[Game Thread] A Trip to Remember

[Mindsiege]

Surprising Welcome The adventurers had only a few more seconds to react after Oguun noticed that the memories were headed for their current location. There was not enough time for a lot of discussions and just as soon several of them sprung into action. While Oguun stayed right next to the blinders that he had looked out of and both wizards and Baka stayed where they had entered the room, Geghard moved into position right on the edge of the kitchen behind the door's hinges and Aurora laid an ambush for Mayuri right on the other side of the door. Just when Grimly drew his bow and ducked into cover behind the kitchen table, someone on the outside entered a key inside the door, and with a loud click, its lock sprung open. The adventures watched tensely or patiently how the wooden door swung open into the room, and just as Geghard had anticipated he was now right behind it. The first to enter into its frame was the man who had accompanied Almavalesh, but then everybody's expectations were upset when instead of entering fully, he came to a sudden halt with an astonished expression on his face. "What in the heavens?! Intruders?!" Just as soon as the exotically dressed man looked to his right and saw Aurora standing there with drawn sabers, he raised his hands defensively and looked even further surprised. "A bride?! What is going on here?!" As he still stood there shocked, evidently fully aware of the adventurer's existence, he was joined in the doorway by the debonaire mage himself. Almavalesh was quite a bit taller than his younger companion and as he looked into the apartment with a stern expression, for the first time he appeared quite imposing. "Unexpected guests? Nobody move! I think that I'll require an explanation." His voice was surprisingly authoritative and while he was speaking both measured and calmly, the adventurers realized from his entire stance that he did not recognize them in the least. There was a moment of high tension as the mage demanded a response and Aurora looked for an angle that she could take against Mayuri, but although the two men had only entered partially, they very much stood in a way that blocked the exit. Glancing past them, the noblewoman stood at a safe distance on the outside, but opposed to her husband she didn't seem flustered in the least, her expression more of a haughty smile as her eyes weren't emitting any light anymore. All of the adventurers were put on the spot to react to the entirely unexpected scenario, surprised as the rules of the Dreamscape that they had observed so far seemed broken once again. As everybody had to think on their feet, the young necromancer Derek was still reciting his Magic Missle spell in his mind as he caught something further disconcerting. Despite Almavalesh's strict and composed demeanor, both the debonaire and his other companion appeared to have beads of sweat on their brow. And furthermore, even as Derek stood the furthest from the door, it was only his observant eyes that noticed something reflect the sun from the back of Almavalesh's hand as the older wizard raised them in case that he had to cast spells. And to Derek's surprise, it had been no trinket or brooch, but rather a metallic sheen directly on Almavalesh's skin, an effect that the young wizard was sure had never been part of their questgiver's appearance before...

 

GM instructions We'll keep acting inside high tension, so for your response posts you'll probably want to restrict yourself to roughly 6 seconds of action, or a bit more time if it's just dialogue. As stated inside the post, Aurora had no opportunity to lash at Mayuri with the current positioning, however Geghard is still in a position to ram the door shut with his next post if he wants to attempt it. Alas, with how Almavalesh and his male companion are standing, Geghard would have to hit both of them with the door at the same time and then push them out of the building entirely to be able to close the door shut. Geghard is also the only character that has no LoS on the three newly arrived, but based on their voices he knows at least the males' positions. Your character's are aware that Earlamar (Grimly) has notched an arrow into his bow and taken a hide action. You're not aware how well he has succeeded at shrouding his presence because he's directly in a line from the door with Rolen and Derek, so it's unclear if he was spotted when the newcomers looked that way. Rolls: -   [IMG]-[/IMG] Initiative Character AC HP Status Action Position Character AC HP PP PI Movement Conditions Resources Derek Draven 15/12 6/6 17 20 30' Active Mage Armor, Inspiration Arcane Recovery 0/1; Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Earlamar Xyr 15 7/7 12 10 30' Inspiration Goodberries 0/1; Salves & tinctures 0/1; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Oguun 18/16 9/9 14 13 30' Inspiration Spells I. 2/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Rolen Galanodel 16/13 8/8 11 16 30' Active Mage Armor, Inspiration Arcane Recovery 0/1; Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Baka 19/17 11/11 13 11 30' Inspiration Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 1/1; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Geghard Van 19/17 12/12 11 13 30' Inspiration Second Wind 1/1; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Aurora Turpis 17/16 11/11 15 11 30' - Spells I. 0/2; Goodberries 0/4; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Nephala 12 1/1 13 6 10' / 50' (fly) - -

[BarrowB]

Aurora For a few seconds, Aurora just stood there dumbfounded. She didn't expect a conversation, especially from the two men. "Oh? Welcome. No no no... not a real bride. We are just a travelling theatre group. This place looked a bit abandoned, so we decided to practice our next play here. It is about a cursed bride, who is searching for a way to free herself from an evil spirit..." She looked at Mayuri and the unknown man, Insight 24trying to feel, if the last part triggered any reaction. "Please, come in, it would be great to have someone with a fresh perspective watch and judge our performance." The bride wasn't sure, where she was going with Deception 18all the lies... but smiled, finding it enjoyable.

OOC Initiative Character AC HP Status Actions Position - Aurora Turpis 17 11/11   Move: Action: Bonus Action: Free action: Reaction: Attack Mayuri, when she enters within range. Other: Deception 18, Insight 24

[secretID]

Geghard Van, Human Fighter Sheet | AC: 19 | HP: 12/12 | Status: Normal Second Wind 1/1 | Polearm Master | Dueling Style Out of sight, Geghard winced at Aurora's rather farfetched lie, but held his tongue for the moment.

 

Applicable Spell/skills/statuses:
Initiative
Movement: Engage rider, then R13
Free action:
Action: Attack rider - hit, WIS save failed
Bonus action: Attack rider - hit, save made
Reaction:
Abilities: Polearm Master, Dueling
Resources: Second Wind 1/1
Dice rolls: Lady Luck

 

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PP: 13 | Speed: 30ft

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Abilities: Str 16 (+3), Dex 15 (+2), Con 14 (+2), Int 12 (+1), Wis 12 (+1), Cha 12 (+1)

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Saves: STR +5, CON +4

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Skills: Arcana +3, Athletics +5, History +3, Insight +3, Investigation +3, Thieves’ Tools

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Languages: Common, Elvish, Dwarvish

[Corwin]

Oguun Oguun found himself utterly nonplussed. There was a wide variety of possibilities, all of them unanticipated. Perhaps the false mate could control Almavalesh's memories at a higher level than simple combat and these were more of her puppets. Perhaps memories could be awakened from their paths into something like independent action, or the false mate could produce contructs of her own. Whatever the phenomenon, testing any theories concerning it seemed likely to be difficult with not-Mayuri standing right there. Aurora took an equally unanticipated approach. Productive Deception was permissible under the Third Circle, although it remained to be seen if this deception could be made productive. If the appearance of Almalvalesh had any indepence at all, perhaps... The only performances Oguun was familar with were cyclical re-enactments of the Deeds of Zerthimon. Not-Mayuri, then, would be in the role of Arlathii Twice-Deceased, Almavalesh an Unknowing gith..."Continue where we left off." Oguun turned to Aurora, speaking in Performance 9a painfully deadpan monotone. "You believe you are possessed? But if one is possessed, Yumira, how would one even know? An influenced mind cannot know itself. Have you sought the wisdom of any well versed in such matters? Such a mage might recognize signs."

 

Rolls and Actions Rolls: Performance - 9 Action Summary Free Action: Move: Action: ad lib performance Object Interaction: Reaction: any OA if available Bonus Action: Concentration: Resistance Active Spells:

 

Stats Oguun character sheet Githzerai | Life Cleric of Zerthimon | Sage (Wizard's Apprentice) | Feats: none Githzerai Psionics | Mental Discipline | Disciple of Life HP: 9/9 | Armor Class: 16(18) | Stats/Saves: Str 13/+1; Dex 5/-3; Con 12/+1; Int 16/+3; Wis 18/+4; Cha 10/0 Senses: Passive Perception 14, Passive Investigation 13 Move: 30' | Conditions: none Languages: Common, Gith, Deep Speech, Undercommon Tool Proficiencies: none Attack Bonuses: Melee +3 | Ranged -1 | Magic +6 Spell Save DC: 14 Ranged weapon: javelin - +3 to hit, 1d6+1 piercing, range 30/120 Melee: mace - +3 to hit, 1d6+1 bludgeoning, range 5 Spells: Cantrips: 4 - Light, Mage Hand(invisible), Resistance, Toll the Dead Prepared Spells: 6 - Bane (1), Command (1), Guiding Bolt (1), Healing Word (1), Sanctuary (1), Shield of Faith (1) Domain Spells: 2 - Bless (1), Cure Wounds (1) Spell Slots: lv 1 - 2/2

[Togot]

Derek Draven I have to admit I was completely caught off guard by the memory’s’ reactions to us. Just when I thought I was getting a handle on how this dream world worked, it threw another curve ball at me. I had no idea how to handle the situation. Honestly, what could we say to explain our presence in his hose? Why were they aware of us when all the other memories had been oblivious to our presence and actions? Was this Mayuri’s doing? She certainly didn’t seem surprised by what was going on which was suspicious, and speaking of suspicious, what was the metallic sheen on Almavalesh’s skin? Was he a golem? I watched him closely for any other clues as to his true nature while trying to decide on a course of action. I briefly considered using my charm person spell but quickly dismissed it. for one, Almavelesh was far too powerful to be affected by my meager magic, and two, not only would it not affect his companion, but the other man would be aware I had cast the spell which would likely turn him hostile. Then Aurora started speaking and what came out of her mouth was the most ridiculous series of bold-faced lies that I could only stare at her utterly dumbfounded. Oguun tried to go along with it, to the credit of his fast thinking, but I failed to see how anyone would believe such a ridiculous story. Sweat dripped down my temple with apprehension at the prospect of having to battle a wizard who was far superior to me.

Actions Dice investigation check toi determine anything else unusual about Almavelesh: d20+5 (2)+5 Total = 7 Dice knowledge arcana: d20+5 (10)+5 Total = 15

Stat Block AC:12(16) HP:6/6 STR:7 DEX:14 CON:11 INT:16 WILL:14 CHA:16 Passive Perception:17 Spells Prepared/Spell Slots:1st 1/2, mage armor, charm person, false life, magic missile Character Sheet

[The Dark Star]

High Elf l Wizard 1 l 8/8 HP l 16 AC l Mage Armor Active l Spell Slots Lvl 1: O-X At the moment they enter and Aurora begins to weave a tale of a performance being rehearsed in this place, he wasn't sure what to do except to go with what is happening and hope that it works itself out. "Yes, I'm the prop guy, I use simple minor illusion magic to bring up props for the story and use my mage hand to act as the hand of the spirit, which is what you see a lot in this, you're a wizard, so you know these spells, their simple, but quite entertaining when done right." He added to the conversation, helping Aurora spin her lie. Mechanical Information Move: Interaction: Action: Help Aurora Bonus Action: Reaction: Rolls: Character Sheet Link

[Mindsiege]

Emergent Deception The surprise was written all over Aurora's face as she was caught dead to rights while lying in wait for her ambush against Mayuri with both of her sabers drawn. Yet, being one to think fast on her feet she immediately saw the chance to alleviate the magnitude of her aggressive stance by giving Almavalesh and his companion an alternative explanation for the adventuring party's presence other than whatever the new arrivals might have assumed. Her quick-witted deception proposed her group to consist of traveling thespians, yet as the words were rushing out of her mouth she had the wherewithal to give them even more subtext, a second narrative about spiritual possession that was meant to get a rise out of those who she was suspicious of. Just as stunned as the eternal bride had been upon her discovery, now it was the other adventurers' turn to be surprised by her rather blatant lie. Both Geghard and Grimly kept themselves quiet and stayed where they were ducked out of sight, yet the half-elven rogue could be seen by the Rolen, Baka, Derekthree adventurers in the back of the room as he silently drew the arrow which he had notched on his bowstring, now seemingly ready to shoot any moment. And while Baka and Derek kept standing in plain sight, appearing as too caught off guard to do more than trying to keep up, on the other hand both Oguun and Rolen were quick of mind as well when they decided that all they could do was go along with Aurora's story. And as such, they spoke up to do the best they could to make her lies more believable. Both Almavalesh and his shorter, human companion were still standing right in the doorway, turning their gaze from Aurora for but a moment as the githzerai cleric rose to the occasion and stiffly enacted a made-up play with him and the eternal bride as the actors. And while his performance made painfully obvious that he would need a lot of practice before his recitation was ready for any stage, just like Aurora he had laced his narrative with double meaning, molding it around the narrative that he suspected to have happened to Almavalesh. Following closely behind the gith, Rolen also raised his voice to rescue the efforts of his companions despite the unlikelihood of it all. And since he was quite obviously less of an actor than a mage, he cleverly used this part of the truth to profess himself as their group's prop master and stage magician. But while he carried himself with the confidence of a high-elf claiming the truth to everyone who watched, instead of bringing belief to Almavalesh's face he noticed that the human mage even narrowed his eyes after Rolen mentioned how he knew that the debonaire was in fact a wizard as well. The young necromancer of the group stood in shock as he witnessed his companions come up with lies that he recognized as hardly believable. And while Derek was tense and worried at the prospect of escalating this situation into combat against Almavalesh, even further worrisome was the strange metallic glint which he had spotted on the magician's hand and that spelled just another inconsistency in this surreal version of a fabricated reality. And while the show that the others were delivering distracted the young wizard from gathering further clues about Almavesh's unexplained condition, as his mind tried to come up with how he could classify what he witnessed, a sudden thought occurred to him. The debonaire mage seemingly acted as if he had the character and personality of himself, but the oddities in his body revealed the frightening possibility that something was very wrong with these versions of Almavalesh and his companion. And then he recalled what Oguun had conferred to him before. Had the two men been changed or manipulated by Mayuri? Or even worse, with the momentous sheen and sweat that Derek had seen there was the dreadful possibility that they were still actively transforming. The young man realized just a moment too late the threat that was hanging thick in the air, but would what he possibly had to face even be Almavalesh? Before Derek ever had the opportunity to warn anybody about the suspicions of magical foul play that had befallen him, the events had already begun to unfold on the adventurers. "Lee?! What is the meaning of this?!" Almavalesh spoke even more severely than before, this time addressing the man he had arrived with. Aurora had keenly observed any of Lee's and Mayuri's reactions to the narrative that she and Oguun had spun, yet Almavalesh's intensity ripped her out of her considerations. While the exotically garbed man had shown signs of both disbelief and unveiled worry, Aurora had gotten the distinct impression that Lee was only barely following the contents of their made-up story and quite evidently much more occupied with the fact that armed men and women had awaited him at his home. He tried to hide his nervous energy and did so with the expertise of one who was well versed in showing something else than they felt, but right now he seemed to harbour great concern about this unexpected twist having awaited him behind his doorstep. Much the opposite was Mayuri, who was still staying safe behind the two men. While the bodylanguage of the noblewoman was one of fright, moving herself a few more steps behind Almavalesh, her expression wasn't matching how she acted at all as her gaze met Aurora's as if uttering a challenge. And even more obvious, as the young noble and Oguun spun the tale of a mage possessed, there was clear recognition in Mayuri's eyes as she appeared to perfectly understand what the two adventurers were attempting. And as an opposite to Lee who seemed to not have noticed the innuendo at all, instead of seeming worried or even rattled by the taunting narrative, Mayuri's smile only broadened as she looked Aurora right in the eye. She seemed amused that they would use this as their method of deception, but it didn't make her feel threatened in the least. In fact, it almost felt as if Mayuri was waiting to see this play out. And that's when the shoe dropped. "These a clearly intruders, great wizard! Assassins, who've come for our lives under falsehood and drawn blades!" Lee had just shouted his reply as a wave of sudden heat flared up around him and washed over the eternal bride and even Geghard behind the door. There was a sudden anger on the man's face that didn't seem to match the emotions that he had been displaying before, and it was as if rage was bubbling up inside of him and turning into actual, physical heat. A brass-like sheen started to spread up his neck and then his skin cracked as fire started to break out from seemingly inside of Lee's body. And Almavalesh standing next to him was wearing his stern expression that just as quickly turned to anger instead, and then the same accelerated transformation happened to the debonaire mage. Flames erupted around his body as they turned his expensive clothes immediately into ash, surprisingly revealing bulging muscles underneath that he must have been hiding very well. "I see." Almavalesh spoke fiercely as he seemed to simply accept the assertion that Lee had made and Aurora realized that this being in front of her cared much less for truth than simply the violent release of its anger. The adventurers were shocked and dismayed as reality bended before their very eyes in a display reminiscent of what Aurora had done to the peasant woman before. Yet with Lee and Almavalesh this seemed much more intentional, with a decided lack of ethereal beauty as the two burning metal bodies sat into motion, filled with dedicated malice. At once, everybody reacted as fast as they could...

 

GM instructions So. The previous round of posts was a bit tricky to adjudicate, but unfortunately it ended with Aurora's deception falling flat. Behind the spoiler button I've explained what I did so that you can get a feeling for how my process works.   Aurora was basically caught dead to rights while lying in ambush with drawn swords right behind the doorway. If not for her bridal gown she would have had no foot to stand on for making her claim, however the outfit left the minuscule room that her claims could be possible if not highly unlikely. So I decided that she was allowed to make a deception roll, but only at disadvantage and against a fairly difficult DC. Both Oguun and Rolen stepped in to give Aurora's claims more credence, and I had to evaluate if their efforts could be counted as helpful enough to cancel out Aurora's disadvantage. In Oguun's case, I decided that a stellar Performance check would have indeed been rather helpful. Alas, unfortunately the result of his roll was pretty meager and thus his efforts were no help. For Rolen it was more difficult to decide, because he made claims about being a mage to work for this theatre group. Unfortunately, his argumentation hinged on Aurora's original lie already having been believed, which is not very helpful to make her lie believable. So instead I allowed Rolen to make his own Deception check at its own DC, where its success would have been substantial enough to give Aurora the help she needed. Unfortunately this Deception had to happen at disadvantage as well, because a stranger awaiting Almavalesh in this apartment and then identifying him as a mage on sight was highly suspicious. I rolled the check for Rolen and it came out as a (4), thus it wasn't helpful for Aurora and also bad enough to create more suspicion. Since Aurora was already disadvantaged, it didn't matter though. It changed nothing about her original DC. Given all of that, I had to reroll Aurora's Deception check to apply the disadvantage which came out as a (5), which was far, far too low to make her deception successful. Anyways. Time to roll Initiative !!! For now the time for deception has passed. Your characters are very aware that now it's time for combat! Everybody whose initiative roll surpasses an (8) may act immediately, the rest need to give a brief reaction post and wait for the next GM update. For this combat I will be fully NPCing Baka and Earlamar. They'll go first on my next GM post. From standing as close as they are, both Geghard and Aurora are aware that the open flames surrounding the two men are dangerously hot. I forgot to draw it in because I erred about the door opening to the inside, but figure that Geghard is currently not engaged and also doesn't have a LoS. I rolled a stealth check for him to determine whether he'll get to attack with advantage, but it is not so. Good luck everybody, may the dice be with you. Rolls: Lady Luck   Initiative Character AC HP Status Action Position Character AC HP PP PI Movement Conditions Resources Derek Draven 15/12 6/6 17 20 30' Active Mage Armor, Inspiration Arcane Recovery 0/1; Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Earlamar Xyr 15 7/7 12 10 30' Inspiration Goodberries 0/1; Salves & tinctures 0/1; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Oguun 18/16 9/9 14 13 30' Inspiration Spells I. 2/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Rolen Galanodel 16/13 8/8 11 16 30' Active Mage Armor, Inspiration Arcane Recovery 0/1; Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Baka 19/17 11/11 13 11 30' Inspiration Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 1/1; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Geghard Van 19/17 12/12 11 13 30' Inspiration Second Wind 1/1; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Aurora Turpis 17/16 11/11 15 11 30' - Spells I. 0/2; Goodberries 0/4; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Nephala 12 1/1 13 6 10' / 50' (fly) - -

[BarrowB]

Aurora The bride sighed. "If you only played along, you would live a minute longer." She said to the two men. Aurora span and focused her strikes on Lee. She swung 14 to hit for 7 damageagain and 10 to hit for 3 damageagain but the burning flames coming from her target were discouraging her and forcing to attack more safely. "Surprise surprise, fire is hot!" She informed others of something that didn't have to be obvious in a dream.

OOC Initiative Character AC HP Status Actions Position - Aurora Turpis 17 11/11   Move: Action: Attack Lee: 14 to hit, 7 damage Bonus Action: Attack Lee: 10 to hit, 3 damage Free action: Reaction: AOO, if triggered Other: Initiative 10

[Togot]

Derek Draven I was unable to determine the exact nature of Almavalesh’s change, but I suspected it was the result of Mayuri’s plan. Whatever the truth, it mattered little at the moment as Aurora’s plan predictably failed. As the two men made their hostile intentions clear and fire erupted around them, I feared that the other man, this Lee, was a mage as well. I was hesitant to use my magic missile spell on either of them as they might have the shield spell prepared which would negate my attack. Rather than attack the two men, I decided to do what I had avoided during our first battle and go after the source. I moved to my left to get a clear shot and fired my spell at the smirking Mayuri. Actions moving to E 10 and firing magic missile at Mayuri Dice magic missile: 3d4+3 (1, 4, 1)+3 Total = 9

Stat Block AC:12(16) HP:6/6 STR:7 DEX:14 CON:11 INT:16 WILL:14 CHA:16 Passive Perception:17 Spells Prepared/Spell Slots:1st 0/2, mage armor, charm person, false life, magic missile Character Sheet

[Mindsiege]

Opening Shots Having anticipated the transformation after his observation, Derek's keen mind let him spring into action at an incredible speed as he dashed forward and in front of Lee, positioning himself to take a shot at the perpetrator who he blamed all of this on. Whatever had been done to change the two men in front of him, it was clearly something magical in nature, yet at the same time no transmutation spell that Derek had ever heard of. If it even was of arcane origins at all. Finishing his incantation he shot a salvo of magical missiles which flew to avoid the burning males and instead struck the unprotected Mayuri right in the chest. Blood splattered on the cobble of the Westhaven street as the woman let out a pained wail and her garb got ripped in places. Yet, despite the harrowing wounds, she appeared not to have been felled, and in fact, just an instant after Derek's spell had harmed her she shot him a grim, menacing smile before Mayuri vanished into thin air as if she had never been there. Now the young wizard found himself face to face with the eery figure of Lee, who was still blazing in flames and had murder in his eyes. Aurora rebuked the transformed beings in front of her for having failed to come to a peaceful resolution, but as she struck after Lee she struggled to cut through his strangely metallic skin without burning herself. To her merit, in her efforts she was able to avoid the flames.

GM instructions Just a few immediate pieces of information which I felt were nicer to package IC rather than merely bringing them up OOC. Mayuri disappeared after the Magic Missiles did hit her, and Aurora's attacks were unable to hit Lee. Both Lee and Almavalesh have an AC of 15. Aurora is certain that if she had hit him, she would have gotten hurt.

[The Dark Star]

High Elf l Wizard 1 l 8/8 HP l 16 AC l Mage Armor Active l Spell Slots Lvl 1: O-X It was apparent that the two didn't take to the lie well and instead were told that they were assassins and prepared to attack. Rolen backed up as much as he could as he placed his hand to his temple as his other hand reached for a dagger, a blast of psychic damage entered the mind of Lee. He wanted to cry out that they weren't assassins, but it seemed that the breath would be wasted since they were already caught in a lie. Mechanical Information Move: Back up to a safe distance from the two. Interaction: Draw Dagger Action: Mind Sliver Lee You drive a disorienting spike of psychic energy into the mind of one creature you can see within range. The target must succeed on an Intelligence saving throw DC14 or take 1d6 psychic damage and subtract 1d4 from the next saving throw it makes before the end of your next turn. Bonus Action: Reaction: Rolls: Dice Initiative: 1d20+3 (16)+3 Total = 19 Dice Damage: 1d6 1 Dice Subtraction: 1d4 3 Character Sheet Link

[Corwin]

Oguun Oguun sighed. The false mate and the memories, if that was what they were, all seemed as unreceptive to the Way of Zerthimon as any of their material counterparts. Perhaps his error was in beginning with advanced topics. The image of Almavalesh seemed to retain the true mage's behaviors, and he had no basis for appraising the companion's mannerisms. There might be some value in interrogating them. The two burst into flames and expressed hostility, indicating that the opportunity was unlikely to occur.

 

Rolls and Actions Rolls: Initiative 3 Action Summary Free Action: Move: Action: roll Initiative badly Object Interaction: Reaction: any OA if available Bonus Action: Concentration: Resistance Active Spells:

 

Stats Oguun character sheet Githzerai | Life Cleric of Zerthimon | Sage (Wizard's Apprentice) | Feats: none Githzerai Psionics | Mental Discipline | Disciple of Life HP: 9/9 | Armor Class: 16(18) | Stats/Saves: Str 13/+1; Dex 5/-3; Con 12/+1; Int 16/+3; Wis 18/+4; Cha 10/0 Senses: Passive Perception 14, Passive Investigation 13 Move: 30' | Conditions: none Languages: Common, Gith, Deep Speech, Undercommon Tool Proficiencies: none Attack Bonuses: Melee +3 | Ranged -1 | Magic +6 Spell Save DC: 14 Ranged weapon: javelin - +3 to hit, 1d6+1 piercing, range 30/120 Melee: mace - +3 to hit, 1d6+1 bludgeoning, range 5 Spells: Cantrips: 4 - Light, Mage Hand(invisible), Resistance, Toll the Dead Prepared Spells: 6 - Bane (1), Command (1), Guiding Bolt (1), Healing Word (1), Sanctuary (1), Shield of Faith (1) Domain Spells: 2 - Bless (1), Cure Wounds (1) Spell Slots: lv 1 - 2/2

[Mindsiege]

Fire and Brass The fire on the two men's bodies blazed with an unnatural ferocity and as Aurora tried to intimately introduce the man known as Lee with her sabers, she barely avoided singing herself on the flames as they danced and crackled as if they were more than intent to feed on her flesh rather than whatever nourished them right now. The adventurers were generally shocked by the sudden transformation right before their eyes, but seeing the murderous intent before them each acted as fast as they could. "Harrumph!!" With a speed that none would have expected from him Baka began barreling through the room, fungal matter growing along his staff as his druidic magic took root on his weapon. At the same time Grimly Packer finally saw his moment to shine as he darted up from behind the table and aimed his bow straight at Lee, just in the moment that the man turned around to Aurora who had missed to wound him. Without using any particular tricks, Lee threw a flaming punch at the eternal bride but just at that exact moment the half-elf's arrow connected and threw the trajectory of the blow entirely of course. For a moment Lee lost his balance and stumbled a step forward, unfortunately moving just opportune enough to replace himself in a way that Baka swung entirely into empty air. Aurora who had already stepped backwards to avoid Lee's punch that never arrived had a brief moment of elation that Lee had so terribly missed her, but in the moment of distraction and focus on Lee she had missed a small little detail. "Out of the way, wench!!" The blow that Aurora never saw coming resounded with an ugly crunch as the backhand of a metallic fist completely blindsided her and connected straight with her skull. Almavalesh who had shown himself an aloof gentleman throughout all their previous interactions had lunged forward with a physicality that came entirely unexpected, and instead of showing any sort of phenomenal magic that he was supposedly capable of, in near mindless rage he simply struck out with a fist that had changed from flesh to something much denser. As well-practiced as Aurora was as a blade-wielder, the assault from behind came at the most inopportune moment and before she ever saw it coming the world had already turned dark for her. Derek, Oguun and Rolen saw with horror how Aurora's flesh sizzled and blistered as she was entirely toppled by the force behind Almavalesh's blow. Fire enveloped his fist and her head for the moment of contact and after her body slammed into the wooden floor like a ragdoll, it was maybe for the best that her face was hidden behind a veil of smoking hairs. "You!!!" The transformed mage pointed straight at Derek, pushing past the limp body of Aurora as he dashed forward, past a surprised Oguun and lunging right for the young necromancer. Just as perplexed as those who had been too slow to react was Rolen, who had stepped out of the way and then channeled his magic into a psychic blast that he had turned against the closest enemy, Lee. To his dismay, just like he had experienced with the previous memories in the streets the burning freak didn't seem to have any semblance of mind that his spell could have been able to disrupt. Instead, Lee unaffectedly turned back to Grimly, who was now suddenly much less positive about hitting his shot. Beside him stood Derek, wrapped in a magical armor and looking right into the eyes of an enraged Almavalesh who was storming at him to attack. And still, in the frozen moment of dread, aside from merely being focused on Almavalesh his observant eye spied a faint trace of smoke that slowly started to rise from beneath Lee's feet where his blazing presence had started singing the wooden floor. It was obvious, that if these freaks were to stand in the same spot for too long, the wood would ultimately give way to the flames. And even though Almavalesh was about to show him his superior muscle instead of superior magic, an image flashed before Derek's eyes as he recalled a single wooden bucket in the edge of the alcove behind Lee's bed. The same alcove that Rolen had darted into to get some more distance while Derek had stepped straight into the melee. And although the young wizard's nearest future looked dire, the thought of the bucket filled with water that he had seen in passing occurred to him just when he saw the first signs of Lee's presence affecting the floor.

 

GM instructions All right, things are looking spicy straight from the get-go. Most unfortunately Aurora was criticially hit while she herself and Baka missed. Mayuri seems to be out of the picture for now after Derek's successful hit, but otherwise only Earlamar was able to do damage. Rolen has revealed that these foes are immune to psychic damage. Derek's observant eyes have revealed the effect that the two burning men have on this apartment, yet the wood isn't so easily burned so they will have to stand in the same position for more than at least 2 turns to set the floor on fire. Derek is also aware of a bucket of water that he has noticed at A-10. It can be picked up from an adjacent field. It's also clear that Almavalesh is explicitly targetting Derek right now. Aurora is out for the count, but thanks to her substantial health pool she's not immediately dead. Derek would not have survived the blow. Until she is healed, Aurora will now spend her turns rolling death saves. I've rolled initiative for Nephala, but since I'm not NPCing her during combat, Togot still has an additional turn with her. So in her next post I'll allow her to move twice and take two actions. Right now she's on the kitchen counter at a safe distance and not engaged with anybody as you can see on the map below (not sure if everybody noticed it, I forgot to draw attention to it last post). Be advised though, that because of your enemies blazing bodies Nephala will have to succeed at a standard DC 10 DEX save in order to perform a Help action without taking any damage. This doesn't apply to anybody that wields a weapon while using a Help action against these foes. To allow you to roll the damage within your own turn, everybody that lands a successful melee attack on these enemies immediately takes 1d6 of fire damage. This can happen multiple times per turn. Otherwise, the combat is now all underway. Every player may now take their turn. Now that we've established the initial fallout, turns are entirely resolved in post order. Give it your best shot, this looks to become difficult. Rolls: Lady Luck   Initiative Character AC HP Status Action Position 22 Derek 15 6 - Cast Magic Missile E-10 19 Rolen 16 8 - Cast Mind Sliver C-7 17 Baka 19 11 - Attack Lee /w shillelagh E-9 14 Nephala 12 1 - - G-7 13 Earlamar 15 7 - Attack Lee /w short bow E-7 10 Aurora 17 0 prone, dying Attack Lee /w sabres G-11 8 Almavalesh 15 100% - Attack with brass fists G-10 8 Lee 15 ~66% - Attack with brass fists F-10 5 Geghard 19 12 - - G-9 3 Oguun 18 9 - - F-12 Character AC HP PP PI Movement Conditions Resources Derek Draven 15/12 6/6 17 20 30' Active Mage Armor, Inspiration Arcane Recovery 0/1; Spells I. 0/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Earlamar Xyr 15 7/7 12 10 30' Inspiration Goodberries 0/1; Salves & tinctures 0/1; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Oguun 18/16 9/9 14 13 30' Inspiration Spells I. 2/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Rolen Galanodel 16/13 8/8 11 16 30' Active Mage Armor, Inspiration Arcane Recovery 0/1; Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Baka 19/17 11/11 13 11 30' Inspiration Spells I. 1/2; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 1/1; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Geghard Van 19/17 12/12 11 13 30' Inspiration Second Wind 1/1; Goodberries 1/1; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 1/2; HD 1/1 Aurora Turpis 17/16 0/11 15 11 30' - Spells I. 0/2; Goodberries 0/4; Salves & tinctures 2/2; Short rests 2/2; HD 1/1 Nephala 12 1/1 13 6 10' / 50' (fly) - -

[secretID]

Geghard Van, Human Fighter Sheet | AC: 19 | HP: 12/12 | Status: Normal Second Wind 1/1 | Polearm Master | Dueling Style Around the edge of the door, Geghard could just see Lee's flaming skin. The spearman immediately ripped open the blinds at the nearby window, then smashed himself through it. He hit the ground rolling, and regained his feet not far outside the door. From this vantage, Geghard had a better view of the tactical situation. "Derek!" he shouted, "get away from them! And can your bird feed Aurora a berry?" Without waiting for any response, Geghard dropped his spear against his outstretched foot and drew one of his javelins. He launched it at Lee's back, but overthrew.

Battle Actions Applicable Spell/skills/statuses: Initiative Movement: To I10 Free action: Action: Javelin v Lee - miss Bonus action: Reaction: Abilities: Polearm Master, Dueling Resources: Second Wind 1/1 Dice rolls: Lady Luck

 

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PP: 13 | Speed: 30ft

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Abilities: Str 16 (+3), Dex 15 (+2), Con 14 (+2), Int 12 (+1), Wis 12 (+1), Cha 12 (+1)

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Saves: STR +5, CON +4

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Skills: Arcana +3, Athletics +5, History +3, Insight +3, Investigation +3, Thieves’ Tools

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Languages: Common, Elvish, Dwarvish

[Corwin]

Oguun "Withdraw, Derek Draven." Oguun drew his mace and interposed his shield between himself and the burning mage, hoping to draw attacks away from the wizard. Success seemed unlikely, but there was no reason not to try while the chance was there. The githzerai peered over his shield at the flaming constructs of Almavalesh and Lee. "Almavalesh, what does your companion do with the arcane sigil in his cellar?"

 

Rolls and Actions Rolls: Initiative 3 Action Summary Free Action: Move: none Object Interaction: wield mace Action: Dodge Reaction: any OA if available Bonus Action: Concentration: Resistance Active Spells:

 

Stats Oguun character sheet Githzerai | Life Cleric of Zerthimon | Sage (Wizard's Apprentice) | Feats: none Githzerai Psionics | Mental Discipline | Disciple of Life HP: 9/9 | Armor Class: 16(18) | Stats/Saves: Str 13/+1; Dex 5/-3; Con 12/+1; Int 16/+3; Wis 18/+4; Cha 10/0 Senses: Passive Perception 14, Passive Investigation 13 Move: 30' | Conditions: none Languages: Common, Gith, Deep Speech, Undercommon Tool Proficiencies: none Attack Bonuses: Melee +3 | Ranged -1 | Magic +6 Spell Save DC: 14 Ranged weapon: javelin - +3 to hit, 1d6+1 piercing, range 30/120 Melee: mace - +3 to hit, 1d6+1 bludgeoning, range 5 Spells: Cantrips: 4 - Light, Mage Hand(invisible), Resistance, Toll the Dead Prepared Spells: 6 - Bane (1), Command (1), Guiding Bolt (1), Healing Word (1), Sanctuary (1), Shield of Faith (1) Domain Spells: 2 - Bless (1), Cure Wounds (1) Spell Slots: lv 1 - 2/2