more-exotic decorations, he boldly questions her. "So, 'Tryx, does that bit do anything cool? Like turn into a spider and bite people...?" Blazbert moves his hands up by his face as he speaks and emphasizes 'bite' with his forefingers mimicking the gesture of mandibles snapping together.

[TheDarkFuzz]

Lyssa stretches like a cat and then relaxes in her chair, happy to be done with yesterday's work. It had been a fun romp, especially when she had faced one of Krisverak's demonic lieutenants in single combat. The look on his face when she simply crushed his essence from across the battlefield had been priceless. She did not enjoy killing as a rule, but killing hellspawn was another matter.

Just interested in sitting for a while, the drow kicks the chair that would be Blazbert's over and puts her feet up, incidentally showing Vanai no small amount of leg as a result of her short, dark skirt. It was not her usual garb, but it seemed fashionable, especially among her people. Not drow, but the thieves and whores who made up this city's underbelly. Also popular were the low cut blouses, but she had only gone so far as a slightly lower neckline, since she still had some modesty. Her ebony skin contrasts with her light green blouse and almost blends into the darker skirt, so that once she's settled it's almost difficult to tell where her leg ends and the skirt begins. Difficult for who? Well, the halfling was certainly taking a close enough look.

She flashes a grin at him as he openly looks her over, talking all the while. He could just be admiring her, but that was vanity talking, and her common sense told her that he was looking for the magical rod he'd seen her use in yesterday's fight. He would have poor luck on that count, since it was safely stowed away in her haversack, so she would simply act like he was fawning over her and take it as flattery.

At his question, she laughs, her melodic voice twinkling. "This one?" She pulls the earring off and holds it up. Several pieces of cut onyx dangle from several small chains connected to a metal ring, which affixes to her ear. "Yep! It turns into a spider and bites people. You got it right in one!" She expertly puts the earring back on, and then fluffs back her long white hair so that it goes back over her ears. "I didn't think it was that obvious." she pouts. "Hmm, maybe I should sell it, I was hoping I could surprise people with my spider jewelry."

[Embrodak]

Vanai waves off the offer of a Cigar. "No thanks, you gave me enough smoke for my lungs yesterday, I need to clear'em up first." he says with his grin intact and gives Archibald a wink. He then continues to eye up the room judging any threats. What threats there could be that would pose a threat to him and his new companions was anyone's guess though.

Vanai laughs at Lyssa's response to the halfling and he turns to her. Given her choice of fashion and well toned legs the woman was used to men "sizing her up" with a stare or two, but she see's the half-orc not even spare a glance down at her long legs, nor her slightly lower neck line. He looks directly into her eyes as he continues to grin. "Now don't go scaring off Blazbert with your tales. I don't want to judge him too early, but if he is anything like my dear old friend Grynner, you'll be up to your ears with him investigating every interesting item you have."

The half-orc snorts a small laugh, at what you don't know, perhaps a distant memory. "Yes, Blazbert" he says turning an eye to the halfling on the table just a few feet from him. "This is some place. What was it that made you choose this place." his gaze leaves the halfling as he continues to talk taking in the room stopping at the ladies of ill repute. They pause for a second on the two as he punctuates his sentence, he then turns his gaze on the halfling as his grins grows wider and he adds a wink.

"So what are all your plans?" the half-orc queries. "I myself will be traveling on in the next few days. I'm heading back home for a brief vacation and only stopped here because of the problems that I heard of as I was passing through."

[RonarsCorruption]

"... Eight hundred and forty five *clink* ... Eight hundred and forty six. *clink*" Lian closed the massive chest that was occupying the next table, causing it and it's contents to promptly vanish, replaced by a tiny steel box. The table groaned as the weight was removed suddenly, but Lian had already turned around and grabbed a chair, reversed, finally tuning into the conversation.

His leather outfit creaked a little as he sat down, but it didn't seem to slow him down any, straddling the chair and totally ignoring the long slender legs of the drow that he was in an ideal position to examine, should he care to. His yellow cloak stood out garishly against the dark, constantly steaming leather, but he seemed totally comfortable in it. For a man who seemed otherwise as likely to vanish into thin air as to greet you, it was a very odd fashion choice, and certain to have some meaning though you can't puzzle what it would be.

"Hmm, plans? I plan on taking another pass over the battlefield once the routed goblins have moved out. They might have been nasty little buggers, but even rotten things like them are bound to leave something interesting behind. I mean, there were eight hundred and forty-six gold pieces in the back of Krisverak's tent alone. It's a real pity I didn't get a chance to see where his generals lived."

A sparkle of red, possibly a ruby danced across Lian's knuckles as he toyed with something - likely far more valuable than he let on that he found. But it was gone in an instant. Back into a pocket or magic bag, or maybe it was nothing at all. Lian enjoyed the distraction of shiny things.

"Once I've had time to look around, yes. I think that I too will be heading home." Lian smiled a smile of warm memories.

Of the group, he was the only one who hadn't engaged Krisverak or one of his generals in some sort of combat. The whole time the others were fighting, he flitted around the outskirts, and high above the battle, reigning distractions. Invisible, of course, so the others couldn't tell when he had time to raid Krisverak's tent, but his spells were effective enough, often sending goblins crashing into one general or another, distracting them from the tasks at hand.

[GleefulNihilism]

"Haven't planned that far ahead," Archie honestly lays out on the table at first, "Been having nightmares and I figured since I summon fire with my thoughts I probably should have that checked out. I actually came here because heard there was an expert. After that, I'm a spark in the breeze."

Archie was proud of himself, he almost hid just how scared he was of what was happening to his mind. Whether someone else picked up on it was anyone's guess.

"And unfortunately, my fire-tricks have only gotten less subtle since we last met. They tend to be not just things done outside, but things done out of city limits. I do admit the runes have me curious, I'm definitely willing to take a look. Got a few lessons from an archmage actually. Worse case scenario, I know a guy. May cost some coin, but he gets around." He smiles to Blazbert.

The drow he eyes, appreciating her taste in clothing. He takes another long drag off the cigar, blowing the smoke upwards in a careful stream.

"He's also good with jewelry, not exactly cheap mind you. I can set up a meeting if you want."

[RonarsCorruption]

Gets around? Hmm, might be worth stopping by... then his train of though is derailed at the mention of "Jewellery?" Lian's ears picked up, "I've got a special interest in jewellery, particularly the fancy kind." Once again, some jewel danced over his fingers, this time a lime green in color, like a peculiar topaz, or perhaps an emerald. Even if he did not enjoy wearing his wealth, he seemed to enjoy playing with it.

"Say, could I get a name? I'm always interested in a good man to swap coin and gems with. not to mention... ahm.... And maybe an address, too?" He caught himself from saying anything particularly crass. Most people weren't exactly friendly towards either his choice of occupation, or his choice of... partners.

Lian suddenly burst out into a nervous smile, followed by looking away, around the room. He wondered when the food was going to arrive.

[Zhefonyll]

"Well, the eye-candy is nice, too, but I really picked the place for a lot more than that. It's kinda funny to have a paladin think the best reason to be here is the pretty ladies, though. You know they'll get to know you as much as you like for a few gold..."

"Oh, that reminds me - 'Tryx has a much shorter skirt on today. It's nice to see somebody else keeping up with the trends in fashion, but," Blazbert leans in close to Lyssa's ear and stage-whispers to the table, "That's sort of the fashion for ladies of ill repute. Just thought you might want to know. I understand that these short-lived races can be hard to follow at times."

As he leans away from Malyssatryx, the Halfling holds up her earring, squeezing it a little and wiggling it around without pointing it at anybody. He quickly goes through a few common motions for magic items. Pointing the earring at an emptry chair, "Go, spider!" Nothing happens. "Attack? I invoke thee?" Still nothing. Looking somewhat disappointed, he hands the jewelry back to its owner. "Sorry, just had to try..."

Blazbert shifts his weight slightly away from Lyssa, making it clear he won't be grabbing anything else, but not exactly moving out of her reach. He doesn't look overly repentant, more like a child who borrowed a toy without permission and decided that he didn't like it.

"Oh, and I might chill with Archie for a while. This whole nightmare-expert-guy thing seems like it could be interesting, and I'm not expected anywhere. Plus, we can't exactly leave in the middle of the days of partying in our honor, can we? Maybe after the dream-pro helps him, I can talk him into going back to the now-empty field and putting on a show."

[Embrodak]

Vanai looks to Lyssa. "See, what did I tell you." he says with a wink. "Though I seemed to feed into it too." he adds as he refuses to defend himself with Blazbert's mention he was here to look at the ladies of ill-repute. "Best if I don't try to defend myself by saying that his why he wanted to come here. He'll just twist my words further."

The half-orc regards Archie as he speaks, looking directly at him and meeting his gaze. "Hmm.. He seems like a good fellow, I'll talk to him some time when I can get him alone and see what's troubling him."

[roaddog41]

Out of the kitchen comes a half-elf carrying a large platter of what appears to be deep fried fish fillets. He sets the platter in the center of the table, and simultaneously one of the barmaids sets earthenware plates down in front of all. One plate is set at the only empty chair as Vanai had indicated that the group was waiting for one more.

Meanwhile the young woman in the corner seems to have taken a particular interest in Blazbert. She catches his eye and waves her knife in an obvious gesture of welcome. She is dressed in a fine Red blouse, cut similarly to the one currently worn by Lyssa, albeit with a pattern of lace reaching up covering over what little cleavage would otherwise have been exposed. The oddest thing about this particular lady however is her eyes. The pupils are a pure black that is rare, and they are vertical slits rather than the more familiar shape. Wrapped around the black pupil the whites of her eyes are tinged green, and in the shadows of the inn her eyes almost seem to glow with a surprising light.

At the bar the odd old man pulls out a large white sheet of parchment, and carefully sets it down over the drawings he has been making in the dust. His hands move gently across the paper, as though he is wiping something off of it, but about a foot above the surface of the bar. After half a dozen calm gentle strokes he lifts the paper, and puts it into the small bag that he had drawn it out of. He then calmly shifts to the next seat at the bar and begins drawing once again in the dust, while idily gesturing at the barmaid for a refill of his drink. A small snifter of brandy.

[Zhefonyll]

Not one to say no to a lady's attention, Blazbert finds himself curiously looking at the waving knife. A part of him wants to know if the blade is anything special, or just for show, but he's not overly worried about it - most the people in taverns weren't too great a threat to him any more, with his skills honed to such great heights.

"Oh, sorry, gang, it seems I have some fans here after all. That's the price you pay for being a fashionable Halfling party-goer. If you'll excuse me for a moment..."

With that, the party's littlest member seems to fall backwards off the table, landing on his hands and crossing the room in a series of flashy flips and spins which end with him using the seat of an empty chair to get a good flip onto the table, bowing in a flamboyant manner. "Greetings, dear lady. Did my reputation precede me, or are you simply a fine judge of character?"

He sits at a polite distance from the woman, making sure he can smile at the whole table should anyone else arrive and won't have to move to turn his attention in such a circumstance. Conveniently, that also leaves him out of reach of anybody present. While Shadowthorn doesn't expect trouble, the stray thief or assassin does crop up when you're in the adventuring line of work. Plus, his Oceaneye persona would want to be polite - he had a name to uphold.

[Embrodak]

Vanai shakes his head at the lack of hesitation by Blazbert. "Yeah... I thought so." he says softly "He was here for the eye candy."

The food could not arrive too soon. A man Vanai's size did not grow so with out being properly fed. The Paladin takes the serving fork and moves a sizable portion to his plate, still holding the fork he dishes up a fillet to the others.
He then calls out to the barmaid before she moved off. "Excuse me Gretta." he calls out to the woman he introduced himself to earlier. "Another round if you please."

He then turns back to the task at hand, eating. He bows his head and softly mutters. "Great Heironeous, thank you for the bountiful meal we are about to receive. Please continue to look over our group in the days to come and please continue to give me the strength to fight for justice in your name."

With his blessing said the large man digs into the food carefully cutting of chunks with his fork and then raising them to his lips. He takes large portions each time and seems to carefully chew each piece savoring the flavor of each bite.

[RonarsCorruption]

Lian notices a flash of white parchment at the bar, and takes careful note of the contents, even from this distance. He had been attempting to get a good look at the man's 'work' since he had noticed it happening about a half hour ago, although each time someone dutifully got in the way. Ah yes, here was the cute waiter with the fish, and the waitress with plates. By the time they had moved away, the paper was gone, and the man was in his fifth seat of the night, once again tracing something in the dust with his finger.

Lian turned his attention to the food, gratefully provided by... well, he hadn't been asked to chip in, he couldn't care less who was paying for it now. Lian watched as he was served a single fillet, compared to the paladin's three, and gave a tiny s******. That's what he gets for expecting a free lunch, but it certainly looked good. Lian picked up his fork (he noted there was only one, which meant either they were expected to reuse them, or there would only be one course), and gingerly picked at the fish. After a few nibbles, he decided that while it was nice, it wasn't quite up to his palette. A fine glaze, but it was dry as a bone, clearly there were two cooks in the kitchen. And three waiters, two hookers, and a bartender. Three windows in the front, one in the side, and one in the back, plus a door on front and smaller one in the back.

Was there anyone else? No, stop. Lian mentally reminded himself, he wasn't casing this place, even if it did have anything worth stealing. Well, that's not true. He wasn't casing this place, because it didn't have anything worth stealing. But, it was still good to know, in case he had to make a quick exit. That didn't involve magic - really magic made the whole burglary thing a joke sometimes, but he wasn't about to complain.