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Post by venger on Aug 17, 2012 22:11:56 GMT -5
Does Bolo judge that he could climb the walls to reach the lantern, or does the curvature of the dome make that impossible? Also, is the observation hole wide enough that one could fall through it? If climbing appears possible, and the hole isn't too big, Bolo will attempt to climb up and get the lantern. If climbing appears possible, but the hole is big, Bolo will first loop his rope around one of the columns and attach a sufficient length of it to himself that he (a) can still reach the lantern, but (b) won't fall all the way down to the ground floor if he slips. The hole is big, the climb looks difficult. Bolo attaches the rope to the column and to his waist as a precaution... 1d100=22 but this proves unnecessary and he quickly retrieves the silver lantern. After this, Bolo's next step will be to check out the room with the trapdoor. Why is it better illuminated? Is there a light source, or are the windows larger/cleaner, or what? There's small slanted windows near the ceiling allowing moonlight through. If he finds nothing else in particular in this room, he will check the trapdoor for magic with the candle and for traps with the magnifying glass, and if he finds neither, he'll open up the trapdoor and head to the roof, taking all the usual precautions. On the roof is the top of the marble dome and a windowless stone shack. It looks abandoned and its entrance is bricked up. From here Bolo can see to the rooftop of the house across the alley. It's flat but for an ornate-looking cupola. |
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Post by Bolo on Aug 17, 2012 22:33:17 GMT -5
Bolo will check the stone shack carefully for any way in. If it were just a worthless shack, all the way up here on the roof, he can't see a reason why someone would have bothered to brick up its entrance. Is there a concealed entrance? Is there a way in through loose tiles or slates or whatever on the roof of the shack? If he finds neither through ordinary means, he will also employ the "detecto" wand.
If checking out the roof of the shack requires a climb, he will carefully do that. He's not worried about falling off the shack, but he is careful not to get into a position where slipping would land him all the way down in the street. So if he thinks landing in the street is a possibility, considering the curvature of the dome, the lack of a wall around the rooftop (or is there one?), and the position of the shack on top of the dome, then he'll take a loop of rope around the shack before checking out its roof.
If he can find a way into the shack, he'll check that out before proceeding across the alleyway.
Otherwise, he'll see if he can set up that tightrope. Is there something to which he can tie the near end of the rope? Perhaps a balustrade around the dome? Or some part of the shack? Or some part of the trapdoor structure? Is there something on the far side that he can snag with the grappling hook?
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Post by venger on Aug 17, 2012 22:51:37 GMT -5
Bolo will check the stone shack carefully for any way in. If it were just a worthless shack, all the way up here on the roof, he can't see a reason why someone would have bothered to brick up its entrance. Is there a concealed entrance? Is there a way in through loose tiles or slates or whatever on the roof of the shack? No concealed doors, however... If checking out the roof of the shack requires a climb, he will carefully do that. The climb is easy. Bolo finds a trapdoor in the shack’s flat roof which allows entry. Habitation is evident from the straw mattress, pewter tankard of water, clay lamp. and the small table with a selection of crude thieves tools: levers, crowbars, drills, small hammers and so on. Otherwise, he'll see if he can set up that tightrope. Is there something to which he can tie the near end of the rope? Perhaps a balustrade around the dome? Or some part of the shack? Or some part of the trapdoor structure? Is there something on the far side that he can snag with the grappling hook? He could tie the rope around the shack maybe, but otherwise no. There is, conveniently, a lip around the edge of the opposite roof. |
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Post by Bolo on Aug 17, 2012 23:21:58 GMT -5
Bolo will carefully search the inside of the shack. Where there is a thief, there may be stolen valuables. The crudeness of the tools is not a promising sign, but ...
If Bolo ties the near end of the rope around the shack, and hooks the grapple to the opposite roof's lip, will that still leave him enough free rope to tie around himself as a lifeline in case of a slip?
If not, he will carefully consider whether the small table, the various tools, and his secondary skill in masonry and carpentry can be used to construct some other sort of anchor for the rope that leaves more of it free. For example, instead of tying the rope all the way around the shack, he might try to drill through the wall of the shack and secure the rope on the inside by tying it to the middle of a crowbar, or to a pair of crossed crowbars. Or without drilling, he might pass the rope through the trapdoor in the roof of the shack and secure it on the inside using a contraption built from the table and some levers.
Unless something unexpected shows up in his search of the shack, Bolo will attempt the crossing, equipped with a lifeline if possible, and just really carefully if not.
[This will be my last post tonight. I will try to check the board again briefly on Saturday morning, but unfortunately I will then be without internet access until about an hour or two before game time on Sunday. As I mentioned before, I don't want Bolo's private ventures to hold up the game for everyone else, but I'll leave it to the DM to decide how to handle that.]
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Post by venger on Aug 17, 2012 23:40:34 GMT -5
Bolo will carefully search the inside of the shack. Where there is a thief, there may be stolen valuables. The crudeness of the tools is not a promising sign, but ... Very thorough searching reveals a stone in the floor, which when removed reveals a large cavity – and a sparkling golden decanter! If Bolo ties the near end of the rope around the shack, and hooks the grapple to the opposite roof's lip, will that still leave him enough free rope to tie around himself as a lifeline in case of a slip? With only 50' of rope Bolo has just enough to tie it off around the shack and secure the grappling hook to the other roof. If not, he will carefully consider whether the small table, the various tools, and his secondary skill in masonry and carpentry can be used to construct some other sort of anchor Not with the materials on hand. Unless something unexpected shows up in his search of the shack, Bolo will attempt the crossing, equipped with a lifeline if possible, and just really carefully if not. We'll pick up with Bolo crossing the tightrope on Sunday, while Friedrich fights Umad and everybody else does what they do. |
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Post by Bolo on Aug 18, 2012 6:26:45 GMT -5
Bolo snags the sparkling golden decanter, which makes him feel quite positive about how his day is going.
Then he sets up the rope, takes a deep breath, and begins to walk the tightrope ...
[to be continued on Sunday F2F]
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