(CSRHoD) Creamsteak's Red Hand of Doom II [IC]

[Creamsteak]

Warren descends back down the ladder and finds himself confronted with what looks largely like an ordinary cellar with various different casks, boxes, crates, and various other containers. Two things of note are clearly visible. The first, that the cellar has been flooded with approximately a foot of water. Second, that there is that the man-made cellar appears to be attached to a small natural cavern that goes off to the north.

 

[Arkhandus]

Warren nods in thanks to Tyrla, returning to his scout-duty. The halfling's disappointed to find a simple cellar hidden behind the secret door, but then notices the natural cave. Maybe this sleepy little thorp had been secretly involved in the smuggling/drug-trade business before? He carefully steps down into the water, then sneaks over to the natural cave and goes to explore it for a minute or two before returning to report again. THe waist-deep water is annoying, but it's not like he hasn't slogged through nasty water several times before in Elsir Vale.

Times like this are when he wishes he had traded some earlier magical loot for one of those see-through-darkness magic items he's heard about. The annoyingly bright stick Tyrla gave him stuck out like a sore thumb down here. Not that a torch would've been any less conspicuous. Warren sighs. He twists his shadow around him in a concealing cloak, but it wasn't particularly helpful with the light source in his grip.
[sblock=ooc]Still taking 10 on Move Silently, and using Child of Shadow stance just in case for a 20% concealment miss chance against attacks.[/sblock]

 

[Creamsteak]

Warren moves eighty feet into the cavern before finding a wooden doorway lodged in the western wall. The door seems locked and barred from this side. Further down the hallway Warren notices that the water does not reach, and he finds himself moving up, towards a second doorway forty-feet ahead of the first shaped in a similar fashion but unlocked and unbarred. The second door has iron bars on it, providing a glimpse of what's behind the door, but Warren's a bit short to just look through without climbing or standing on something. Or maybe jumping a little.

 

[Arkhandus]

Warren slips the sunrod's handle through his belt and hops up to grab the bars and take a quick look past them, before lowering himself back to the ground. His magic boots make it even easier than ever for the already-spry halfling. If he doesn't see anything in there, he'll open the door, but he keeps his short sword ready as he does so, just in case.
[sblock=ooc]Taking 10 on Jump for a 25.

Does the corridor go on further past this second door?[/sblock]

 

[Creamsteak]

The corridor does continue past the second door. Warren can see what looks like a barricade has been set up ahead. Layers of wood, chairs, barrels, and sharpened fire-hardened spikes block the way. The small silvered reflections of numerous caltrops decorate the floors, and it looks like multiple crossbows have been set up and loaded nearby with silvered ammunition.

A small trail of blood leads through the mess of caltrops and past the barricade, further into the tunnel.

 

[Arkhandus]

Warren returns to the group to report. He adds "It looks like someone or something made its way over the caltrops to the barricade. The villagers might have tried escaping that way......from whatever killed the gobbos? I dunno. And then maybe it followed them, given the blood trail. I want to check out the two doors in the tunnel, but I'm not sure what I'll find, and it might be dangerous. So what d'ya thnk? Wanna go slog through the little tunnel and back me up if somethin' nasty's past one of those doors? I'm gonna check them out anyway, of course....."[sblock=ooc]So.....the door blocks the way to the rest of the corridor, right, but is unlocked and unbarred? Just want to be sure I have the layout of the tunnel right in my head. Also, how big is the tunnel, is it also around 3 feet in diameter or more human-sized?[/sblock]

 

[Creamsteak]

The natural cavern and cellar are of ordinary size.

 

[Redclaw]

That seems a good idea. I'd like to see what caused all of this damage, and if there are any survivors from the village we should do what we can to help them, Larian suggests. Focusing on Warren, he adds, If you would like added protection I can mask you from sight.

[sblock=ooc] If Warren wants it, Larian will cast invisibility using his rod of extend, making it good for 16 minutes of exploration. [/sblock]

 

[renau1g]

"Indeed, we need to see if there are any survivors, or foes, to either help or dispatch" Pender adds, hands instinctively reflexing open and closed, anxiously awaiting the feeling of the greatsword in his palms.

 

[Creamsteak]

So everybody goes downstairs, and can see what I've described for Warren so-far.