Sleeping Giants Game 24

Intro

Nil's Gift

While you stand pondering the door, you notice a glint off to the side of the cavern, just at the edge of the torchlight. You move to investigate, and among the rubble of the wooden ramp you find a necklace. It has a silver chain with a pendant made out of deep red spinel cut into the shape of a dragon in flight.

You reach down to pick up the necklace, and as you come in contact with it the pendant glows purple. The light around you fades away such that even your magical vision cannot see through it. Then the voice speaks directly to your mind once again.

“We meet again, Young One. I hope you do not think I have forgotten you, and I hope you have not forgotten me. Those of the Stone make it difficult to exert influence within their domain. Tell me, how is it you have unlocked the secrets of the Divine?”

You inform him that you’ve been paying attention to Jordan, and taken a few pages out of his book. You also make your annoyance at the Old One’s persistence known, though it seems to pay no mind to that fact.

“Before I leave you with this gift, I wish to issue you a warning, Young One. The man who you seek, the mastermind behind this whole operation – though he may be of unsavory character, the work he does is important. The knowledge he seeks could be used to topple the most powerful organizations in the world, whether they be religions or governments. It is the latter that may be of interest to you. So good luck, Young One, and it may behoove you to tread carefully.”

With that, the purple light emitting from the necklace fades, and you turn around once more to face your comrades.

Recap

Recap notes, by Laura

Day 16: 1/18/513 ~2:30 pm - GAME XXIV - 5/22/18

CURRENT STATS: Full health, 2/3 bardic insp, 3/4 1st lvl spells, 2/3 2nd lvl spells, 1/3 luck points, 1 inspiration point

• BOXTEXT: NIL!
  • Convo with her patron over a dragon necklace ("Necklace of the old one"), purple glow
  • This happens in real time, but everyone is frozen.
• Jordan decides to try to open the door by slamming on it with his hammer - loud sounds - but no other outcome
• Jordan, Ford, Lyla - no ideas on how to open it at this point
• Nil suggests a short rest - the others agree
• Song of Rest - Full bardic inspiration returned - SHORT REST
• Jordan gives inspiration speech = 8 points inspiration
• Nil: There is abjuration and evocation magic on this door = WARNING
• Nil: "What about James?" What's going on behind this door?...
• Thoughts on staying and waiting James out... thoughts on trying to dispel magic and physically breaking the door down...
• Ana asks the Shadow if any numbers are big with Char? Shadow doesn't know, but says there is no reason to think Char was active in this part of the world.
• (During Short Rest) Nil takes the Necklace of the Old One and tries to discreetly see if it interacts with the door in any way
• Ford leaves to go talk to the trash monster, but doesn't say this - just that he'll be back.
• Lyla casts dispel magic (abjuration) on the door
  • ROLLS A NATURAL 20!!! - Nil sees both of the auras dissipate. The door itself just slides down!
• Ford (didn't get too far) - notices the sounds of jubilation and turns back to return to the door
• Room with spiral staircase behind this door.
  • Stratton tries being stealthy (ok), Nil's better (rolled 15), and Lyla rolled a NAT 20!!! (again)
  • Ana rolls/goes first (also sneaky! 15), then Stratton, then Nil, then Ford (Lyla actually stayed behind, no darkvision)
• Spiral staircase -> short hallway -> to large finished stone room - 4 tall pillars support ceiling
  • Across room -> large metal door with the #1 on it and it smells like GARLIC!
• Nil beams the general idea of the room shape to Ford (describes it to him)
• 5 SKELETONS! with SWORD HANDS! One of them looks directly at STRATTON!
• Ana goes first and moves towards the first skeleton (not the one looking at Stratton). Still stealthed and with advantage! Hits the skeleton with her dagger dealing 6 points damage. Hits again for another 6 points damage! Hits a 3rd time - punches for another 6 points damage! 18 total!!
• Lyla is upstairs... unaware...
• Skeleton at the back of the room moves towards the door - fidgets at the bottom by kicking at it a bit, it opens and he runs through it and hits something on the wall inside the door
• Ana sees this and notices from the pillar in front of her, a gas starts being emitted from it
• The skeleton that had seen Stratton attacks Ana as well and attempts a round-house kick. Hits, 11 points damage
• Ana uses her reaction - HERITAGE REBUKE AFTER 1ST HIT - requires a dex saving throw from both skeletons - one takes 6 damage total and the second takes 3 total damage.
  • The first skeleton dies!
• Ana then teleports out (missing the second btw), away from the other skeleton and the gas pillar. Ana casts "BLACK FIRE" in the spot she just was.
• Nil: ATtacks a skeleton with Fire Bolt, hits, does 8 fire damage and screams up to Jordan for him to hurry down.
• Stratton True Strikes the Skeleton that went through the door at the end of the hall and inspires Ana with Bardic Inspiration (1/3 down, 2/3 left)
• 2 skeletons go to attack Ana - and she passes out! -8 HP!
• Ford attacks a skeleton with Magic Missile! & does some damage...
• Jordan grabs Lyla and starts running toward the battle/combat - they make it to the end of the spiral staircase.
• Ford also notices that a green gas is spewing from ALL of the pillars.
• Ana - saving throw - Fails :( (1) - & Black Fire is gone.
• Lyla - now at the bottom of the stairs, shoots over Stratton's head at one of the skeletons by Ana and it EXPLODES! With ehr second attack, she attacks the other skeleton near Ana, but misses :(
• Hallway skeleton runs away further down the hallway, out of sight, True Strike = gone
• Other skeleton (the one that originally saw Stratton) disappears near the pillar closest to the metal door/hallway entrance
• Nil moves in front of Stratton to shoot at skeleton (near Ana) -> NAT 20!!! Does 11 fire damage. The gas coming out of the pillar does NOT ignite. Then moves down the hallway.
• Skeleton attacks Stratton - doing 6 + 11 damage with both hits
• Stratton attacks Skeleton with Shatter doing 9 thunder damage
• Ford attacks
• Jordan - moves Ana's body back in to the hallway. Heals her, she's back up!
• She gets back into the action - hits skeleton that attacked her for 5 damage, then missed, then hit again for 7 damage - FINISHING HIM OFF!
• Lyla enters the room and attacks the skeleton - hits! But then takes damage from the green poison gas!
• Skeleton (remaining one) runs up at full speed, jumps off pillar, and does a roundhouse kick at Lyla - does 11 points damage to her jaw :( - Lyla responds with Hellish Rebuke! As the skeleton tries another attack it does 24 points of damage! He's bloodied...
• Nil: Shoots skeleton at 1/2 cover with disadvantage.
• Stratton: casts Dissonant Whispers! You're not even a real skeleton and you smell like Spam! Does 7 damage.
• Ford: Runs through the room towards the door at the end of the room (he's wearing his special necklace that allows him to ignore poison gas). He tries disabling the poison gas, but the switch doesn't work, Ford yells back into the room that he's working on fixing it!
• Jordan: Takes 1 point poison damage and is poisoned for the next hour (disadvantage) moves up to the last skeleton and neutralizes the poison with his gauntlet.
• Ana: Makes Const. saving throw and saved = not poisoned. She attacks the skeleton, who dodges (disadvantage) -> hits! (rolled 2 17s!) - does 9 damage. Second attack also hits and does 5 damage. Third attack misses.
• Lyla: Saves Constitution... but misses with 2 Eldritch Blasts.
• Poison spreads...
• Skeleton: Attacks Ana and Lyla - misses Lyla - hits Ana who is back down again
• Nil: (Laura takes b.room break)... Nil leaves the room, back to original hallway.
• Stratton: 4 points poison damage - another Dissonant Whispers - skeleton saves again - does 5 damage. Luck point used :(
• Ford: Stops the poison gas from spreading, but the remaining gas only slowly dissipates - still a threat - then hits the skeleton with his short bow and skeleton collapses - DEAD!
• FIGHT OVER
• Group goes back to original hallway (Ana carried by Jordan) to avoid the gas.
• Jordan casts Cure Wounds on Ana (4 HP)
• Ford goes to the other hallway and listens - rolled 3 + 5, total = 11. Doesn't hear anything.
• The metal door is strange - series of metal pedals. Some are up, others are down. No handles, just these pedals. Messages Nil. Who holds her breath and walks over. Nothing is magic.
• Nil steps on one of the up pedals down. Nothing seems to happen. They just hear metal door mechanisms.
• Door #1: 2nd, 5th, and 9th pedals are pushed down on the steel door (counting from the left)
• CURRENT STAT STANDINGS: NO more luck points, 2/3 bardic insp, 1/4 1st level spell, 1/3 2nd level spell, 1 inspiration point