Difference between pages "Morning of July 18th, in Camp" and "The Deep Dark"

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Continued from '''[[Chieftain's Room]]'''
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Continued from '''[[The Mine]]'''
  
'''The DM:''' Waking up at your camp on the 18th, you find the weather is not bad for Norway: a thin mist with plenty of visibility, no more than light airs that can just be felt and a pleasant temperature.
+
'''The DM:''' As before, the temperature of the air drops and the stairs are steep going down. They come to a landing about 25 feet down, revealing another flight of stairs below that, descending on the leftThe air is thicker, somehow; your torches seem to have trouble permeating itDetectably, there is the slight odour of raspberries mixed with the smell of rotting meatDo you wish to continue descending?
: However, before committing ourselves to a furtherance of adventuring, let me first explain I'm slightly under the weather.  I have a little to do this morning, so I'll be checking less rarelyAnd I'd like to be absolutely sure that everyone is up to speed on changes in character — and that includes Lexent, who also went up to 3rd just recentlyThis is '''the right time''' to ask questions about any new abilities you've acquiredI didn't have time to work them up, but I can get some details sorted right here, and work them up later.
+
[[File:Door at the Bottom.jpg|right|420px|thumb]]
  
'''The DM:''' Pandred, when you get back to your camp late on the 17th, you'll find Anduin there.  He'd come into Treborg, heard some stories about your party, followed you out and found your camp, spoke to your followers there and has been waiting to meet you.  He and Pandred get along very well from the start and though the relationship realistically builds over time, you may accept that he's your henchfolk and you're running him.
+
'''The DM:''' It occurs that I should ask for your marching order.
  
'''The DM:''' I've been thinking about '''Set Injury''' Lexent, and I think it should probably work, initially, that when you set the injury, three effects take place.  One injury point is removed.  You improve the character's mobility (which will depend on making up individual rules for each kind of injury eventually).  And finally, you can aid the hit points gained the same way as aid rest works, with Pandred restoring 7 sup-points of injury per day, as opposed to 5.  The injury page will need to be updated at little, to make the healing section there clearer, and the Set Injury page will need to be made, but for now consider this canon.
+
'''Pandred''': Me, Vaf, Lex, Arduin? Is that acceptable guys?
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Can we retcon to the night of the 17th? There were some things we wanted to accomplish prior to resting.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Let's do it.
  
'''Pandred''': I've changed Arduin's fourth spell from Purify Water to Shillelagh if you don't object, as his background allowed him to get proficiency in club.
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Fine by me. We continue down in that order.
: For other questions I think I would most like to be clued in to what advantages Pandred gets from her new amateur Motivation sage ability, and what Natural Astronomy would provide for Arduin. Will it grant us some ability to avoid getting lost, or is that mainly a benefit while sailing? Should I add a sextant or anything similar to my starting equipment to allow use of the skill?
 
  
'''The DM:''' '''Motivation (sage study)'''.
+
'''Pandred''': Onwards then. ''"Hroagh!"''
: 1. '''Improve Morale (sage ability) ''': All hirelings gain a +1 morale when within 60 feet of Pandred’s person or voice.
 
  
: 2. '''Recruit (sage ability) ''': the character has excellent skills at recruiting new hirelings for duty, with skills at finding new people.  The character adds +1 ability stat to the hireling’s totals, per 5,000 city population, to stat desired, provided no single stat is increased 3 more than the least unincreased stat.  Let me know if that needs an example.
+
'''Marcule:''' I will take the back.
  
: 3. '''Raise Group (sage ability) ''': essentially it allows you to raise a posse in cases where the enforcement of law and order is neededI’ll put this into more medieval-speak when I write the page but that’s the short hand.
+
'''The DM:''' 50 feet down now, you find yourself addressing a heavy reinforced door, like you’ve seen before.  There are two dead flies carcasses on floor in front of the door, like those you saw aboveThe light from the torches seems strangely orange in colour, rather than yellow.
  
'''The DM:''' Yes Lexent, go ahead and run the night before, though remember you're too tired to do anything seriously work-like until you rest.
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I set my godentag down to the side of the door.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Once things have settled down back at camp, I ask for a moment of Marit's time. I apologise to her for aksing her to open the door in the dungeon earlier, and thank her for her efforts of the day.
+
'''Pandred''': I'll test to see if it's unlocked. If it is, I'll check that everyone gets ready, that Marcule and Lex have a chance to call for a spell before I open it.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' How many hit points does everybody need, including hirelings? I show Marit as needing 1, and I'm down by 17.
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I cast ''Protection from Malevolence'' and discharge it on myself.
  
'''The DM:''' Natural Astronomy has a good write up on the old wiki: '''http://tao-dndwiki.blogspot.com/2018/03/natural-astronomy-sage-study.html'''
+
'''The DM:''' It's stuck.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' When I add my new HP, do I add it to my current as well as my max?
+
'''Pandred''': Stuck ain't locked. I'll HROAGH it open.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Pandred, Don't forget to use your bottle on the 17th.
+
'''The DM:''' You're not as strong as you used to be.
  
'''The DM:''' Lexent, casting a spell is hard work.  When you’ve been staggering around doing heavy stress activities for 12 hours, you’re hardly in a condition to pray effectively.  Why not just let it wait for the morning?  I know, I know, you want the benefit of doing it twice, tonight and the next day.  But I’m afraid not; you’ve spent your wad for the 17th.  You’re pooped.
+
'''Pandred''': But stronger in spirit! HROAGH! Vaf, you'd probably have better odds.
  
: As regards Marit, she waves it off.  “I’ve forgotten already,” she’ll tell you.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I'll try it!
  
'''The DM:''' Vafrandir, yesIf your current is 10, and your max is 24, and you added 7 h.p., your current would be 17 and your max would be 31.
+
'''The DM:''' Roll a d100Corrected.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Very well.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' 96.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Has my ''Olfactory Acuity'' added any types of potions or substances I can recognise?
+
'''The DM:''' No, that door is stuck.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Other than using my spells and having Pandred use a healing salve from her bottle, I don't know of anything else we were planning to do on the 17th.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' A question of DM mechanics, if you'll allow: I know you normally don't "roll for success"; either we're strong enough or not. Why the d100 here? Just curious.
  
Pandred: Salve gives 2 to whomever is most needful.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' The sappers can handle this, no doubt. So it'll have to wait.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Understood.
+
'''The DM:''' Been thinking about this.  It’s a game, right?  So the strongest person should be able to attempt the game.  So while yes, you’re either strong enough or you’re not, from a metagame point of view, you don’t know that you are or are not strong enough, yes?  And so there’s a “chance” you are ... and a chance is calculated by dice.
 +
: Is the die a bafflegab?  Perhaps.  I’d like to invent a structured determination for stuck doors that supersedes my decision, but I’m still working on it in my mind.
 +
:'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Makes sense. Thanks!
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Are we going to head back up today, or would we like to rest a day? Helga is in the negatives and Asger is below half hit points.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Shall we investigate the small tunnels? I think only the gnomes can do that.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Let's rest up. We're not terribly bad off but we've had a good beating.
+
'''The DM:''' Can you think of another way to get through this door?  Or the other stuck door on the first level (d.)?
  
'''The DM:''' Lexent, yes.  “Some potions” would include the most common: healing, heroism, sweet water, protection potions. Since this is an amateur ability, I should have covered this earlier.  Marcule took a heroism potion; it lasted until he woke up the next day.  You would have had time to sniff it so yes, the OTHER potion is also heroism.
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Would Pandred and Vafrandir be able to employ a crowbar and attempt it together?
 +
:'''[[Lexent]]:''' Scratch that. I don't see a crowbar anywhere in our supplies.
  
== Breakfast ==
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Also, where are the hinges?
'''The DM:''' Assuming you still want to cast that augury spell, Lexent.  You removed the questions, so you’ll  have to write them again.
 
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Out for a bit.
+
'''Pandred''': I mean, we can hack the door down. That is an option. It just seems like a waste since "stuck" implies to me at least that the door just swelled up with the humidity or something. But hell, we don't plan to live here. Are we against hacking the door open now that we've already alerted what's on the other side?
  
'''The DM:''' Remember that '''Aid''' can add more hit points than a player character’s maximum, so you may want to do that last after other healing takes place.
+
'''Marcule:''' Can i cast chill on the door to see if i can shrink it?
  
'''Marcule:''' In
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Ice expands.
 +
:'''[[Lexent]]:''' But chilling an object (Metal specifically) causes it to contract.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' In.
+
'''Pandred''': Sure, but enough to make a difference? We're not even 100% sure I'm right about what "stuck" means. There could be something like a bar on the other side of the door, or more furniture.
 
 
'''The DM:''' Vafrandir, do you have any questions about the increased puissance list?
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' We rest for the day. I use my ''Aid Rest'' to assist Vafrandir, Marcule, Helga, Asger, and Bjarni. Before sleeping I would like to cast my spells and encourage Pandred to use her bottle. The most injured was Helga, so I assume that those '''2''' points from the 17th went to her.
 
 
 
'''Pandred''': Oh! Before I forget, I'm so sorry. Alexis, could you drum up Arduin's encumbrance? For some reason I can't use the excel sheet from your wiki: it saves as "read only" and I can't access the hidden sheets to copy the formulas.
 
  
'''The DM:''' What were the questions for augury, Lexent?
+
'''Pandred''': Alexis hasn't said what side the hinges are on, and I presume he's had time to see the question, so I'll take that to mean either there aren't any for whatever reason or that we can't see them. With that said, I'm hacking. Battleaxe. Hroagh. Etc. This door is coming down.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I cast ''Augury'' and ask the following questions:
+
'''The DM:''' Page 66 of the DMG suggests: ''"Evil Areas: You may wish to establish areas where evil has made speciol power bases, i.e., an evil shrine, temple, or whatever. Such areas must be limited, of course - the shrine to perhaps a 10" by 10" area, the temple to twice that area. Such areas will automatically reduce the chonce of any cleric affecting undead or other creotures within their precincts by a previously stipulated factor - perhaps 1 or 2 in the shrine area, 3 or 4 in the temple area."''  I've long considered this to mean that the "rules" change when encountering certain kinds of creatures in the setting.
: "Can Grond be reasoned with?"
 
: "Will Grond retaliate against us tonight?"
 
: "Is Grond bound to the dungeon?"
 
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' I am curious about the details of Draw Speed.
+
'''The DM:''' As it happens, Pandred, the door was designed by the goblins, so the hinges are on this side.
  
[[File:Arduin Encumbrance.jpg|center|630px]]
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I attempt to remove the hinges.
  
'''Pandred''': Thank you.
+
'''The DM:''' Using what?
  
'''The DM:''' Vafrandir, it drops the number of AP to draw a weapon by 1.  So something with 1 AP counts as zero, 2 AP as 1 and 3 AP as 2.
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' An Iron spike and a hammer.
  
'''The DM:''' Lexent, in order, your answers are:
+
'''The DM:''' An iron spike isn’t thin enough or hard enough to work out the hinge.
: No.
 
: No.
 
: No.
 
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Thank you.
+
'''[[Lexent]]:''' Dang. Any other thoughts, guys?
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' All weapons, or just bows?
+
'''Pandred''': Take my handaxe. Dig it into the hinge plate somewhere and hammer it in. Or just hack to bits. Should be single-headed so that leaves a flat-ish (or at least unbladed) metal bit opposite the head to hammer on.
  
'''The DM:''' Oh, it means getting your weapon readyNot drawing an arrow.
+
'''The DM:''' if you use the hand-axe, you could fracture the blade and I’d increase the chance of it breaking if you dropped it.  Your axeblade isn’t made of carbide steel.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Understood. Very helpful!
+
'''Pandred''': I get that. A question for the future: would a woodsman's axe avoid such a danger? Is there such a tool for these situations? Either way, I'm willing to risk it. I want in this door, and at this point the axe is just a potential gp cost to do so.
  
'''The DM:''' Out'Bout 45 min.
+
'''The DM:''' the proper tool would be a chiselIf you used a wood axe, you’d be free from the break problem because of its not used as a weapon, but if you notched the blade, it would take longer to cut wood and would be an unpleasant experience.  As a cook, I can tell you that working with a dull knife, even one that is very slightly dull, is annoying as all hell.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I've created a '''[[Hirelings|hirelings]]''' page, (linked from the main page as well) to keep track of our hirelings.  
+
== The Sigh ==
: I wasn't sure if we were each keeping track of our 'own' hireling's XP or not.  
+
'''The DM:''' make a d20 roll for saving the axe against a [https://wiki.alexissmolensk.com/index.php/Saving_Throws_for_Items normal blow]. The hinge comes out.
: If any of the XP or HP totals are incorrect, please update them.
+
: you hear a deep, resonant sigh echo through the door from the other side, like a great beast suddenly taking notice of something.
: I did not include Odds, since he has his own page already that it looks like Pandred manages
 
: I have also deducted wages for Valda for this month as today is the 18th
 
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Looks good, Lexent
+
'''The DM:''' A good cliffhanger for Tuesday.  Out.
  
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' At this time, I'd like to take account of all the gems and who's got what.
+
'''Pandred''': '''5'''.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' What details there are exist on [[The Search Continues]]. I think the only thing we specified is that we apportioned some of them out in shares to all of our hirelings.
+
'''The DM:''' It fails Pandred.  The axe breaks on a 1 or 2 when a roll is required.
 
 
: '''[[Vafrandir]]:''' Yea, I'd like to be more specific (if possible).
 
  
 
'''The DM:''' In.
 
'''The DM:''' In.
  
'''The DM:''' Is there anything else.
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' In.
 
 
'''[[Pandred]]''': We going for another dive today? Who is coming? Can we get Helga in fighting shape?
 
 
 
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' How much did we get from Aid?
 
 
 
'''The DM:''' It’s been established you’re going to take the 18th to rest.  You heal as 2 levels higher than ordinary; so for Vafrandir, 6 a day of rest.  Doesn't count until the 19th.
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' If no one has anything else for the 18th, I'll effect that healing.
 
 
 
'''[[Pandred]]''': If we're resting, I'm good. Nothing further to add from me.
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I cast ''Aid'' on myself for '''1+6+8=15'''
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I use the healing staff on Helga for '''4+4+3=11'''
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' "Pandred, would you let Vafrandir have a dose from your bottle, please?"
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I cast ''Cure Light Wounds'' for '''3+4=7''' and distribute 2 to myself, 2 to Asger, and 3 to Vafrandir
 
 
 
== Night of the 18th ==
 
'''The DM:''' The weather actually cools a little towards mid-day, though the wind doesn’t pick up; the sky clears until there is one puffy cloud.  Then, from out of nowhere, the temperature plunges, straight through cool until it is brisk.  Out to the west, you see an enormous storm moving from south to north ... but you’re untouched by it.  The wind doesn’t change at all. By the time the sun goes down, it has warmed a little so that it’s cool again, with a gentle breeze blowing out of the southeast ... though the sky is completely overcast.
 
 
 
'''The DM:''' Marcule is on watch and gives a start.  It’s 2 AM and there is something very large approaching.
 
 
 
'''[[Lexent]]:''' May we finish healing before going to sleep?
 
 
 
'''The DM:''' This happens after you heal.  It is technically the 19th.
 
 
 
'''Marcule:''' can i see anything with my infravision
 
 
 
'''The DM:''' Something about 9 to 11 feet tall and vaguely humanoid is moving across the landscape about 125 yards away.  It is hunched forward and moving in an irregular fashion, but still seems humanoid.
 
 
 
'''Marcule:''' i cast thinamagig and produce a telescope, what do i see?
 
: '''The DM:''' That [https://wiki.alexissmolensk.com/index.php/Thingamajig_(cantrip) cantrip] doesn't allow a telescope.
 
  
'''Marcule:''' sorry my error, i would wake lexent and pandred quietly
+
'''The DM:''' Push on through the door?
  
'''The DM:''' Count yourselves awake.
+
'''Marcule:''' In.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I begin strapping on my shield.
+
'''Pandred:''' In but on phone.
  
'''[[Lexent]]:''' I also awaken Vafrandir
+
'''[[Vafrandir]]:''' We push on.
  
'''The DM:''' Takes five rounds.  The humanoid approaches slowly, not rushing, about five yards a round; so, a hundred yards away now.
+
[[File:Mok-Losh.jpg|right|420px|]]
  
'''The DM:''' Vafrandir is awake.  There's something familiar about the way the shape is moving.
+
'''The DM:''' Pandred works out the other hinge and the door falls forward with a bang into a large room.

Revision as of 10:16, 25 May 2021

Contents

Continued from The Mine

The DM: As before, the temperature of the air drops and the stairs are steep going down. They come to a landing about 25 feet down, revealing another flight of stairs below that, descending on the left. The air is thicker, somehow; your torches seem to have trouble permeating it. Detectably, there is the slight odour of raspberries mixed with the smell of rotting meat. Do you wish to continue descending?

Door at the Bottom.jpg

The DM: It occurs that I should ask for your marching order.

Pandred: Me, Vaf, Lex, Arduin? Is that acceptable guys?

Vafrandir: Let's do it.

Lexent: Fine by me. We continue down in that order.

Pandred: Onwards then. "Hroagh!"

Marcule: I will take the back.

The DM: 50 feet down now, you find yourself addressing a heavy reinforced door, like you’ve seen before. There are two dead flies carcasses on floor in front of the door, like those you saw above. The light from the torches seems strangely orange in colour, rather than yellow.

Lexent: I set my godentag down to the side of the door.

Pandred: I'll test to see if it's unlocked. If it is, I'll check that everyone gets ready, that Marcule and Lex have a chance to call for a spell before I open it.

Lexent: I cast Protection from Malevolence and discharge it on myself.

The DM: It's stuck.

Pandred: Stuck ain't locked. I'll HROAGH it open.

The DM: You're not as strong as you used to be.

Pandred: But stronger in spirit! HROAGH! Vaf, you'd probably have better odds.

Vafrandir: I'll try it!

The DM: Roll a d100. Corrected.

Vafrandir: 96.

The DM: No, that door is stuck.

Vafrandir: A question of DM mechanics, if you'll allow: I know you normally don't "roll for success"; either we're strong enough or not. Why the d100 here? Just curious.

Vafrandir: The sappers can handle this, no doubt. So it'll have to wait.

The DM: Been thinking about this. It’s a game, right? So the strongest person should be able to attempt the game. So while yes, you’re either strong enough or you’re not, from a metagame point of view, you don’t know that you are or are not strong enough, yes? And so there’s a “chance” you are ... and a chance is calculated by dice.

Is the die a bafflegab? Perhaps. I’d like to invent a structured determination for stuck doors that supersedes my decision, but I’m still working on it in my mind.
Vafrandir: Makes sense. Thanks!

Vafrandir: Shall we investigate the small tunnels? I think only the gnomes can do that.

The DM: Can you think of another way to get through this door? Or the other stuck door on the first level (d.)?

Lexent: Would Pandred and Vafrandir be able to employ a crowbar and attempt it together?

Lexent: Scratch that. I don't see a crowbar anywhere in our supplies.

Lexent: Also, where are the hinges?

Pandred: I mean, we can hack the door down. That is an option. It just seems like a waste since "stuck" implies to me at least that the door just swelled up with the humidity or something. But hell, we don't plan to live here. Are we against hacking the door open now that we've already alerted what's on the other side?

Marcule: Can i cast chill on the door to see if i can shrink it?

Vafrandir: Ice expands.

Lexent: But chilling an object (Metal specifically) causes it to contract.

Pandred: Sure, but enough to make a difference? We're not even 100% sure I'm right about what "stuck" means. There could be something like a bar on the other side of the door, or more furniture.

Pandred: Alexis hasn't said what side the hinges are on, and I presume he's had time to see the question, so I'll take that to mean either there aren't any for whatever reason or that we can't see them. With that said, I'm hacking. Battleaxe. Hroagh. Etc. This door is coming down.

The DM: Page 66 of the DMG suggests: "Evil Areas: You may wish to establish areas where evil has made speciol power bases, i.e., an evil shrine, temple, or whatever. Such areas must be limited, of course - the shrine to perhaps a 10" by 10" area, the temple to twice that area. Such areas will automatically reduce the chonce of any cleric affecting undead or other creotures within their precincts by a previously stipulated factor - perhaps 1 or 2 in the shrine area, 3 or 4 in the temple area." I've long considered this to mean that the "rules" change when encountering certain kinds of creatures in the setting.

The DM: As it happens, Pandred, the door was designed by the goblins, so the hinges are on this side.

Lexent: I attempt to remove the hinges.

The DM: Using what?

Lexent: An Iron spike and a hammer.

The DM: An iron spike isn’t thin enough or hard enough to work out the hinge.

Lexent: Dang. Any other thoughts, guys?

Pandred: Take my handaxe. Dig it into the hinge plate somewhere and hammer it in. Or just hack to bits. Should be single-headed so that leaves a flat-ish (or at least unbladed) metal bit opposite the head to hammer on.

The DM: if you use the hand-axe, you could fracture the blade and I’d increase the chance of it breaking if you dropped it. Your axeblade isn’t made of carbide steel.

Pandred: I get that. A question for the future: would a woodsman's axe avoid such a danger? Is there such a tool for these situations? Either way, I'm willing to risk it. I want in this door, and at this point the axe is just a potential gp cost to do so.

The DM: the proper tool would be a chisel. If you used a wood axe, you’d be free from the break problem because of its not used as a weapon, but if you notched the blade, it would take longer to cut wood and would be an unpleasant experience. As a cook, I can tell you that working with a dull knife, even one that is very slightly dull, is annoying as all hell.

The Sigh

The DM: make a d20 roll for saving the axe against a “normal blow”. The hinge comes out.

you hear a deep, resonant sigh echo through the door from the other side, like a great beast suddenly taking notice of something.

The DM: A good cliffhanger for Tuesday. Out.

Pandred: 5.

The DM: It fails Pandred. The axe breaks on a 1 or 2 when a roll is required.

The DM: In.

Vafrandir: In.

The DM: Push on through the door?

Marcule: In.

Pandred: In but on phone.

Vafrandir: We push on.

Mok-Losh.jpg

The DM: Pandred works out the other hinge and the door falls forward with a bang into a large room.