Tuesday, April 4, 2023

The Case of the Missing Head

"I can't see anything with this fog and cloud surrounding me," Gavril yelled as he fought off becoming nauseous from the green vapors.

As he swallowed the bile rising in his throat Ciprian state loudly "I can't provide any help just now.  I will wait for Gavril to move."

Erevel stepped up and attacked the construct but as she was fatigued her attack was limited and the creature seemed to be somewhat resistant.

Gavril followed in and attacked the same monster while also seeing three more of the monsters.
  Ciprian followed the north wall into the room exiting the cloud of foul odor.  He the identified the creatures as Clockwork Mages who had a wand in their chests and a globe for a head all of which sparked with Arcane energy.  The monsters had spell resistance but were vulnerable to electricity.  Paullus then followed Ciprian and ended up in the corner of the chamber as he also swallowed his breakfast.

Armania and Ursina both became Nauseated in the stink of the cloud and moved to the east until they exited the area.

Scorching Rays hit Ciprian and Paullus as Gavril was shrunk down to small size.  Another Ray hit Erevel and made her weaker.  And then an area of grease surrounded Ciprian and Paullus.  The constructs used their spell casting to great effect.

Erevel found her full attacks were still reduced as the strength and fatigue took its toll.  She did manage to avoid the odor of the cloud.  Gavril continued attacking but now did less damage with his smaller weapons.  Ciprian moved through the cloud, started his bardic performance and cast haste on the room.  Paullus fired arrows at one of the constructs but did little damage.  Ursina and Armania were still sitting out the fight with nausea.

Magic Missiles flew at Paullus as Ciprian fended off a Blindness/Deafness spell from another mage.  The other two attacked Gavril and Erevel with slams.  Erevel and Gavril danced around gaining flanking as Paullus moved up to a mage to attack with his sword.  Ciprian attacked the mage near him as Ursina and Armania again were messing the floor with breakfast remains.

Paullus felt electricity flow through his metal sword and armor as the mage touched him.  The other mages attacked with their slams as the party fought back.  Ursina, finally feeling better moved into the room and prepared to attack.  Erevel and Gavril dropped one of the mages into a pile of metallic rubble.

Another scorching ray came firing out from one mage while the other two kept fighting with slams.  Erevel and Gavril dropped another mage as Ciprian, Paullus and Ursina fought the other two.  Armania was still retching in the hallway.  After another round of attacks by the mages the party dispatched the final two and sat down waiting for the stinking cloud to dissipate, the fatigue to end and Erevel's strength to return.

Ciprian checked the angel to turn its head, and found no head, just a hole in the top of the statue.  Inside were some gear mechanisms but something was missing besides the head.  After some investigation he decided there was no method to turn the mechanism without the gears and possibly the head.

Erevel began looking around the room for crates or boxes and started pulling open wooden cases which contained tools and various models of creatures and constructs.  Ciprian looked for magic and found a leather satchel containing a mummified hand on a strap wearing a ring, a stuffed dodo wearing a pair of small leather boots, and a scroll of hold person folded up in the shell of a dead tortoise at the back of a cupboard.

This chambers collection encompassed hundreds of books, scrolls, and manuals detailing the esoteric processes involved in creation magic. They explore the various methods to call matter into being and how to shape that matter in useful ways. One of the shelves here holds dozens of books on engineering and materials, while another shelf contains books describing the steps needed to create golems and other constructs.  Other items of value included a small serpentine statue of a six-headed medusa eating mouthfuls of crystal rats and a withered bridal bouquet with a small black emerald on a long hatpin engraved with the words “Forever H. K.”

Erevel, anxious to continue headed for the supposed room to the west where she found a hidden door opposite first door they found.  Gavril again moved up to disable whatever magic was holding it shut. Inside was another room of bookshelves and boxes.  The books in this collection focus on the art of calling and binding outsiders. Massive tomes filled with nothing but diagrams for summoning circles sit alongside collected research regarding some of the most effective methods of bargaining with outsiders for their service.

Gavril circled the room sniffing for magic but he found nothing so the party headed to the room to the north.  Again the party went through the searching routine and again found a hidden door which Gavril opened.  The shelves in this room held thousands of handwritten journals and bound books containing hours upon hours worth of automatic writing as well as transcripts of trances and drug-induced ecstasies. The writings cover thousands of subjects, and while some passages and pages make sense, most of it is useless garbage. A single chest sat on the floor between two of the shelves.

Ursina found multiple auras of magic from the room and found two scrolls of cure serious wounds.  Gavril headed for the chest and checked it for traps.  Finding none he then attempted to pick the lock but as he did a trap exploded with chained lightning hitting everyone in the room.  Ciprian had taken his normal cowardly position outside the room.  The damage was significant to the people in the room but Gavril was intent on the interior of the chest where he found a scroll of horrid wilting stored within a leather and scrimshaw bodkin case; a jade, gold and obsidian corkscrew in the form of a hand; and a magical blue gem on a cord of woven hair.

A search of the room found nothing resembling an angel head or gears, two rooms now without any evidence of the missing parts.  Armania had been standing by the angelic gate.  This metal circle in the floor again depicted angels, but there is nothing beatific about these figures. Their eyes are filled with lust, and long snaking tongues reach out, lolling on their cheeks.

Suddenly a huge gust of wind blew down the hallway knocking Ciprian and Erevel prone and pushing them till they hit another party member.  Gavril and Paullus were not hit by the wind but felt it rush by them.  No creature was evident but Ciprian found himself grappled around the neck by an invisible entity.  Paullus felt a creature attack him but escaped the grab.  Armania cast invisibility purge but no creatures appeared.

Gavril headed toward Ciprian calling for help, took a wrong turn at the corner but corrected himself and made it all the way around the a creature.  He saw a ripple in the air in a faintly humanoid shape, but nothing substantial.  Ursina held her place as she saw nothing to attack.  Erevel moved toward Paullus and swung, thinking she would hit but found empty air.  Ciprian tried to identify, noting the natural invisibility and wind damage.  The creature was an Aerial Servant, immune to flanking, critical hits and precision damage.  Finally Paullus swung at the air in front of him and missed everything.

DM's Notes: The party earned 6400 XP for the evening.

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