Kulan: Knightfall's Crisis in Bluffside Game [IC]

[Knightfall]

Loremaster enters his lecture mode.
"The right one is called Gargoyle construct. The difference between it and normal flesh golem is the armor it wears, made of stone...actual gargoyle skin. And it can fly. It is slow and clumsy, but it can get aerial.

It is highly resistant to magic, fire and ice will slow it down somewhat, lighting will heal it so don't hit it with lightning. That collar around its neck is magical and likely some kind of enhancement of the golem, maybe to make it resistant to fire or to make it stronger. If you can remove it somehow, it would be ideal.

It is also resistant somewhat to physical damage, but given our team fighters it shouldn't be too much of a hindrance. I essentially cannot harm it, but I can help you in the battle by healing and enhancing."

He motions toward the plate and the other construct
"I don't see anything on the plate or the statue. Doesn't mean it is safe, just that it is not magical."

Turning back toward the golem.
"I have a spell that creates a force, not a creature so it may bypass the activation depending on how it was worded. I would like to try and remove the necklace before we enter. Tuck, you may want to come back for that one. And we may want to clear out the rooms first, just in case."

"A flesh golem," Castellana says with surprise. She moves towards Akos and peers at the the construct. The young arcanus shakes her head. "I would have never have thought of that." She muses for a moment. "If it is some sort of flesh golem, won't fire heal it? I remember that from my time in the academy. I'm sure that's what Master Keech taught us about flesh golems. He wanted to demonstrate it to us but Headmaster Lomusin wouldn't allow it."

Spoiler: For Neurotic

Immunity to Magic (Ex) A gargoyle golem is immune to any spell or spell-like ability that allows spell resistance. In addition, certain spells and effects function differently against the creature, as noted below.

A magical attack that deals sonic damage slows a gargoyle golem (as the slow spell) for 2d6 rounds, with no saving throw.

A magical attack that deals fire damage breaks any slow effect on the golem and heals 1 point of damage for every 3 points of damage the attack would otherwise deal. If the amount of healing would cause the golem to exceed its full normal hit points, it gains any excess as temporary hit points. For example, a gargoyle golem hit by a fireball heals 3 points of damage if the attack would have dealt 11 points of damage. A gargoyle golem gets no saving throw against attacks that deal fire damage.

OOC: Knightfall, do I use your roll for Knowledge devotion or should I roll new one?
The force thingy I'm thinking of is Unseen Servant - it is not a creature, it will not attack...and may remove the necklace...maybe

OOC: Go ahead and roll. What exactly is Akos using his Knowledge devotion roll for at this point?

Tuck curses to himself, then with the new information he hesitates.

"There's a trap right behind the metal," he states for his allies to hear. "I think I can disarm it, but are we sure the golem will not attack me if I try?"

"More than likely it has been commanded to attack anyone who comes near it," the arcanus replies. "More than likely it has been commanded to attack after someone passes by it or sets off the trap."

"Well, what is it?" Custodio asks as he appears just inside the room next to Mutt.

"It's a flesh golem of some kind," the arcanus replies.

Then he turns to Vinny and grins his strange reptilian grin. "That would certainly help, thanks!"

Once he is levitated, Tuck decides to hover over the metal instead. He looks at where the trap is, then turns to the golem.

"I am going to take the necklace," he warns the others, "Prepare yourselves!"

"Tuck, no! My spell can manipulate items and may not activate the golem. Wait! What the rest of you think, should we clear out the rooms first?"

Words are flying back and forth and are so confusing that poor Vincenzo almost cast the spell to early! He waits , but while doing so he flexes and loosens his fingers to do the hand gestures of the levitate spell.

"Hey, lets not to wake the dead," Custodio says to Akos calmly and quietly. "But you're right. It's not a good idea to leave those other doors unexplored. We don't need to worry about the spiders, for now." He looks at Tuck. "Tim told me that you noticed that door was stuck, so the spiders probably can't get out of there. Well, not through that door. But that doesn't mean that there isn't a passageway to somewhere else where they could ambush us. If they were truly trapped in there, they would have died without food... unless their eating each other or their young."

Custodio looks at the guardian construct. "I say we leave it be for now and come back this way once we're sure something or someone isn't going to attack us from behind." He looks at Tuck. "Are we even sure that the missing guards went this way? Any tracks? Any signs at all?"

Spoiler: For JustinCase

When Tuck was searching for traps was he also looking for tracks? (I didn't think of that for the Search check you made.) Anyway, make another Search check to look for footprints. Since the PCs have now walked over the rocky part of the floor, the Search check has a -2 circumstance penalty. There is no penalty for looking on the metal section of the floor.

 

[Neurotic]

Making a roll for knowledge devotion bonus in the case of combat.

As for damage type, I read fairly recently it was lightning damage that heals/hastes flesh golems. Maybe poetic freedom? Or gargoylegolems are different?

 

[JustinCase]

Tuck refrains from touching anything.

"Fine, you can get the necklace," he says to Akos, not hiding his relief. Then the kobold looks back at Custodio incredulously.

"What d-- of course they--"

He stops, then looks at the floor. Are there any clues that someone has been moving through here recently?

OOC: Since you specifically mentioned the rocky floor and the metal floor as seperate, I'll roll two Search rolls to look for footprints: Tracking the rocky floor: 1D20+13 = [5]+13 = 18 Tracking the metal floor: 1D20+15 = [5]+15 = 20 ...and the rolls are exactly the same.

 

[Knightfall]

Tuck refrains from touching anything.

"Fine, you can get the necklace," he says to Akos, not hiding his relief. Then the kobold looks back at Custodio incredulously.

"What d-- of course they--"

He stops, then looks at the floor. Are there any clues that someone has been moving through here recently?

OOC: Since you specifically mentioned the rocky floor and the metal floor as seperate, I'll roll two Search rolls to look for footprints: Tracking the rocky floor: 1D20+13 = [5]+13 = 18 Tracking the metal floor: 1D20+15 = [5]+15 = 20 ...and the rolls are exactly the same.

Spoiler: Search results

Tuck easily finds tracks that don't belong to him or his allies on the rocky stone floor that lead from the smaller room under the guard post. It seems that someone did come this way. The footprints avoid the gargoyle golem (somewhat) but do cross the metal floor. The tracks seem to stop about 10 feet before the statue and the golem, there was some shuffling of feet, and then whoever it was continued on. Tuck can tell that there is more than one person but he's not sure if there is more than two of them. It could be as many as three or four.

It is probably safe to walk on the metal section of the floor, but why did they pause? Tuck already knows there isn't a mechanism near the mundane statue to deactivate the trap at the other end of the room. More than likely there is a mechanism at that end of the room. Did they pause for some other reason? Did some of them go back?

Tuck retraces the prints and none of them seem to head through the doors in the smaller room, although it is hard to tell since so many of the prints have been trampled under the feet of Tuck's companions. Mutt sense that Tuck is looking for something, and he moves alongside his pack mate. He growls again at the stuck door but stays with Tuck as he searches. The big dog follows Tuck into the larger room, and Mutt is soon sitting of the rocky floor next to the mundane statue as Tuck braves the metal floor away from the golem to get a better look at them.

The prints don't look like they were made during a fight, but one of the sets of prints look like someone was pacing, impatiently. Maybe they were waiting for someone to arrive, or something to happen. (If someone came from the other side to let them through, there might not be a way forward without fighting the golem.) The footprints didn't avoid the center of the room once they got moving forward again. It even looks like one of them walked right up to the golem before heading north.

Again, the golem does not move to attack. Perhaps the arcanus is right, if he can disable the trap, the golem won't attack. It isn't a given but there could be a connection.

 

[JustinCase]

"Here," the kobold points to the footprints. "They walked over here, to there, and over the metal."

As he follows the tracks with his eyes and pointing them out to his allies, Tuck looks puzzled.

"I think they paused in front of the golem to activate some mechanism."

He looks back, and a curious spark can be seen in his beady kobold eyes.

"Either that, or they did a dance move."

For added emphasis, Tuck makes a quick tapdancing twostep, before continuing as if nothing happened, "And perhaps I can prevent the golem to attack if I disable that trap."

OOC: Tuck tells the others what he's found, as described the spoiler in the post above.

 

[Scotley]

Breva considers quietly as the others debate magics and traps and creatures beyond his kin. Finally he speaks. "If you try and disable whatever trap is there and gargolem thingy attacks we will stand ready. Just retreat behind Sir Tim and I. We will stand ready to vanquish it should it dane to attack." He stands ready with his sword.

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Tim nods in agreement, "Agreed. The one flaw in any magical construct is that they typically can't stand up to pure brute force, applied by an experienced warrior like Breva or myself. I'll make that thing spit teeth... that is, if it has any, ha ha."

Tim stands ready to assist Breva.

Tim says, "I'm with you, brother. 'Til the bitter end, if need-be."

 

[Neurotic]

Akos shrugs
"OK then, we don't clear out behind the doors."
Concentrating for a moment, the faint outline of the unseen servant shimmers for a moment before disappearing completely.
"Go, take the necklace from that statue yonder."

Spoiler: Actions

Cast unseen servant
Move so he can see the target
Direct the servant to take the necklace

 

[Knightfall]

"Here," the kobold points to the footprints. "They walked over here, to there, and over the metal."

As he follows the tracks with his eyes and pointing them out to his allies, Tuck looks puzzled.

"I think they paused in front of the golem to activate some mechanism."

He looks back, and a curious spark can be seen in his beady kobold eyes.

"Either that, or they did a dance move."

For added emphasis, Tuck makes a quick tapdancing twostep, before continuing as if nothing happened, "And perhaps I can prevent the golem to attack if I disable that trap."

OOC: Tuck tells the others what he's found, as described the spoiler in the post above.

"I trust you instincts," Custodio says.

Breva considers quietly as the others debate magics and traps and creatures beyond his kin. Finally he speaks. "If you try and disable whatever trap is there and gargolem thingy attacks we will stand ready. Just retreat behind Sir Tim and I. We will stand ready to vanquish it should it dane to attack." He stands ready with his sword.

Tim nods in agreement, "Agreed. The one flaw in any magical construct is that they typically can't stand up to pure brute force, applied by an experienced warrior like Breva or myself. I'll make that thing spit teeth... that is, if it has any, ha ha."

Tim stands ready to assist Breva.

Tim says, "I'm with you, brother. 'Til the bitter end, if need-be."

Castallana moves back out of the room to make room for the half-ogre knight and Custodio is forced to move back into the choke point, so Tim can get through.

Tuck moves forward to locate the trap's mechanism at the same time as Akos casts his unseen servant spell...

Akos shrugs
"OK then, we don't clear out behind the doors."
Concentrating for a moment, the faint outline of the unseen servant shimmers for a moment before disappearing completely.
"Go, take the necklace from that statue yonder."

Spoiler: Actions

Cast unseen servant
Move so he can see the target
Direct the servant to take the necklace

The servant moves toward the statue and Akos isn't sure if it is Tuck moving towards the trap or the servant reaching for the magic collar that causes the golem to stir. Its wings unfurl and its eyes flash a crimson color. It lurches upright and a hissing sound comes from it like a strong acid being poured onto stone.

 

[Knightfall]

Tuck easily finds the outline of the pit trap in between the two columns but it soon dawns on him that he really can't disable it without help. There doesn't seem to be any obvious mechanisms.

Soon, Vinny is crouching next to him. The Sectarian Guard looks for something that might keep the pit from opening, but if there is something hidden that will disable it, Vinny can't find it.