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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Seravin" data-source="post: 1968237" data-attributes="member: 6783">The Fourth BasementThe bulk of The Blue Diamond’s fourth basement actually resides under the neighboring warehouse; though the only direct access to this level is from The Blue Diamond building itself.  This basement is where the leadership and taskmasters store the majority of their aquired loot.  This level is also unique in that it is the only sub-basement which has exits into the surrounding sewer tunnels.Needless to say the fourth basement is well secured and only the leadership of the guild knows where all the hidden exit tunnels are and how to safely bypass this level’s physical and magical protections.  These protections are extensive and rumors of them are discouraged, though the leadership has on occasion started their own false rumors as an act of disinformation.  The leadership is well aware that they are training the largest group of people most likely able to bypass their own security.Again, Ashimar was the first person down the stairs and he took a quick look around and his friends gathered around behind him.  This time they were in a storeroom, filled near to bursting with small boxes and crates.  “What do you think they have here?”  He asked out loud.“Let’s find out.  Maybe we’ll find Imych’s harp.”“Maybe.”  With that the four began to pick randomly through the boxes, prying open the sealed crates with prybars the previous movers had left behind.  It quickly became apparent that there was no rhyme or reason to stacking of the boxes.  One box held crystal goblets while another contained a collection of sharp cheeses.  In the corner was a rolled up rug apparently made in Relk, while behind a stack of boxes was a pile of forgotten books (poetry of the Southern Empire).  After a quick five minutes of ransacking the room with nothing exceptionally interesting found, the group decided to move on through the iron-bound, heavy wooden, double doors that were on the far side of the room.  Ashimar checked the doors first, sighed, and then stood up gesturing for Kestral to take a look.  The young woman approached the door warily for none of them believed that anything on this level would be untrapped. “Another spell-glyph.”  She announced after a thorough examination.  Pulling out her tools she began to carefully etch additional incisions into the nearly invisible runes around the door.  After a short while she stood up and waved Kellron forward.  “Your turn.  It’s unlocked and I think the trap is disabled.”Kellron suppressed a sigh and mentally steeled himself as Kestral backed away.  Once everyone was clear he firmly grasped the heavy latch, lifted it, and pulled open the rightmost wooden door.  The doors swung silently open on well-oiled hinges revealing a short, wide hallway with identical doors at the end.  Before Kellron could say anything, Kestral was right there kneeling on the floor and examining the floor just inside the hallway.Her caution was well reward as her sharp eyes caught the subtle displacement in the wooden paneling.  It took only a bit of experimentation and probing to find a concealed panel with a lever inside.  Kestral pulled the lever up into the up position and then cautiously made her way down the hallway.  It looked like the wall paneling would swing open to reveal some nasty trap or another.  Privately Kestral was betting on scything blades but perhaps poisoned darts or some other ugly mechanical monstrosity.  The far doors were trapped similarly to the first set and it didn’t take Kestral long to disable this one too.  She gestured Kellron forward and moved out of the way as he prepared to open the double doors.This time the paladin swung both doors open, revealing another obvious storage room.  Unlike the first storage room, this one was perhaps a little larger and nearly empty, with only a few stacks of boxes here and there.  However, like the first storage room this one was lit by two flickering, magical torches.  Kellron entered first as Ashimar, Kestral, and Jallarzi closed up ranks behind him in the tunnel.ZzzRAaaP!Five feet into the room, Kellron was nearly knocked backward as a bright blue spark nearly exploded on top of him.  Kellron was now face to face with a bright, glowing blue ball of light hovering just in front of him.  The warrior was certain it hadn’t been there when he walked in but his still spasming muscles confirmed it was there now.The globe of light pulsed briefly as if amused and zipped forward again. ZzzRAaaP!  Kellron’s still tingling muscles were slow to react as his armor channeled another burst of electricity and then the ball of light zipped away into the middle of the room.Shaking his head and shrugging off the pain, Kellron drew his sword and moved into the room; his enchanted blade catching flame as it cleared the scabbard.  Ashimar, Kestral, and Jallarzi also moved into the room, fanning out while reaching for weapons and spell components.ZzzRAaaP!  This time Jallarzi took the brunt of the electric blast as the globe darted in, touched her, and darted away.  “Aoowww!  Will-O’-Wisp!”  She called out as she tried to remember what she could of the creature; nothing came to mind.”Ashimar charged the wisp which was now hovering some thirty feet away, swinging his rapier and wondering what the heck was going to happen.  The lightball was murderously fast and the electric arcs were doing more then just stinging.  Unfortunately the creature just bobbed out of the way of swing.Jallarzi focused passed the tingle and forced her muscles to work as she let loose with a trio of magic missiles.  Fortunately the bolts unerringly sought out the bobbing light, swinging wide around the creature before striking, causing the creature to leave a small trail of roiling blue vapor.  By accident Jallarzi had stumbled on one of the few weaknesses of the creature.Kestral eyed the situation grimly and with a shrug pulled out her bow, nocked an arrow, and let loose at the creature.  With Ahsimar standing right next to it she had little hope of hitting, but there was always luck.  She missed.Kellron charged just as Kestral’s arrow arced over the bobbing light.  He was luckier then Ashimar and Kestral and managed to connect against the wisp; his flaming blade trailing burning vapor as he passed through the lower third of the wisp.It was a long, hectic fight.  The creature was faster then everyone else and Kellron found himself chasing the creature about the room as it zapped everyone.  By the time Kellron’s blade sliced through the creature for the final time, Jallarzi found herself barely standing and neither Ashimar nor Kellron were looking good.  Only Kestral was virtually unscathed for she hadn’t posed much of a threat.  As one, they decided to take stock and expend what healing resources they needed.  Briefly they wondered how the creature had been bound to the room.  That question would go unanswered however and they would never learn that the will o’wisp had been drawn from the fiendish realms with a magical contract.Ashimar stowed his empty potion vial in his pouch and let out a long sigh.  “Huh.  What now?”“I don’t see any doors.”  Spoke up Jallarzi as she walked around.“No visible doors.”  Corrected Kestral.“I have an idea.”  Piped up Ashimar.  “Since every other door has been spell-trapped, how about a detect magic?”“Good idea.”  So saying, Jallarzi invoked the simplest of divinations and scanned the room.  “On second thought, great idea.”  She concentrated briefly and then began to slowly walk around the room.  “I see only three sources.  One on each of the long walls, and a third over here on the floor in the corner.  Moderate strength and illusionary.”  She puzzled the last out in her mind as she directed Ashimar and Kestral to the wall sources.It took the former rogue and the courier only a few seconds to find the hidden doors on the walls.  Kestral spent a few more minutes on her door and confirmed the existence of a spell-trap on it.  Next they investigated the enchanted patch of floor; this time it took over a minute to find the devilishly hidden trap door, which in the end was only given away by the spell-trap runes encircling it.Ashimar looked sidelong at Jallarzi.  “Do you have a Dispel Magic?”“Wand, scroll, or spell?”  She asked sweetly.“Whatever it takes.”Shortly the spells on the two secret doors and the trap door were either suppressed or dispelled.  Investigation revealed that the two secret doors opened into narrow stone corridors, each of which had a trace of sewer stench.  After a brief conference they decided to head further down.Their decision ws well rewarded.  The trap door revealed yet another narrow tunnel that sloped away and upward, to finally open up into another empty room lined with a dull, gray metal.  At the far end of the room was heavy iron door with three locks on it.  Between Kestral and Ashimar it took only a few minutes to open the heavy door.  The tunnel beyond opened up into a water filled cavern, echoing with the sound of running water.</blockquote>

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