D&D 5E One Shot #3: Lady of the Mist

[Greenmtn]

Bilkar Gnome Druid

Bilkars first reaction at the sound of the Roar is to jump, squeak and hide behind Ivar.

He then quickly looks around almost as if he is hoping that no one noticed.

"Dangerous Lizard. Big. Bilkar brave." He mutters as much to convince himself of it as to make sure that everyone else knows.

Bilkar approaches the door to the room where he expects the fight to be taking place.

"Open door. Bilkar make door not look open. Pack look in through illusion before pouncing?"

 

[KahlessNestor]

Isle of Mists
Dusk
Round 0

Stonecunning: 1D20+4 = [12]+4 = 16

Ivar studied the castle and the stonework as they entered the building. He studies the prints, too, and then draws his war pick as he hears the monstrous howl of pain.

Lee rushed forward, and Ivar shook his head. “Careful, lass.”

Bilkar hid behind him before finding some spine. Ivar grunted with approval to the gnome. He drew a handaxe, just in case he needed some range to attack.

[sblock=Actions]
Move:
Action: Perception: 1D20+3 = [11]+3 = 14
Bonus Action:.
Reaction: Opportunity Attack
Conditions:
[/sblock]

[sblock=Ministats]
Inspiration:
AC: 14
HP: 9/15 HD: 0/1 1d12+3
Rage: 2/2/LR
[/sblock]

[sblock=Notes]
[/sblock]

 

[EarlyBird]

OOC: Stonecunning: Ivar notices one thing that really sticks out about the stonework of this castle/manor. It is really really old. More than 400 years old. The fire scoring on the rock isn't recent either possibly 250-300 years old.

Room 3:
As you proceed further into the castle, you become even more aware of how badly ruined it is. The hall you are standing in is dominated by a grand staircase in the white marble leading up to the second floor. It is covered with heavy beams and other debris that have fallen from the ceiling, which is almost totally gone. The walls of the second story are visible through the hole above. Only a narrow portion of the ceiling remains along the east wall. The floor of the hall is also littered with debris.

There are several doors in the hall, all bronze and all corroded green.

Room 6:
This large room appears to have been a dining room. The east wall consists of a series of graceful archways opening onto another room beyond. Five long wooden tables appear to be remarkably well preserved (one was broken in a scuffle). The luster is gone from their once polished surfaces, but the dark wood appears unaffected by age and time. Chairs that probably once stood around the tables haven't fared as well, and many are badly rotted and lie scattered about the floor in pieces. The floral patterns of murals on the walls are another sign this area was largely spared the fire that seems to have swept through other parts of the ground floor of the castle.

Through the illusionary door you can see a large spider is currently webbing up a huge, unconscious lizard. Slowly cocooning it as it turns it over and over.

Room 8:
This area was evidently once a conservatory. Much of the roof and the outer walls have collapsed, covering the floor with rubble. Dead tree trunks stick up between the snapped beams and sections of roofing. Webbing covers almost everything in this area.

OOC: Brown square is illusionary door. What do you do?

[sblock=Map]
[/sblock]

 

[jmucchiello]

"A giant spider is webbing up a large lizard," Lee whispers.

OOC: Is the lizard a basilisk? perception [roll0]

 

[EarlyBird]

Lee notices five to six of the lizard's legs sticking out through the webbing at the moment.

OOC: Yep, a basilisk

 

[jmucchiello]

Lee walks over to the illusionary door and finds the real doors behind it and closes them. "The giant spider caught a large basilisk and is in the process of cocooning it. I see no reason to punish it for doing so. Let's find out about that scream up ahead."

 

[Greenmtn]

"Bilkar looks around as Lee closes the door.
"When nations die, nature remains."

OOC: Not back yet. Just checking in on my phone. Is the Spyder something I could talk to? Maybe we could get some Intel out of him since he has plenty of food for now. No hard feeling if no one wants me to risk it. If it is something I think I could talk to include the following in my post

"Bilkar make friend?"

 

[jmucchiello]

"I think someone actively screaming is a higher priority right now," Lee says going back to the northern door and carefully peering in, looking down first.

OOC: Perception: [roll0]

 

[JustinCase]

Mister Bubbles nods in agreement.

"Later," he says quietly. With a quick motion of his head, the half-orc suggests, "Upstairs?"

 

[Greenmtn]

Bilkar Gnome Druid

Bilkar visibly deflates a little but seems to admit to himself that now is not the time.

"Bilkar like make friends. OK Pack go up."

Bilkar turns and looks at the debris covered stairs and frowns as he glances at his short legs. "Hard climb for Gnome legs. Good thing Bilkar not a real Gnome."

Bilkars features begin to change. He seems to start getting smaller, hunching over and fur growing from his skin as it seems to absorb his clothing, his eyes widening momentarily as if a strange sensation has taken him over as a bushy tail sprouts from behind him.

As a few seconds go by and the transformation completes, before you where once stood this strange little Gnome. Now stands a strange gray squirrel. Seemingly looking it's self over quite pleased before scurrying up the post at the end of the remains of the railing, turning and looking at the group.

 

[jmucchiello]

Mister Bubbles suggests, "Upstairs?"​

"Upstairs?" Lee asks. "We're just going to ignore this open door I'm standing next. And ignore the open door there at the bottom of the stairs. Ignore them both and just go upstairs? Do we wants something sneaking up behind us when we run into trouble up there?"

 

[EarlyBird]

[sblock=What Lee sees]
Room 5:
Only a burned-out shell remains of this room. Gaping holes in the north wall are all that remain of the windows. The walls are blackened by fire and soot. Piles of rubbish cover the floor. The bronze door leading east appears to have partially melted. There is nothing left of value to be seen in here.[/sblock]

Seeing nothing of interest the monk moves on. Mr. Bubbles feels an odd compulsion to look in after Lee moves aside.

[sblock=What Mr. Bubbles sees]
Room #5
Somehow, this room seems to have survived the destruction of the castle. The walls are lined with bookcases filled with books of all sizes. In the center of the room are a few neatly arranged groups of tables and comfortable armchairs. Moonlight beams in through the tall windows in the north wall.

Suddenly a man's head appears over the back of one of the chairs facing the windows. He jumps out of it and is quickly followed by a woman from the same chair. Both are clad in expensive and elegant clothing. They stand frozen, staring in the half-orcs direction. Then they begin backing off, thier faces twisted in fear. The woman begins to scream as gouts of fire seem to pour from the warlock to engulf them both.[/sblock]

Mr. Bubbles turns and dry heaves as he uses his cane to stay standing. He coughs and hacks for several moments. Ivar and Ryder are at the base of the stairs while the squirrel form of Bilkar sits high on the railing of the stairway. Lee standing next to the other set of a jarred doors looks on.

[sblock=In Mr.Bubbles head]
"Witness my power. Witness what you could achieve by bowing your will to me." a hideous voices booms. "Look! Obey me and LOOK!" [/sblock]

Everyone watches as the half-orc stands and covers his eyes, shaking his head back and forth as if defying someone. And then he removes his hands to stare into the room, a faint orange glow, like the light from a fire briefly surrounding his eyes.

OOC: Mr. Bubbles now sees the room as Lee saw it (see sblock above)

[sblock=Map]
[/sblock]

 

[KahlessNestor]

Isle of Mists
Dusk
Round 0

Ivar studied the stonework as they passed through. “This place is old,” he murmured. “Four ‘unnerd years. An’ it fell a long time ago, tae, mebbe three ‘unnerd years.”

On seeing the spider, Ivar shivered. He hated spiders. Damn drow. “We sure tha’ thing ain’t gaein’ t’ bite us in the arse if we leave it be’ind us?” he warned. But it did seem this floor was clear. “Also still got a door in the south corner, an’ in the entry,” Ivar said.

“Where did tha’ scream come from?” He moved to the base of the stairs to cover their rear.

[sblock=Actions]
Move:
Action:
Bonus Action:.
Reaction: Opportunity Attack
Conditions:
[/sblock]

[sblock=Ministats]
Inspiration:
AC: 14
HP: 9/15 HD: 0/1 1d12+3
Rage: 2/2/LR
[/sblock]

[sblock=Notes]
[/sblock]

 

[JustinCase]

Mister Bubbles is reeling from the vision and the voice in his head. Trembling, he opens his eyes and looks again into the room that he first suggested they ignore.

Nothing now.

"I'm going mad," he whispers, realizing exactly what is causing these visions. He tries, vainly, to close his eyes again; tears forming at the edges of his vision as the warlock attempts to defy his powerful patron. As he watches, the shadows in the room seem to lighten, showing their secrets, and Mister Bubbles realizes that it is because of the connection of the fiend to the dark shadows of this world that the half-orc is given the ability to see into those pools of darkness and despair.

Keep it together, he tells himself. Don't upset the others. This has nothing to do with them. Do not make them part of this, do not make him take them too.

With a start, Mister Bubbles is released from the fiendish grip, and he breathes out loudly. Looking around, he tries to smile comfortingly at his companions and make light of these events.

"Just a haunted castle," he says, failing to sound convincingly nonchalant.

 

[Greenmtn]

Bilkar Gnome Druid

The squirrel cocks his head looking at the others. Is that, Yes the squirrel just shrugged.

Bilkar scurries up the railing to the first landing and looks up the stairs to see what can be seen above.

OOC: Perception: [roll0]

Getting to the top of the stairs he sees a pine cone resting on the landing and his instincts give in jumping down on top of the pine cone he starts chewing on it only to realize that it is far to dry at this point to be tasty. He drops the pine cone and appears to nibble the fur of his arm, maybe to get the taste out of his mouth.

 

[JustinCase]

OOC: It seems someone noticed Mister Bubbles' glee, because a whisper offers him more information to find the traitor. Intrigued, Mister Bubbles follows the stranger, not worried about his safety as he was not someone people tended to pick fights with. Did you just quote one line from my first post in this thread? WTF?

 

[KahlessNestor]

I think it's a bot or something.

 

[Greenmtn]

Sure looks that way. Signed up a while ago then out of the blue a rapid succession of posts quoting earlier posts in the thread.

 

[jmucchiello]

Did anyone report it?

 

[Ancalagon]

Meanwhile, no signs of earlybird...