[Adventure]: Shards of Eldanarth (DM: MadAzolin, Judge: ??)

[MetaVoid]

Deva shrugs, smiles to the hunters and goes after the necromancer, leaving enough space between himself and the skeleton. He doesn't want to accidentally bump the thing with his staff and destroy it.

"If you can get the route whenever you want, we might want to skirt the swamp. I was in one on Kythira and it's not pleasant. The progress is slow and it's dangerous. The hunters probably know this and would circle around rather then follow us through, we too might be faster going around."

 

[MadAzolin]

Hunters seem totally ignorant as party passes their hiding place and proceeds down the path and deeper into the forest. While at first easy, maintained path soon ends. The road becomes overgrown with thorny vines and bushes – there is no clear way ahead – only option is pushing through the untamed wilderness of this place. While glades are not far ahead, path is difficult and sense of being watched is thick in the air.
As companions check small clearing at path's end for passage forward, Silver moon is reaching horizon - it will be darker soon and with darkness with come Hunter's moon and hunting horns... As darkness is slowly growing, forest is starting to change - pale glow of strange flowers provides dim light, buzzing of oversized insects and flowery scents permeate the air and shadows deepen and darken, taking on strange shapes, seemingly very different from objects that cast them.
[sblock="ooc"] Travel through the wild will be treated as prolonged skill challenge, so feel free to decide on who will be leading party through difficult terrain, to use skills, rituals... as usual, good ideas and plans are bonus.
[/sblock]
[sblock="endurance"] Path is getting difficult ahead, (easy) endurance roll for each PC is required to minimize effects of fatigue, difficult terrain... [/sblock]
[sblock="perception DC 20"] While there seems to be no imminent danger ahead, but vegetation is thick and strange and some of these thorns at size of knives and sharper then steel - progress will not be fast or comfortable.
[/sblock]

 

[MetaVoid]

His robes bound at the waist, weakly looking deva runs with the best of the group, noticing things in the run that would be missed by experienced hunters.

"Here we should take alternate route if we're going to go around the swamp. There are thorns here that would cut through our clothes and armor as knives. Can you check the amulet again, Martelai?"

Endurance (1d20+4=23)
Perception DC 20 auto-pass even with -5

 

[Neil1889]

Lilli looked at the Feywild thorns and felt a sense of impending déjà-vu, but she shook it off and started looking for some sort of tiny nocturnal bird, vole or perhaps a bat. Maybe her Animal Friendship ritual could help?

"I was thinking that we could have used the view from mountain to look for this palace. Um, did you by any chance meet any Gnomes on Kythira?", she whispered. In spite of that, she found herself wondering about this palace and who the Mistress of the Hunt might be; part of her started searching her mind back for any useful information.

[sblock=rolls]Endurance check = 14

Perception check = 22

MadAzolin, has Lilli heard anything in the past about the palace and who might live there or does she know anything about the Mistress of Hunt? Would a Religion roll be any good (skilled) or History (unskilled, but not too shabby).
[/sblock]

 

[MetaVoid]

"As a matter of fact, we did. There was a village and their shaman went crazy and stole protector totems. I just happened to be there, exploring the elven ruins when everything went bad. There was a group that the gnomes hired to help. I negotiated with elven guardians and their king to help us and we prevented some kind of shadow beholder coming into the world and recovered the artifacts.

Now about this palace: I cannot remember anything particular about this lady. She didn't have much influence in the world."

History to know something about the Lady (1d20+15=19)

 

[Neurotic]

Endurance; Perception (1d20+7=10, 1d20+5=11)

Being drained by the ritual and fighting the owlbears exhausted the warlock and running in circles doesn't help. He blindly stumbles through the underbrush until the group stops and discusses the direction again.

He takes the amulet out, draws a diagram of the stars again and puts the amulet in an empty place within.
Those listening very closely and being close to the warlock may here some mumbling.
"I know you don't like this, but I will use you if I have to. Nothing here will break me, like THEY didn't."

He takes off the gloves again and displays that purple tattoo you saw during the ritual, but this time no blood is involved. Instead he bends his considerable will to break the amulets shield.
Arcana to 'break' into the amulet (1d20+13=20)

Shaking his head after a minute, he turns to the gnome and deva discussing the past.
"I have a feeling this amulet could be a lot more useful if I could break it's shields. I didn't have time to attune correctly after we appeared here and the thing is stronger here. Would you are to help? You too, Vermitrax.

Let's see now..." he gathers small circle..."Don't worry, it will not hurt like the last time, this isn't full blown ritual...just keep the magic alive and channel into me. Except or you, Vermitrax, you keep everything together."
He starts the ritual, words of power in fey language of the eladrin easily coming. He channels the magic, shapes it into the spear, blocking off outside access to the weave so the amulet has no other source of magic but itself and Martelai...the shields he leaves in capable hands of his comrades. Just before he thrusts the spear at the amulet he changes his approach. He sings to the thing. He sings at the best of his ability, trained at bardic college, possessed of the knowledge of magic of eladrin from mage college, legends of his people. He sings of the glory of the Feywild, of the power of its lords, of the beauty of endless forests and magical glades, the joy of its people. This time, he leaves the stars out of it, letting the amulet rest on a living leaf, focusing on his hated heritage, remembering his childhood, the songs and games he got beaten at, the riddles and knowledge he excelled at and finally all the little things that make one an eladrin. Grace. Intelligence. Magic. Eternal and exquisite life of Feywild flowing around him.

Arcana (1d20+13=25) - hopefully with some aid-anothers from others ( should be auto-successes )

 

[MetaVoid]

OOC: Supporting, auto-success on aid another

"If you blast us again with some perverted power, this is last aid you will get from me, warlock."

 

[Voda Vosa]

"Very well, I hope this ends up better this time. For you I mean. This track is going to be really hard if we don't get an edge on things." Vermitrax says, sticking his staff in the ground and trying to thread the chaotic arcane energies of the others into a coherent and determined spell. But that's not all he does. Having the power to shape the energies of the others, Vermitrax also slips in a few lines of his own, trying to secure part of the power of the amulet for himself

Auto-success aid coming right up.
Endurance: 16
Perception: 30
Arcana: 32 to discretely steal power from the amulet.

 

[Neurotic]

"Very well, I hope this ends up better this time. For you I mean. This track is going to be really hard if we don't get an edge on things." Vermitrax says, sticking his staff in the ground and trying to thread the chaotic arcane energies of the others into a coherent and determined spell. But that's not all he does. Having the power to shape the energies of the others, Vermitrax also slips in a few lines of his own, trying to secure part of the power of the amulet for himself

And by "gettin an edge" you mean weaken the group by lowering the power of the only advantage (true, of unknown power, but still) we have? Evil wizard!

 

[Voda Vosa]

Never trust a necromancer!