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Post by Ginger on May 11, 2008 19:59:35 GMT -5
We continued to get mauled by the bad guys, so we used a wish to "Take the Company of the Blue Sun back in time 2 hours". Per the wish rules, it was determined that that did not negatively affect Lolth or her plans, so it was allowed. The initial determination was for us to be brought back, "as is" to the past, but we argued that the possibility of a paradox created by meeting our former selves was non-trivial. Thus, we went back to just before we fought the rakshashas. Everyone but Raven lost the knowledge (and experience!!!) from the last three sessions. We avoided the rakshashas and approached the temple without incident.
We arrived at the temple about 20 minutes before we did the previous time, and now the front door was closed. We thought about waiting until it was opened again, but instead we just went in. Jasper and the 4 cloaked guys went in, but this time the temple was full.
The fight went very well for us, as we held or slowed most of them. Their monstrously strong war chief fled, as did some of his guys. We killed the chief in the corridor behind the main temple room. His goons grabbed his corpse and carried it upstairs. We're in control of the first floor now, and we left it at that.
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Post by venger on May 12, 2008 9:11:00 GMT -5
The fight went very well for us, as we held or slowed most of them. Their monstrously strong war chief fled, as did some of his guys. We killed the chief in the corridor behind the main temple room. His goons grabbed his corpse and carried it upstairs. We're in control of the first floor now, and we left it at that. They can probably raise him from the dead upstairs. Which is one less Slay Living or Flame Strike that the high priest will be casting on us. We can seal the temple with walls of stone and kill everything in it... Or we can rush to free the prisoners and escape as best we can. Dell should cast Haste on Florin. ** turns out the rakshashas didn't burn Antonus' spellbook.
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Post by Wolfgar on May 12, 2008 9:12:11 GMT -5
Any idea what is happening outside the temple? Have they alerted the rest of the city?
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Post by Ginger on May 12, 2008 9:45:16 GMT -5
It will only take a few rounds to run up to the roof and raise an alarm. Fortunately, we already have an excellent sense of how many rounds it takes for each building to ready its troops for battle. I'd recommend a wall of stone to block the door to the temple. I don't believe they have any clerics outside of the temple, so it should last quite a while. We can passwall out the back to make our escape.
First order of business is to Knock the stone door downstairs. Then Dell can drop a wall of ice on the guards below, assuming there are 10 like there were before. It's possible that the guys who were down there before are the guys we killed in the temple or the guys who carried the chief upstairs. Downstairs, we should knock the secret door open, and as many other doors as we can get with one spell. It has an area, doesn't it?
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Post by Dell on May 12, 2008 9:51:47 GMT -5
Dell should cast Haste on Florin. Dell will cast haste on the barbarians summoned by Al's horn, and anyone else that feels like being hasty.
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Post by venger on May 12, 2008 9:56:01 GMT -5
First order of business is to Knock the stone door downstairs. Then Dell can drop a wall of ice on the guards below, assuming there are 10 like there were before. It's possible that the guys who were down there before are the guys we killed in the temple or the guys who carried the chief upstairs. Downstairs, we should knock the secret door open, and as many other doors as we can get with one spell. It has an area, doesn't it? 10 sq ft/level. i hate maths I think it's a bad idea for the whole party to go into the dungeon. We need one team to hold the top of the stairs and another team to go downstairs and rescue the prisoners/check out whatever is in that secret door. Before we leave the temple I need to turn something into a giant slug.
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Post by Ginger on May 12, 2008 10:02:39 GMT -5
Do we want to summon them now and send them upstairs to keep the lizardmen off-balance while we get the prisoners? I think we might want to wait until we make our escape and tell them to cover our retreat.
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Post by Wolfgar on May 12, 2008 11:49:19 GMT -5
We killed the chief in the corridor behind the main temple room. His goons grabbed his corpse and carried it upstairs. They can probably raise him from the dead upstairs. Which is one less Slay Living or Flame Strike that the high priest will be casting on us. Assuming they don't have access to Resurrection they will need several rounds in addition to the raising to heal the chief back up to fighting strength. I think we should push the fight so as to keep their heavy hitters off balance. Do we know what the forces inside the temple are from the previous assault?
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Post by Ginger on May 12, 2008 12:35:58 GMT -5
A raise dead and a death's door will put the chief at full fighting strength in two rounds.
Here's who I remember in the previous battles: We fought two door guards and 10 prisoner guards in the temple. We saw about 20 clerics emerge from the temple during the combat. About half were first level and the other half were 5th level. Additionally, the 12th level cleric emerged from the top of the temple. He has a cloak which grants flight and bracers which absorb MMs.
The general's retinue, which we saw emerge from behind the barracks during the fight included 2 captains, two seargants, and 5th level clerics. The general, FWIW, is loaded out with bracers, a whip of binding, an awesome mace of blinding (the whip might both blind and bind, we couldn't tell), and two javelins of lightning.
I'd guess that some of the 10 lizardmen we saw in the prisoner's area were extra guards stationed down there after the general grabbed Will and Hispeck. I'd guess that the two captains and two sergeants we killed in the temple are the same two previously in the general's retinue.
Therefore, there are probably 20+ clerics up there, plus 10 lizardmen we saw escape carrying the corpse, plus the injured lieutenant and injured sergeant.
DM Question: Is there a difference between the sergeants and the lieutenants? I recall the two lizardmen emerging from the pool were described as a lieutenant and a sergeant, but I can't generally recall if there are three tiers of "elite" lizardment (captain, lieutenant and sergeant) or just two.
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Post by Ginger on May 12, 2008 12:40:28 GMT -5
First order of business is to Knock the stone door downstairs. Then Dell can drop a wall of ice on the guards below, assuming there are 10 like there were before. It's possible that the guys who were down there before are the guys we killed in the temple or the guys who carried the chief upstairs. Downstairs, we should knock the secret door open, and as many other doors as we can get with one spell. It has an area, doesn't it? 10 sq ft/level. i hate maths I think it's a bad idea for the whole party to go into the dungeon. We need one team to hold the top of the stairs and another team to go downstairs and rescue the prisoners/check out whatever is in that secret door. Before we leave the temple I need to turn something into a giant slug. The dungeon is pretty small. I vote that we do exactly what we did before. Have Dell go down "cloaked" and blast them with a wall of ice. Grizela can be close behind to mop up the survivors. Does the knock work in a centralized area or can we shape it a bit to cover a whole wall of doors?
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Post by Wolfgar on May 12, 2008 20:55:04 GMT -5
A raise dead and a death's door will put the chief at full fighting strength in two rounds. I thought Raise Dead didn't restore all your hit points but Resurrection did. I am trying to recall an instance when we used Raise Dead in combat. Anyone?
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Post by venger on May 12, 2008 21:03:55 GMT -5
Raise Dead, then Death's Door and convert your Blade Barrier to a Heal. Or just have the 30 first level cleric minions all cast Cure Light Wounds. He'll be back up to fighting strength in no time.
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Post by Dead Greyhawk on May 12, 2008 21:13:28 GMT -5
A raise dead and a death's door will put the chief at full fighting strength in two rounds. I thought Raise Dead didn't restore all your hit points but Resurrection did. I am trying to recall an instance when we used Raise Dead in combat. Anyone? I think you have always used resurrection. As far as I can tell, the big difference between resurrection and raise dead is the acceptable time window. Both leave people weak and unable to cast. DM Question: Is there a difference between the sergeants and the lieutenants? I recall the two lizardmen emerging from the pool were described as a lieutenant and a sergeant, but I can't generally recall if there are three tiers of "elite" lizardment (captain, lieutenant and sergeant) or just two. The sergeants and lieutenants differ mainly in size. It would appear that the captains are the largest and are tail-less.
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Post by Ginger on May 12, 2008 21:23:48 GMT -5
Dana was commenting at the end of Sunday's session that for a person with exceptionally high CON, it might be worthwhile to avoid a 6th level Heal spell by killing the person and casting a 5th level Raise Dead and a 3rd level Death's Door.
I'm pretty positive that Raise Dead brings you up to full HP, but you need a full day of rest for every day you were dead. Death's Door alleviates that need.
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Post by Mr. Trommer on May 15, 2008 9:57:24 GMT -5
Dana, can we assume that when you said that the lizardmen picked up the warlord and carried him off they did not remember to pick up his weapons? I don't recall you saying that they retrieved his weapons as well. That would mean the hammer and whip would be on the ground still since they were is his hands.
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Post by Ginger on May 15, 2008 14:02:00 GMT -5
Dana, can we assume that when you said that the lizardmen picked up the warlord and carried him off they did not remember to pick up his weapons? I don't recall you saying that they retrieved his weapons as well. That would mean the hammer and whip would be on the ground still since they were is his hands. I assume that since we rarely specify "and his weapons" when we carry bodies to safety during combat, that the lizard men will get the same benefit of the doubt.
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Post by Ginger on May 16, 2008 10:32:16 GMT -5
I'll be late on Sunday, so I want to make sure we're all clear on the plan. Dell, Jasssper and Cedrus are by the front door. Dell should immediately block it with a wall of stone. I assume that the horde of reinforcements are at least 5 rounds away, but there were a few guards wandering around. Jasper will run to the corpse of one of the captains and get his shield, sword and javelins.
The group in the hall should block the stairway with fighters (or a wall of stone), and knock the stone door leading downstairs. A wide blast of lightning in the corridor should take out the prison guards, and fighters can mop up if it doesn't. A knock spell can unlock the secret door below that we didn't go into before, as well as some of the cells, since it has an area. We know there are humans in the far right cell, and Will and Hispek were on the left side. If the secret door leads to a bunch of corridors and rooms, we shouldn't head down it very far, but we should ask Will and Hispek if they've been brought down that way for questioning/torture and know of any important stuff.
Then we head up and passwall our way out the back of the temple. Pfiffwin can cast an illusion that the wall is still intact, which will keep them from following us right away.
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Post by Wolfgar on May 16, 2008 11:42:18 GMT -5
Do we have Invisibility 10' radius memorized? It would be useful when we flee from the back of the temple. Just tell everyone to run for the edge of jungle and we will regroup there. Or cast Run on everyone and only the mounted lizardmen will have a chance to catch us.
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Post by Ginger on May 16, 2008 12:02:05 GMT -5
Do we have Invisibility 10' radius memorized? It would be useful when we flee from the back of the temple. Just tell everyone to run for the edge of jungle and we will regroup there. Or cast Run on everyone and only the mounted lizardmen will have a chance to catch us. I hope not, since I'll kill anyone who didn't think about casting it before we ran onto the parade ground in the first place.
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Post by venger on May 16, 2008 13:41:26 GMT -5
We don't have Invisibility 10' radius. Nor do we have Run.
Remember, we're counting on Choatle's diversion at the docks to limit pursuit. We flee from the back of the temple out the Passwall hole and either circle around back to the boat or head for the nearest colored portal.
Presumably Wall of Stone would easily be dispelled by the army of clerics upstairs so we should have fighters waiting on either side of the upwards staircase, out of the line of sight of enemy casters.
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Post by Ginger on May 16, 2008 14:46:23 GMT -5
And we should have Winthrop ready to web the portal closed. I'd bet they'll have multiple casters cast Dispel Magic simultaneously to make sure the wall goes down in one round. If we have a web or a stinking cloud ready to go the following round, they'll probably need to have a second round of clerics come to the front, which will delay them a few minutes more.
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Post by Wolfgar on May 19, 2008 7:48:19 GMT -5
How did it go?
Is there a game next weekend?
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Post by venger on May 19, 2008 9:53:25 GMT -5
How did it go? Is there a game next weekend? Could have gone better.... Dell put a Wall of Stone in front of the temple doors. Antonus knocked the secret door and most of the party went downstairs. The lizardman guards jumped out of the cells and attacked us by surprise. They were all dispatched in a round or two and Otto set to work busting down the doors. Upstairs Hugh and Jasper were poisoned by stealthy lizardman assassin-types who crept up and succeeded in assassinating Perrin. Pffifwin summoned an illusionary troll which fought for a while and blocked one hallway with an illusionary wall until the priests came and dispelled our magics. Much of the party ran back upstairs from the dungeon, some decided to run even further upstairs into the temple... where they were cut off from the rest of the party. The people upstairs were held and unheld and feared and unfeared. Barbarians were summoned. They were feared. Lizardmen clerics and warriors from the higher levels poured out the columns in the main temple which turned out to be hollow shafts. They attacked our position on the stairwell and were webbed. The web was dispelled. The high priest rolled in and dropped a Flame Strike. Dell put a real wall of stone where the illusionary one had been but the high priest dispelled it. The warlord showed up, smashed Winthrop unconscious and left when Pffifwin made an illusionary Wall of Fire. The high priest dropped a blade barrier and Clift is now a pile of shredded pork. Al is trapped on the up-stairs- Winthrop, Grizela and Jasper are face-to-face with the high priest and his entourage. The rest of the party is either on the down-stairs or in the dungeon. Raven opened the secret door in the dungeon and after people were freed Antonus led the sage Hisspeck after him. They were mobbed by undead in a hidden chamber. Raven and Hisspeck were feared by some really nasty disease-crawling undead things but Antonus saved the day with lightning bolts and the new fire scorcher spell. Hugh and Cedrus turned undead. Hugh drew their monstrous attention with the unholy brand on his arm. Then the zombies got up and everyone but Hugh was re-feared. Hilarity ensued. All the undead are now destroyed and Raven has found a secret passage leading further into off into the dungeon. The party is all separated upstairs (especially Clift) by a blade barrier. As of yesterday we're supposed to be on for next weekend.
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Post by Wolfgar on May 20, 2008 10:53:21 GMT -5
What no photos? 3-D Maps?
I can't believe we let the party get separated again. How does the phrase - those who do not know about an alternate timeline will also get slaughtered in this one.
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Post by venger on May 22, 2008 9:28:52 GMT -5
I can't believe we let the party get separated again. How does the phrase - those who do not know about an alternate timeline will also get slaughtered in this one. There were a couple lulls in the action. A round or two where we were just waiting for enemies. During this time some individuals who will remain nameless left their posts guarding the dungeon stairs to either loot bodies or charge upstairs, further into the temple, full-knowing that we were being attacked on either side by invisible assassins and spell-casting priests. Clift payed the price. Can he be reincarnated again?? Winthrop will hopefully go for the Dimension Door with Grizela and Jasper before the High Priest kills him. They should be okay as long as Jasper's magic resistance doesn't kick in at the wrong time. Al can take a running leap and fling himself through the blade barrier. He should have between 8-64hp.
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Post by Ginger on May 22, 2008 9:57:09 GMT -5
Most importantly, Bill announced that last week was his last with us. :(
He forgot to mention that Clift opened the smoking bottle, which obscured the whole area. Al is currently up the stairs, alone and slowed, with 26 HP. His only real chance of survival is to make a running jump down the stairs through the blade barrier. The blade barrier will bring him to zero, and he'll only take d6 falling damage after that. Winthrop, Grizela and Adler (not Jasper) are trapped between a barrier and a high priest. (BTW, Dana scoffed at the notion that the high priest of Twilus would be only 13th level.) Fortunately, we're in the smoke, so he can't see us. Winthrop will use Foebiter next round to take us downstairs. Assuming Al is able to dive through the barrier, that'll put everyone downstairs. Blade Barrier will last until the priest decides to dispel it, which gives us great cover. The basement is 40' or so underground. The underground passage goes underneath the temple exterior, so when we get to the end of it, we can passwall up at an angle to escape. Hopefully by the time they realize what we're doing, Chotal will start the fire.
In case its unclear why we're not fleeing immediately, Hispek believed his amulet was held behind the secret door, along with other artifacts.
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Post by Dell on May 22, 2008 11:13:15 GMT -5
Clift payed the price. Can he be reincarnated again?? If we can get someone to cast the spell in the next 12 days... I think that if we all rush the High Priest and grapple him, we should be able to take him down without him getting off another party-killing spell. WHO'S WITH ME???
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Post by Ginger on May 22, 2008 11:54:27 GMT -5
The issue with Clift is that both Raise Dead and Reincarnate target "persons" not "creatures." Just as Clift and Jasper are not valid targets for phantom armor or strength, they are not valid targets for Raise Dead or Reincarnate.
In this particular case, there is a good argument to be made that he should be raise-able, BTB. There's a long explanation in Deities and Demigods about how some creatures have souls and others have spirits and that you can only raise creatures with souls. Since Clift is a monster with a human soul, Raise Dead should work on him.
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sam
New Member
Posts: 17
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Post by sam on May 22, 2008 13:48:28 GMT -5
i think Al has 24 hit points, but that doesn't change much. I agree that he should take his chances with running down the through the blade barrier. But my question would be, if he does make it down, does he have to roll which way he goes, and could possibly get stuck and die. I guess I dont understand the whole concept with that. If he would definately make it down stairs, then it's a good idea, but if he has to roll to see if he goes right, left, up, or down, like he did last time. That would probably kill him.
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Post by Ginger on May 22, 2008 14:01:28 GMT -5
I think the random roll was based on the saving throw. In those situations, the characters in the blade barrier were saving to take no damage. Basically, they were just jumping out of the way in whatever way they could, and that was determined randomly. Al wouldn't be doing that. He's deliberately jumping down a flight of stairs so there's nothing random about it.
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