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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jeremy" data-source="post: 9753497" data-attributes="member: 4036"><h3>3/12/22</h3>For as blithe as Gribitz is, Grath is extremely troubled by the pillar.  When he touches it, the pillar giggles which creeps the priest out even more causing him to try to leave the room.  But all the doors beyond are just endless darkness now and the pillar still refuses to let us go or give us its name.  When the party asks about Alexander, the pillar answers that he is much beyond Alexander.  When Gribitz cooks up the fish and offers some, the proffered meal starts to slowly disappear as if an invisible creature is eating it.  Next the pillar challenges Grath to a game with figures and monsters and replicas of the party.  When the priest reluctantly agrees, the party is summoned to an open field seemingly outside where a group of knights are arrayed against another group of ogres and orcs.  Veldra is shocked to see one of the soldiers is her old commanding officer.  Her heartbeat races and breathing becomes frantic as one by one she looks around and sees the faces of her former unit.  While she knows they are all dead, here they are looking fresh and unharmed and looking to her for orders.  She locks up, rigidly looking from one to the next and her hand drifts to her sword as a glut of emotions overwhelm her.She calls them ghosts, refusing to believe.  When Gribitz pokes one of them, they feel real.  The plants underfoot taste like paper though and the soil doesn’t have any life in it.  Grath and Veldra continue to investigate the soldiers as they ask for orders.  Eventually it is decided to start attacking the enemy from range and hold the starting hill as the orcs and ogres approach.As Grath begins to cast a spell a booming voice echoes from the sky commanding the battle to start.  A moment later he tries again and this time it works as apparently each side can only take actions during their “turn”.Both sides begin advancing and as manifestations fall, they dissolve into the ground.  Gribitz offhandedly comments to Pillar that its hard to believe the game when the pieces fall so unconvincingly.  The orcs have a shaman with a fireball attack that dramatically changes the tide of things as well as the plan.  Rho breaks ranks to charge forth and endures a fusillade of javelins from orcs and ogres on his approach.The knight side begins striking back as Grath and Veldra charge into the fray as well.  Grath steps into the air and his healing power suffuses and strengthens our pieces enough to keep them up while the enemy leader is brought down by Rho and fades away.  Eventually all the enemy forces fall and in reward Pillar awards two remaining beads of the Necklace of Fireballs the shaman had used.  Veldra stands mute as the phantoms of her fallen comrades vanish as if they never were.  Pillar states that any of the remaining doors will lead to the blue dwarves beyond which is the domain of Alexander.Gribitz picks a hall and starts down it only to be welcomed into the warm embrace of a gelatinous cube.  Grath rolls his eyes and hurries forward to plunge his arms into the cube to yank Gribitz’s dripping form free.  Gribitz tries to hug his savior but the priest turns his nose up at the goblin dripping with acid. Gribitz shrugs before darting away to safety, only for Grath himself to be engulfed by the cube.  The others charge to help and just as Grath struggles free, the animated ooze finally collapses.  Gribitz collects a bit of it in some empty healing potion bottles figuring the acid could come in handy.Grath finds another gazer muttering about how pretty Ocelot is.  When Grath leaves it be, Gribitz insists that it is a blight upon the Green and needs to be eliminated.  Grath obliges him, obliterating the abomination and spinning on his heel to walk down an extremely lengthy hallway.  At the end of the very long hallway is a well maintained and upgraded door that Veldra says is dwarven work.  Surprisingly, Rho speaks Dwarvish and talks to a dwarven guard on the other side of it until a slot in the door opens (at Rho’s knees).  The conversation appears to be progressing until the sentry notices a goblin standing behind Rho picking his nose. Upon seeing the dragon is allies with Gribitz the dwarf abruptly cuts off the conversation and slams the blind closed, telling us to naughty word off.Grath sighs and knocks again insistently, he tries to convince the dwarves to speak Common to him.  Grath asks about an exit or Alexander and the dwarves are surprised to hear some of the history of this labyrinth and begin opening the mechanisms on the door as Grath has gathered a trove of knowledge about the tower during the party's time trapped there.  The dwarves invite him to see their chieftain but command us to relinquish our weapons and speak with respect.  Gribitz bursts out laughing until Grath and Rho both clamp his mouth shut and Rho stuffs the goblin in his backpack alongside the sleeping Kith.</blockquote>

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