Cauldron, Part 14
4/2/08
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* This enormous chamber has a ceiling that soars to a height of forty five feet at it's peak. Two great marble pillars support wooden balconies fifteen feet above the chamber's east and west wings. Two iron staircases spiral up to the balconies from the first floor. The furnishings on the ground floor suggest some sort of assembly area (construction, not instruction). Desks occupy much of the room, though a few boxes and crates fill various corners and nooks. An eight foot diameter wooden gear hangs from the ceiling at the north end of the chamber, suspended by a great pair of iron chains. A bright light burns in the center hollow of the gear, lighting the middle section of the room well, showing a massive mosaic of interconnected gears painstakingly painted on the ceiling and walls of the room. The faint sound of clattering gears resonates from somewhere not far away. Frozen shattered bits of brain thaw in a pile that messily spills off of a few desks.
Tillandor is now In-Character. (IC)
Kristof is now In-Character. (IC)
Calico is now In-Character. (IC)
You are now In-Character. (IC)
The DM says, "You guys were prepping to sleep."
- So are we waking up now?
Calico asks, "before we nod off, who needs healing? Tillandor?"
Tillandor rubs his injured leg. "If you will."
Jiona looks up from where she's settling in after finishing her dinner of rations. "I'll be fine, thank you."
Calico :strides over to Tillandor purring, hissing, etc. and lays hands on his leg to cast cure moderate wounds.
Kristof rubs his shoulder gingerly before saying, "I think I will be fine. Nothing a good night's sleep won't take care of."
* Calico rolls 2d8+3+3: 3,3,3,3 = 12.
Tillandor flexes his leg. "Wow, that is much better. Thank you."
Calico says, "if no one else needs anything", and proceeds up stairs to find a resting spot.
* The upstairs section provides an excellent view of the entire room. There are a few chairs and sofas, dusty and worn with age.
Jiona blinks suddenly, and sits up a little more. "Oh, we should at least take watches. I can go first," she volunteers.
* The upper balconies jut out a bit into the room, the distance between their nearest point is about 10 feet.
Kristof volunteers to take the last watch.
Calico sleepily replies, "second."
Kristof walks around the room a final time, looking everything over.
Jiona takes up a position a little closer to the hallway she and Calico barricaded a little, and sits there until her watch ends, not forgetting to check other parts of the room as well during her shift.
Kristof points to the doors both north and south and says, "Are we going to do anything to barricade those?"
Tillandor leaves the watch to those better suited, and lays down on his cloak, with his pack for a pillow.
Jiona glances at them, and shakes her head. "I'll keep my eye on them. It'd take a good amount of time to barricade everything, for only a single night... whatever time it may be."
Calico dusts off a couch, settles down, and puuurrrrrrrs.
Kristof looks for a place to settle down near the others, unrolls his bedroll, and prepares for sleep.
* Far in the distance, the sound of cranking gears and chains echoes through the walls.
Jiona's ears twitch at the sounds, but they're becoming a rather familiar feature of this place, so she doesn't worry about them overmuch.
Kristof looks startled at the sound and asks nervously, "What was that?"
* As the echonig sounds fade you slowly become aware of a low grinding sound... it's very quiet and seems to be nearly all around you.
Jiona looks over her shoulder at Kristof, having overlooked that he has not yet spent a great deal of time down here. "Something opening and closing deeper within," she guesses. "This place is full of strange noises. I suppose I've gotten rather used to it." Her ears tilt back at the grinding noise, though. "...That's new," she says uncertainly.
Calico opens her eyes and listens.
Kristof doesn't look overly reassured at Jiona's uncertainty and continues glances at the several exits and entrances to their room.
* After several minutes, the grinding hum continues.
* The sound is barely there... like a pidgeon cooing on the rooftop when you're inside the house.
Jiona eventually shrugs, and tunes it out until a visible threat presents itself.
Calico returns to her evening meditation.
* Several hour later, the grinding hum continues. As if it has always been going.
Kristof rests his head on his pillow, struggling to get some sleep.
* Your watches all pass uneventfully... though it is starting to stink badly in the room.
The DM says, "I figure I'll plow forward. And if anyone needs me to hold back, tell me."
The DM says, "Who has last watch."
Kristof says, "I did."
The DM says, "Well you are probably aware it is time to be awake."
Kristof goes around and starts gently nudging everyone awake.
* Ethkin drools.
* Tass drools.
Calico howls on being awakened.
Tillandor blinks to clear his eyes of sleep, and sits up.
Kristof jumps back from Calico upon the howl.
Kristof looks like he did not sleep well.
The DM passes.
Jiona awakens upon being touched, and glances curiously upward at the peculiar sound Calico makes, then shrugs, but her nose wrinkles at the growing stench. "Time to get out of here," she mutters.
Kristof agrees.
Calico makes a face at the foul oder, "shall we be moving on?"
Jiona stretches, packs her cloak back up, and nods agreeably. "Let's." She meanders over to the next barricade, and starts investigating it to see what she'd need to do to break through.
* A heavy-duty makeshift wall fills the hall here, made of 2 inch thick wooden planks that appear to be scrounged from furniture. Iron spikes hammered into the walls and iron braces on the floor keep the wall from tipping over. There are no obvious holes any of you could fit through. There are obvious scratches on this side of the wall.
* Jiona rolls 1f20+8: 7,8 = 15.
Jiona touches the planking experimentally with a furred hand, then says, "I can break through this now, if this is the best way to go. Till? What do you think?"
Calico asks, "did the noises seem closer last night than prior nights?"
Tillandor gestures. "What we seek is certainly not in THIS room."
Kristof curiously wanders towards one of the rooms to the North.
Calico says, "I say we explore south. I think the noises are connected with our goal."
- Before doing anything, Jiona looks around, and inquires in general, "One for south, one for west, and one for... north-ish, I guess," she says, watching Kristof wander in that direction. "Any other opinions?"
* A semicircular mosaic of engraved floor tiles fans out from an arching set of double doors set in the south wall. Unlike the other portals, these doors are made of iron, embossed with gearlike patterns, and held to a stone doorframe by great iron hinges.
The DM marks the doors in red
The DM says, "As per request."
Calico grabs a piece of debre from the first barrier and tosses it at the south doors from a safe distance.
Kristof asks, "I wonder what is behind these doors, perhaps the former occupants living quarters?"
Tillandor says, "This door looks a bit too fancy for bed chambers."
The DM notes the hinges are not visible from this side, by the way.
Tillandor asks, "And really, what man with such a fancy door as this would want to sleep in proximity to a workshop?"
* The two doors in the north part of the room are normal gear doors. It's only the double doors that are unusual (in that they look rather normal).
Kristof is all for trying normal looking doors.
Calico watches for any reaction from the south doors to being hit.
* The double doors do nothing in response to being hit by debris. (what kind of debris? Grell brains? Magic item supplies? A pen?
Calico says, "wood debree."
The DM shrugs, "Must be from the demolished wooden barrier to the east."
Calico says, "right."
Calico observes, "if these doors are trapped, it's not the same kind of trap as the other doors."
Jiona gives the southern ornate doors a skeptical look. "Given what the other doors have done, I'll keep my distance."
Kristof suggests, "I think that might be wise, there might be problems with this door."
Calico looks for anything resembling a 10ft. pole among the remains of the east barrier.
Calico says, "If we could push open the doors from a safe distance..."
Kristof muses, "If only there were a way to twist the door handle without being near it..."
Tillandor walks forward and pushes on the door.
Kristof stops Tillandor before he reaches.
Kristof says, "I think its trapped."
Tillandor glances at Kristof. "I do no."
Tillandor says, "T."
Kristof points to the seams and suggests, "I think the way it is setup there are blades which will extend once the handle is turned."
Kristof shrugs, "I just don't know of a safe way to prove my theory."
Jiona looks at Tillandor go up to the door, and stands with them, aware of what happened the last time Tillandor lead the way. "If you're certain, Till, then I'll open it."
Tillandor says, "I am not certain, but I see nothing hazardous here."
Calico stands by for emergency healing.
Jiona nods, "That's good enough for me. But... stand back, just in case."
Kristof says, "Wait - Let me try and see if I can get past it."
Tillandor says, "Very well."
Kristof starts scrounging around for bits of wood, metal or other various objects from the room.
Kristof walks up to the door and starts placing bits around certain areas in the seams.
Jiona watches Kristof for a moment, contemplative, then gestures for him to stand back. "I can handle this, Kristof. That's good enough."
Kristof turns the handle.
* Nothing happens.
Kristof opens the door.
* The doors swing inward, revealing the next room...
Tillandor smiles at Kristof, and walks toward the next room.
* Four circular doors--each one bearing a different rune--lead from this dusty fifteen-foot-high room. A semicircular mosaic of engraved floor tiles fans out from an arching set of double doors set in the north wall. Unlike the other portals, these doors are made of iron, embossed with gearlike patterns, and held to a stone doorframe by great iron hinges.
Jiona also smiles a little, and goes with Tillandor.
Calico grabs Tillandor's arm, "I think not."
Tillandor says, "Don't be silly."
Jiona walks further into the room, and investigates all four of the doors. Without touching them.
Calico peaks through the doors, then releases Tillandor's arm and enters.
Tillandor inches into the room, hoping Calico won't notice.
* The room seems to be particularly not dangerous.
Tillandor still glances at the ceiling as he enters, slightly wary.
Kristof looks around after spending some time examining the doors from the other side.
Jiona tries tossing her damaged spear at one of the doors. From a safe, ten-foot distance.
* Three jets of flame fill the doorway, catching the spear on fire.
* The spear clatters to the floor, smoldering uselessly.
Tillandor says, "Now THAT door, I daresay is trapped."
Jiona looks wryly over at Tillandor. "You don't say."
The DM marks the trapped door with red Xs.
Jiona wonders, "Anyone have anything less incendiary to toss at another door?"
Calico grabs 3 small pieces of wooden debree and tries the other doors.
The DM asks, "Which door first?"
Calico tries the NW door first.
* Two large rats appear and rush towards you. They attack!
* Calico rolls 1f20+dex: 5,5 = 10.
* One strikes Kristof off of his guard, dealing a minor wound to the shins.
The DM says, "Roll initiative."
* Jiona rolls 1f20+3: 6,3 = 9.
Calico just did.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+2: 19,2 = 21.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+9: 30,9 = 39.
The DM says, "Yeek. Go Kristof."
Kristof catches himself back on balance after being caught off guard, draws his rapiers in a fluid motion, assumes a fighting stance and attacks rat that hit him.
The DM says, "Blue."
The DM says, "The purple one attacked Tillandor, but missed badly."
The DM says, "...amazingly enough."
* Kristof rolls 1f20+4: -10,4 = -6.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+4: 9,4 = 13.
The DM says, "Go tillandor"
Kristof whirls his rapiers in a flashy blur but misses the rat.
Tillandor, after recoiling from the uselessly slavering rat that attacked him, swings his staff toward its head.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+2: 14,2 = 16.
* Tillandor rolls 1d6+1: 3,1 = 4.
* Tillandor's staff just cracks the rat on the head as it attempts to dodge. It looks stunned for a moment, then recovers. A blood stain is growing on it's forehead.
The DM says, "Calico go."
Calico, seeing 'fresh meat' attack, falls on her feline instincts and swipes with a claw.
* Calico rolls 1f20+dex+2+1: 17,5,2,1 = 25.
* Calico rolls 1d3-1: 3,-1 = 2.
The DM asks, "Same one Till attacked, or the other?"
Calico says, "purple one."
* Calico slices at the rat with her claws, managing to send it flying into the corner. It lands twitching.
The DM says, "Go Jiona"
- Realizing that she has no weapons, Jiona steps south five feet, raises a hand with her palm outstretched, and an arc of lightning jumps from her hand to impale the rat in front of Kristof.
* Jiona rolls 2d4+1+1: 1,1,1,1 = 4.
The DM says, "Thank heaven for MP bonus."
* The rat manages to dive out of the way of the bolt, getting singed, but not fried.
* The rat lunges towards Jiona, growling unnaturally.
* It misses wildly as Jiona deftly dodges.
The DM says, "Inititiative."
* Kristof rolls 1f20+9: 19,9 = 28.
The DM blinks.
* Jiona rolls 1f20+3: 15,3 = 18.
* Calico rolls 1f20+dex: 14,5 = 19.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+2: 18,2 = 20.
The DM says, "Go Kristof."
Kristof pauses his flurry for a brief moment, breathes deeply, almost as if to meditate, then unleashes a flurry of blows upon the rat with his swords bursting into flame.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+6: 30,6 = 36.
Kristof rolls to back it....
* Kristof rolls 1f20+6: 5,6 = 11.
Kristof rolls his next attack.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+6: 13,6 = 19.
* Kristof's strikes hit true, not only slaying the massive rodent, but cooking it as well. The scent of cooked ratmeat begins to permeate the room.
Calico draws a dagger to carve the cooked rat.
Calico asks, "so, who wants breakfast?"
Jiona looks at the cooked rat, visibly contemplating the offer... but she eventually turns it down. "Who knows what it's been eating down here," she says at last. "I'll pass, but thanks."
Tillandor grimaces. "I suppose those rats did, and meant to make it of us."
- its
Tillandor slowly frowns. "Everyone..."
Tillandor asks, "Which door exactly did these rats emerge from?"
Calico pauses...
Jiona tilts her head. "The northwest one... right?"
* All the doors are closed but the ones you came through.
Calico points to the NW door, then hesitates.
Kristof sheaths his rapiers and pauses thoughtfull.
Kristof-thoughtfully.
Tillandor says, "Ah, of course."
Calico quickly cuts off and skins a hind rat leg to chew on.
Tillandor says, "Calico, the door you tested is trapped."
Kristof grimaces in distaste.
Tillandor says, "With a summon monster spell. If you're still hungry, we could..."
Jiona shakes her head. "No, once was enough. I'd like to try to find something to arm myself with before testing another, but... pickings seem slim, down here."
Calico sniffs the meat, then takes a bite.
Calico replies with a half filled mouth, "this is enough, for now anyway."
Calico corrects, tosses the meat when it smells off.
Kristof walks towards the area where the rats came from, examining the door closely.
Calico applies spellcraft to the summon monster spell...
* Calico rolls 1f20+1: 13,1 = 14.
Calico wants to know something about the likely caster.
Tillandor says, "I could not yet cast a spell of this power, but with a bit of practice I might be able to."
Jiona gestures. "Calico, you still have those wooden scraps. Are you going to test another door, or do we want to try another direction?"
Calico says, "I'd guess all 4 doors are trapped, with different traps. Unless we find a key, another direction."
Jiona nods, agreeing. "I don't think we've found any more keys lately, right?"
Kristof fiddles with the door Calico had touched for a bit, then after a few minutes, tries opening it.
Calico says, "not unless someone is holding out."
Calico yells, "Dont!"
Kristof waves his hand in the air almost absent mindedly saying, "Now if only I had a key..."
* Tass waves a small iron rod, "I have this key... you could try it."
Kristof smiles and says, "Ah that will do."
Calico compares the mark on the key with marks over doors.
Kristof walks over to Tass to retrieve the key, and goes back over to the door.
Kristof attempts to use the iron rod to open the door.
* Nothing happens.
Kristof examines the rod.
* It's a small iron rod with grooves in it and a rune on the end. Much like the other iron rod you had picked up before.
Jiona mentions, "It may also go to one of the northern doors we haven't fully investigated yet."
Kristof says, "True." and examines the other doors.
Calico decides not to test the other door traps, for now anyway.
Kristof muses, "So - how in the world do you know which rod goes to which door?"
Kristof says, "Just trial and error I guess."
Calico points to the runes above the doors, "match those."
Kristof blinks.
Kristof examines the runes above the doors and compares them against the rune of the iron rod.
The DM says, "It's in the center of the door, actually. Burned in."
* Kristof fiddles with the lock on the door with the rat trap.
Kristof fiddles with the door some, but shrugs and gives up.
Kristof walks back out into the room they came form.
- from
Calico asks, "so, no key to any of the nearby doors... west through the barrier or south?"
Tillandor says, "Is there any way south? Unless I mistake, the doors are all locked."
Calico says, "back the way we came there's a way south."
Calico says, "and west too."
Kristof eyes the barricade and has an expression on his face showing deep thought.
Jiona ponders for a minute as Kristof wanders off, then goes digging in her pouch, and pulls out the first key the found from when the cabinet partially collapsed on her. She compares the runes on it to the four doors.
Kristof walks back to the group and suggests, "Well we could use some of the old furniture as a makeshift battering ram to break down the barrier I suppose?"
Jiona shakes her head, tells Tillandor, "No match here... I'm going to check the other two," and also heads northward.
Calico eyes the barrier, then the furniture, "not likely any of the desks here would be tough enough."
Tillandor follows along with Jiona.
Jiona shakes her head again as Tillandor approaches. "Still doesn't seem to match," she tells him. "I guess we're back to breaking through the barricade."
Kristof is examining various pieces of furniture looking for something to do just that.
Kristof walks over to a particularly heavy looking desk.
Jiona volunteers, "I won't be able to make any more tunnels for a while, but I'm pretty sure I can weaken this one enough to break through with less effort."
Kristof looks over at Tillandor, Calico, Ethkin, Tass and Jiona and says, "Hey can I get a hand with his?" indicating the desk as he braces himself to lift it.
Kristof nods his head from the desk to the barrier indicating he intends to use the desk as a ram.
* Ethkin comes over and claps.
Calico lends her feeble strength to the effort.
Jiona gives Kristof a puzzled look, then shrugs and goes over to help.
* Ethkin stumbles over a box he didn't see, managing to catch himself on another desk.
Kristof directs everyone to be on opposite sides, longways, and then using the short end as the ram.
The DM says, "Everyone do a STR check."
Jiona does as directed.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+1: 16,1 = 17.
* Jiona rolls 1f20+2: 7,2 = 9.
* Calico rolls 1f20-1: 4,-1 = 3.
* DM rolls 1f20+2: 6,2 = 8.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+4: 3,4 = 7.
The DM asks, "Feeble, dudes. Make another try?"
Kristof says, "Yeah."
* Calico rolls 1f20-1: 12,-1 = 11.
* Jiona rolls 1f20+2: 17,2 = 19.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+1: 15,1 = 16.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+4: 9,4 = 13.
* DM rolls 1f20+2: 17,2 = 19.
* With a mighty crash, the desk slams into the barrier, breaking a few beams. A couple more bashes and there's a desk shaped hole in the middle.
Calico is rather surprised the desk held up as well as it did.
Kristof directs everyone to back the desk up to allow enough room to pass.
Calico heaves...
Jiona smiles at Kristof as she helps move the desk back out of the way. "Good thinking," she commends him.
The DM says, "Pretty solid desk. Those gnomes know how to make furniture, man."
Kristof smiles back and offers a bow. "Thank you."
- Once the desk is set back down, Jiona steps cautiously through the desk-shaped hole, carefully looking at the revealed room in all directions. Especially not forgetting the ceiling.
Kristof looks through the hole while remaining on this side of the room, peering into the opening.
Calico peeks through the opening.
* Set into the north and south walls of this corridor are six ten foot deep niches filled with dust and cobwebs. Some of the niches contain elaborate, gear-covered contraptions. The floor is littered with debris from the battered makeshift wall.
Calico lights a lamp to better see.
Jiona moves in a bit further, giving one of the contraptions a closer look, but still wary for anything else that might be watching them in turn.
Kristof is grateful for the light, and proceeds cautiously, keeping alert for danger.
* Jiona rolls 1f20+8: 10,8 = 18.
Calico watches the gear covered contraptions for movement.
Jiona makes a hmming noise, scratching her muzzle, then starts poking around the rest of the room, clearly looking for something in particular.
Kristof cautiously advances into the room.
Tillandor moves along with the group.
Calico continues along with the group, watching and listening.
Jiona comes to an abrupt stop, eyeing a mechanism on the wall. "I think... this will turn some of these things on," she says. "I think some are missing parts, but the rest might work enough. I'm not certain what it will do, though."
Tillandor inspects the mechanism.
Kristof muses, "Let sleeping gnomish contraptions lie I say."
Calico agrees with Kristof, "unless we know what it does, best leave it off."
Kristof finds a point of interest at a seemingly innocuous wall.
Jiona explains, "I'm pretty sure they activate something in another nearby room. Beyond that... I don't know."
Calico eyes the mechanics, "with the missing parts, would this machine be noisier than intended?"
Jiona looks over the nearby contraptions again before answering Calico. "Probably," she guesses. "I might be able to fix them... there are enough scattered bits around that some of them may work as replacement parts, if we want to take the time."
Tillandor asks, "Anything I can do to help?"
Kristof pulls back a door and says, "Hey check this out."
Calico wanders over to see what has Kristof's attention.
Tillandor says, "Ah, this may be most helpful to us."
Kristof holds open a door that was otherwise very cleverly disguised.
* there is a loud creak as Kristof opens the door.
Jiona starts to answer Till, "We'll, we'd be looking for some of these gears, about-- hmm?" She hears Kristof's call, and goes over to see what has captured his interest.
* The door is covered in gears that look quite functional.
* A thin carpet of stone rubble covers the floor of this room, with mounds of shattered rock piled in nearby corners. Built into the walls are rows of stone shelves--perhaps bookshelves, though there are no books on them. A ladder leans agains the northern wall. An omninous silhouette in the middle of the room appears to be a harmless wooden lecturn under a sheet.
Kristof steps into the room taking everything in.
Calico grabs a piece of wooden debree and tosses it at the lectern.
Tillandor peers over Kristof's shoulder, trying for a better view.
Jiona stands close to Tillandor, also peering inside.
The DM says, "Roll initiative."
* Calico rolls 1f20+dex: 13,5 = 18.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+2: 10,2 = 12.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+9: 30,9 = 39.
* Jiona rolls 1f20+3: 3,3 = 6.
* DM rolls 1f20+2: 18,2 = 20.
The DM says, "They get a free attack..."
* Four squirming multilegged creatures crawl out from under the sheet and attack Kristof. Two of them bite at his knees, gouging out small chunks of flesh.
The DM says, "Go Kristof"
Kristof hops away from the creatures, yelping in pain as he draws his rapiers and stabs at one of the ones who hit him.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+2: 19,2 = 21.
Kristof rolls to back it.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+2: 6,2 = 8.
Kristof rolls 2nd attack.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+2: 8,2 = 10.
* Kristof rolls 1d6+4: 6,4 = 10.
* Kristof manages to impale one with his blade against the floor.
* Another crawls over the dead body to attack Kristof while the rest attack as well. Kristof does a little dance to avoid getting hit, which seems to serve him rather well.
The DM says, "Go Calico."
Calico casts summon monster 2, summoning...
* Calico rolls 1d3: 3.
- celestial cats to appear behind the red attacker and counter attack.
Calico rolls their attack...
* Calico rolls 1f20+4: 10,4 = 14.
* Calico rolls 1f20+4: 13,4 = 17.
* Calico rolls 1f20+4: 10,4 = 14.
* Several attacks strike true, and the multilegged creature is slain.
The DM says, "Go Tillandor"
Tillandor steps up to the crawly blue cube, and attempts to crush it's little head with his staff.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+2+2: 6,2,2 = 10.
The DM says, "miss"
The DM says, "Go Jiona"
* The multilegged beast manages to squirm out of the way and click its jaws at Tillandor.
Jiona steps into the room, and makes another gesture. A sizeable chunk of rock abruptly flings itself at the creature threatening Tillandor.
* Jiona rolls 2d6+2+1: 6,5,2,1 = 14.
* The rock crushes the creature, sending greenish yellow ichor splashing on the wall.
The DM says, "Initiative"
* Jiona rolls 1f20+3: 14,3 = 17.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+9: 30,9 = 39.
* Tillandor rolls 1f20+2: 18,2 = 20.
* Calico rolls 1f20+dex: 9,5 = 14.
* DM rolls 1f20+2: 15,2 = 17.
The DM says, "Go Kristof"
Kristof crouches back, points to the other side of the creature as a Fire Elemental appears on the opposite side, then uses the distraction to push his advantage and attack the creature with his rapiers.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+6: 5,6 = 11.
* Kristof rolls 1f20+6: 16,6 = 22.
* Kristof slices the creature in half, both halves flop for a moment then are still.
The DM slams on the brakes.