You can fight your battles alone

[at]

A bit closer now Ka'lion is able to see that the figure wears a scarf across their face, but their uncovered hands and eyes show that they are not undead.
The style of their armour is unfamiliar to him, and the rapidly closing horde of undead seem to hold their attention more than the lone archer at the temple.

Nov 17, 2014 8:46:47 GMT -5 sageaqua said:

"WATCH OUT! UNDEAD ARCHER IN DOORWAY OF TEMPLE!" calls Ka'lion to the red robed man on roof.

(they know - it's what they shot at when they changed their target away from Ka'lion)

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion assumes human form, "Come with me. Nows the time to enter the well." as he runs to the well.

[at]

The distraction caused by the archer gives Ka'lion and Elika a clean getaway, they reach the damaged well without further difficulty.

Elika notes that the climb down was not difficult with the cracked sides but lowering a wolf down would be more difficult - and getting it back up in a hurry almost impossible. Ka'lion of course has some prior experience of this.

[sageaqua]

07uGfewHp_1-20
Ka'lion takes his wolf harness and fits it to Scar and lowers Scar down1-20

[at]

The group descends into a damp, cracked crevice at the bottom of the well. It is a bit of a squeeze but Elika leads them out along the path she took the previous night and it is not long before the come out onto a rocky rise - more of a collection of fallen debris than anything constructed for a purpose.

The sight beyond is familiar to Ka'lion, a vast underground cavern where the shapes of shattered buildings are lit by a dull red glow from beneath, patches of fire pooled in the streets below like water. Several distant buildings also seem to burn internally and give the group some way by which to orientate themselves.

"I didn't get down to ground level before, I couldn't risk losing my way back to this entrance. But perhaps your wolf can track the barbarian's path back from here - I brought his boots, and prepared a spell to get us back here should we have trouble finding the way out." She puts a small piece of jewellery under a rock at the entrance, a marker of some sort for a location spell he presumed.

[sageaqua]

"Scar stay with me. We are taking this quiet and slow." says Ka'lion letting Scar get a good understanding of the boots then he turns into a wolf so he can see.

[at]

Scar works his way down towards the underground city, having to be helped several times where the barbarian had clambered up a relatively steep surface. Ultimately though the group makes it's way to what might be considered the 'street' level, able to see the ruined buildings up close.

The stonework is worn and collapsed but the scale of the buildings suggest humans or human sized inhabitants, the sheer scale of the city and the stone needed to build it is breathtaking. Inspection of a few buildings reveal less debris inside that Ka'lion would have expected - perhaps the city had been abandoned before it's fall. Further exploration also reveals damage both inside and out from the strikes of both man-made weapons and claws to a number of buildings, the damage clearly made long long ago.

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion tracking
search
M_iSaPwhp_1-20+6=12

+ any bonus - Ka'lion wants to get an idea of the number of barbarains that came the way they are headed - he compares it with the number of horses with the horse owner upstairs. He is also looking for signs of battle and old blood on the off chance the bodies have been moved. The oder of old blood is very strong so it should be easy to find.1-20

[at]

There was no recent fighting here, this was simply the path of the barbarian's retreat. Looking around Ka'lion can see nothing to suggest why the man chose to take this route, sheer fortune perhaps that he found an exit.

Following Scar the party advances further through the streets, an oddly winding path for a running man, until Scar stops suddenly and looks up, tail tucked between his legs and his eyes wide.

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion looks at what is frighting him. What are they?

[at]

Nothing in sight - the wolf is staring straight ahead but seems to be listening for, or perhaps feeling something.

Ka'lion too begins to notice that the normally oppressive heat seems cooler here and looks around fearing more of the shadow creatures that he and Vadania had encountered. If he can feel them they must be close, though they have perhaps not detected the party.

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion assume human form and moves next to Elika and quietly whispers into her ear" shadows." then he returns to wolf form and moves back to Scars side.

[at]

As Elika and Ka'lion watch out for the shadows approach the figure from before appears - clearly they have been following you and now stand down the street with bow drawn and pointed in your direction, barely visible in the shadows of the underground city.

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion returns to human form, points at the archer and then puts his finger to his lips and turns his back on the man facing the shadows but he never says a word.

[at]

As Ka'lion turns the figure looses their arrow - but not at him, rather a figure unseen hidden nearby. The shadow creature recoils as it's position is revealed as two more - one ahead and one advancing on the archer streak out from their concealment.

They seem a little smaller than the shadow faced before but doubtless no less dangerous. The shadows of the city provide perfect points of ambush for their kind.

[Tag all - roll init]

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion
init
_g4S40h4p_1-20+6=

Scar
init
p_1-20+?=1-20�1-20

[at]

The archer continues to fire on the wounded shadow, Ka'lion notes that his arrows seem to reform as he draws his bow and strike with devastating effect, his target dissipating into smoke and darkness when struck a second time. As he turns to fire upon another foe - the largest of the shadows - it seems to flicker away into the shadows appearing beside him to strike.

The final shadow rushes to attack Elika as she throws a pair of magic missiles at it, the force bolts proving effective but not fatal.


[Tag Ka'lion/Scar]

Archer : 19
Elika : 13
Shadow things : 12
Ka'lion & Scar : 6

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion attacks with his ax
+2lvl+1magic+0str+2flanking+rolli9FOqh5xp_1-20=10

Scar
+3+2flanking+p_1-20=10
trip
p_1-20

damage
p_1-6+11-20�1-20�1-20�1-6

[at]

Neither Ka'lion nor Scar strike, the creature seemingly having no front or back and able to see and evade attacks in ways no humanoid would. It seems to taunt Ka'lion as it continues to attack Elika, who is focussing on her own defence above all else.

In the darkness Ka'lion can just about make out the archer now fighting with a sword in one hand, their bow still held in the other.

[Tag Ka'lion/Scar]

[sageaqua]

Ka'lion
+3+rollAPsR6Td4p_1-20=9

Damage
p_1-8+1=2
Scar
+3+rollp_1-20=12
p_1-6+1=71-20�1-8�1-20�1-6