Round 2, round 3 actions
Subject Round 2
OODM: Initiative for round 2. Ranthir (23), Harp (22),Creature (20),Kal (20), Surin (20),Allistair (14), Ragnar (10), Mund (9), Salix (6).
Ranthir drops his crossbow to his side and pulls his sword and shield to the ready. He takes a quick step forward, making a solid line with the other fighters.
Harp also pulls his sword, waiting to see what happens.
The insects flow towards the party, the gleaming red and black shells flickering in the sun. All of a sudden, 5 feet from Harp, the swarm stops as if it has run into a wall. The swarm swirls and flows back on itself, an angry buzzing coming from the insects. The swarm tries to advance again and this time the party sees a slight shimmer in the air where the bugs are stopped (Will Save, DC 17, 1+7=8, fail).
This time Kal is sure that the creatures were trying to attack and he chants his mage arrow spell. The four bolts of energy sear through the swarm, dropping hundreds of bodies as they pass (Damage 14).
Allistair and Ragnar mutter to each other, trying to decide what to do next. Finally coming to a decision, Allistair starts chanting the spell to summon monsters and Ragnar attempts to ask the Battle Lord to dispel whatever evil magic might have summoned this thing. He chants his prayer (DC? 9+7=16, fail) but the swarm does not disappear.
Mund sees the swarm stop in its tracks. Wondering what his new axe would do against these bugs he moves forward ahead of Harp, says the word he was taught that would activate his new axe, and takes a swing through the cloud (AC20, 17+11=28,hit damage6). At his command, the edges of the axe blade glimmers with a cold light and a light coating of ice forms on the body of the blade. Mund almost looses his balance as his axe passes through the swarm, but he does see several hundred of the bugs fall from their contact with the freezing blade.
Salix tries to regain his composure, hearing his friends talking about combat.
OODM: I Need round 3 actions. Something seems to be keeping the swarm from attacking the party.
From: Josh
Subject Round 3 actions
Seeing that the protection from evil spell seems to be working, Kal will move forward and slice at the swarm with his rapier. Saving his magic for another time.
From: Porter
Subject Round 3 actions
Mund will stay where he is and do a full attack on the varmints.
More round 3 actions
Subject Round 3 actions
OOC: Since the summon spell takes a full round, will Allistair be able to take a turn for round 3?
From: Mark
Subject Round 3 actions
The monsters will appear at his INIT on round 3. If he gets attacked or damaged between now and then, he will have to make a Concentration check to see if finishes the spell.
At his INIT on round 3 the monsters will appear and he will be able to act.
From: Derek
Subject Round 3 actions
Alright. Since Allistair can't communicate with the air elementals he's summoning, he'll have them appear H14 (maximum range) and then let them do what they will. Then Allistair will cast the Message spell, and use it to communicate with everyone else in the party. (1 person per level, and Ally is level 7, so that's just enough to talk to everyone)
Allistair will first shout out loud, "This is easy! We'll be on our way in no time!" Then using the spell he will whisper the following while pretending to rummage through the pockets in his robes:
"I think we'll handle these bugs without a problem, since it seems they can't penetrate Ragnar's protection from evil spell. However, I have a hunch that this isn't the end of it. I think what we saw was a spellcaster of some kind that turned himself invisible and then summoned these demon wasps to attack us. I'm using this spell so that he won't realize that we're onto him. Look sharp, Surin. There may be another enemy around here that is just as invisible as you are. In the meantime we can talk using this spell, even a bare whisper will be heard by the rest of us."
From: Kevin
Subject Round 3 actions
Harp watches as Kal's mage arrows burn up some of the flying creatures. "Great job, Kal, keep it up." At least Ragnar's prayer to protect them from evil was helping - if those things got around them, they could end up swinging at each other.
Harp takes a small step up next to Mund and swings at the creatures.
OOC: Mark, 5 ft. step and full attack. I know it won't do any good, but doesn't - yet.
Turn, more round 3 actions, updated e-mail addy
Subject Turn
I have heard from Porter, Josh and Kevin. Ally is still casting his summon monster and then do the message spell.
Salix is useless at the moment, so I still need to hear from Ashley, Jason and Randy.
From: Jason
Subject Round 3 actions
Sorry about the delay. My email just started forwarding to a new account, and that new account was putting it all in the spam folder. Oops. I think I have that fixed now though.
If the wasps continue to be held at bay, Ragnar will stay where he is, guarding Salix and letting the fighters take care of slowly killing the bugs. If they break through and attack Salix, Ragnar try to stay in their way. If that's impossible (it probably is) he'll get out of the way and cast Shield Other on Salix (close range, not touch spell thank goodness.) If the wasps break through the barrier but remain and attack the fighters only, Ragnar will remain where he is or, if someone gets seriously beat up in one round, cast a cure spell.
From: Mark
Subject Updated e-mail
Should I change the address for you on the mailing list and on my contact list to this new G-mail account?
From: Randy
Subject Round 3 actions
Ranthir will step up beside the others and attack with his sword.
Round 3, round 4 actions
Subject Turn
I think everyone has replied. I will try and get a turn out tonight. I have two major projects due at work today so it is unlikely to be during the day.
From: Mark
Subject Round 3
OODM: Initiative for round 3. Ranthir (23), Harp (22),Creature (20),Kal (20), Surin (20),Allistair (14), Ragnar (10), Mund (9), Salix (6).
Ran sees Mund's axe fell hundreds of the little insects and moves forward to help. He steps up next to Mund and swings at the swarm. His sword flashes through the swirling insects but does no damage.
Harp also steps forward, his sword swinging with blinding speed. The blade meets no resistance as it passes time and time again through the nebulous cloud of bugs. A creature here and there is caught by the blade, but it is obvious to the 1/2 orc that his weapon is having no effect.
The swarm shifts over and flow over Ran. They attempt to sting and bite him but are repelled. As they move to surround the 1/2 elf, Ran and Mund both swing. Ran's sword has no effect again, but Mund's axe connects again (AOO, AC20, 14+11=25,hit, damage 6) and hundreds more of the creatures fall to the ground.
Kal advances and stabs at the edge of the swarm. His rapier passes through the swarm like he was fighting a shadow.
Allistair finishes his chant and three small swirls of air appear behind the swarm. At his mental command the three swirls attack the swarm. The air is angry with motion and confusion as little insectoid bodies are flung around and swirled back and forth. The swarm seethes and flows trying to keep together. The elementals seem to be doing a good job of disrupting the swarm but not that many bodies fall to the ground.
Allistair then chants his message spell and starts to send a warning to Surin to be on the look out for a spell caster back at the edge of the woods. However, the mage realizes that he needs to be able to the person he wants to whisper to. He does warn the others about the chance of a mage at the other end of the clearing.
Ragnar is pleased to see that his prayer has worked. He stands ready to help if anyone gets hurt.
Mund swings his axe, small pieces of ice falling from the edge of the blade. Seeing that he has had better luck with the flat of the blade, he swings it once (AC20, 19+11=30, damage 5) and fells more of the things. However, on his backstroke he overbalances and almost looses his grip on the axe (AC20, 1+6=7, miss).
Salix, trying to keep his stomach from heaving again turns to Ragnar "Do you need help? Is everyone ok?"
OODM: I need round 4 actions.
From: Josh
Subject Round 4 actions
OOC: Mark, after Kal sees Ran and Harp's attacks fail, does he have enough time to change his action to magic missle?
From: Porter
Subject Round 4 actions
OOC: Can we all hear each other now when we whisper?
From: Mark
Subject Round 4 actions
Not on this round. He can on round 4
From: Mark
Subject Round 4 actions
No. Allistair is the connect point. He can talk to people and people can talk to him, using the spell, but they can not talk directly to each other, using the spell.
What this means is that people can talk to each other using normal means, but can not whisper using the message spell that Ally has going.
I hope that that makes sense.
From: Porter
Subject Round 4 actions
OOC: That makes perfect sense.
IC: Mund sees that his fellow sword-wielding companions aren't accomplishing much and says to them "If you can't hurt these things, back off and either cover the magickers or make sure there's nothing else out there to bite us in the butt."
Round 4 actions, round 4
Subject Round 4 actions
Ragnar hears Salix begin to take an interest in his surroundings with relief. "Salix!" He exclaims. "Yes, do we ever. Heironeous is holding swarm of insects back, but I'm not entirely sure how long that will last. In the meantime, we just can't seem to kill them fast enough. Do you have any idea how we can kill them?"
Hopefully Salix has some ideas, which Ragnar will attempt to follow up on. If not I'll get a turn out tomorrow morning.
From: Karl
Subject Round 4 actions
Can I get a knowledge check for Salix? What does he know about these things and how they might be defeated? Also, what actions can he take? Is he still nauseated?
From: Karl
Subject Round 4 actions
"Burn them! Weapons won't work." Salix blurts out between retches. "a torch. Or maybe a spell." He doubles over again and falls back against the tree.
(OOC - *I* know that Ally's fireball failed to damage them, but Salix doesn't. Also, I don't know if it failed because the swarm is specially protected or if Derek just got a bad roll. I'd have thought a fireball would have worked. )
From: Kevin
Subject Round 4 actions
Harp watches his sword swing through the creatures, hitting a few but doing no real damage. Damn, he growled to himself, how do you hit something so small?? Ran and Kal seem to be having the same problem. Only Mund's ice sword seems to be having any affect.
Harp says to the others "Regular weapons don't seem to do any good. If you got anything else in your bag of tricks, now's the time to pull it out and try it."
Maybe he was going about this all wrong -Ragnar's prayer to provide them a safe haven from these things seemed to be working. Maybe Heironious would help him defeat these things. Recalling the simple prayer he had been taught, Harp asks the Battlelord to send the incarnation of Justicebringer to assist them.
OOC: Mark, Harp will cast Spiritual Weapon and attack the swarm. He should get 1 attack this turn and then 2 attacks next turn (assuming they are still in range).
From: Randy
Subject Round 4 actions
Ranthir follows Mund's advice and backs off a little ways. As Mund continues the fight, Ranthir scans the surrounding area, watching to see if there is anything else to be concerned with.
From: Mark
Subject Round 4
OODM: Initiative for round 4. Ranthir (23), Harp (22),Creature (20),Kal (20), Surin (20), Elementals (14), Allistair (14), Ragnar (10), Mund (9), Salix (6).
Ran watches as most of the others find out how ineffective their weapons are. Mund suggests that the others step back, since only his axe seems to have any effect. He tries to look behind the swarm, seeing if there is any sign of a mage or another person.
Harp does the same and chants the prayer that will summon an avatar his his god's weapon. The glowing sword appears behind the swarm and strikes at it (AC20, 4+9=13, miss). The shimmering sword passes through the swarm doing no damage.
An odd buzzing comes from the swarm and it darts away from the party and the elementals. It weaves and dodges and then sinks to the ground and disappears.
Kal looks out into the field, trying to see where the swarm went but is unable.
Surin moves slowly towards the back of the clearing, trying to see if there are any telltale signs of a mage.
The rest of the party stands around Ragnar, waiting to see what happens next. Salix is able to blurt out through his pain "Burn them. Weapons won't work. A torch or maybe a spell." He doubles over again, his stomach trying to empty itself again.
OODM: I need actions.
Where did they go, and up a tree
Subject E-mail
OOC: Can someone forward me Karl's two emails "RE: Round 3" ? His mail always gets marked as phishing mail by gmail (I guess since it's from @visa.com), and I accidentially deleted it this time with the rest of my spam.
From: Derek
Subject Where did they go
Allistair whispers using the Message spell to everyone. "I'm still not sure what is going on. Did those bugs just turn invisible, or did the mage that summoned them send them back to wherever they came from? Either way, it means we aren't safe yet."
Can Allistair make a spellcraft check to determine whether that was something going invisible, a summoned creature being sent back, or something else entirely?
From: Mark
Subject Where did they go
In this situation I am going to say no, he can not. Even if a caster was visible, he would be over 80 feet away, which is -16 to spot checks and something similar to spell craft checks.
However, a spell that was dismissed would not provoke a spell craft check.
From: Josh
Subject Where did they go
Kal waits for someone else to take the lead.
OOC: I might get another email out if someone comes up with a plan. But Kal won't take any leading role unless told to do so.
From: Derek
Subject Where did they go
Allistair whispers using the message spell to everyone, "Maybe Mund should go out 15 feet or so and see if the bugs are gone. He's the only one that can defend himself if they've just gone invisible or something. If we decide the bugs are gone, we should probably spread out. If there is a wizard out there, we are sitting ducks for a fireball or something similar."
From: Kevin
Subject Where did they go
Harp whispers back to Allistair "Right, but if those bugs show up again, only Ragnars protection circle is keeping them from surrounding us. Tell Mund that if he sees them again to high tail it back here. The rest of us can spread out a bit, but tell evey one to get ready to center back on Ragnar if something pops up."
Harp will keep his spiritual weapon close to where Mund is so if something does appear he is ready to attack with it (while it lasts).
Harp will move 20' (3 squares) up to D16.
From: Porter
Subject Where did they go
Nobody seems to be taking control, so Mund speaks up.
"OK, fellers, let's split, two by two, and see what we can find. If there's somebody out there causing this, we need to find out."
"Allistair, you need to stay behind and coordinate everybody else. I'll stay here and guard you and Salix."
"Unless anybody has a better idea, all get moving."
From: Derek
Subject Up a tree
Allistair tells everyone via Message: "I'm going to cast Rope Trick to climb the tree, and give us a place to get out of danger if we need it. I'll try and get Salix up there and out of danger."
Allistair will cast Rope Trick, having the rope go high enough that a person could use the rope to then get into the main branches of the tree. He will then start climbing and tell Salix to climb up after him.
From: Porter
Subject Up a tree
Assuming that everybody else splits up into couples, Mund will stay and guard Allistair and Salix until they're safe. Once that's done, he'll join one of the couples at random.
From: Jason
Subject Up a tree
Assuming the others start breaking into couples, Ragnar says to Mund "Since we're an odd number without you, I'll stick around until they're safe, then we can head out together."
If we follow Harp's plan, he'll stay with Salix and the others watching as Mund looks for the bugs. In fact, if Mund goes out looking for them alone, Ragnar will cast aid on him before he leaves.
From: Porter
Subject Up a tree
"Good thinking. Here. I'll keep an eye out for the east half, and you do the same for the west half."
"Allistair, since we have two others here, one of us can help get Salix up in that magic box if you need it. Let us know."
Where did they go?
Subject Turn
Sorry it has been so long since the last turn. It has been a very hectic past couple of days. I will get the next turn out tonight.
From: Mark
Subject Where did they go?
The party looks over the clearing warily. No one is sure where the insects went, if they are invisible, if they were dismissed or if there is a mage out there summoning creatures to fight them. Allistair tells the party that he is going to use his rope trick spell to help get Salix and himself into the tree behind them. Mund agrees with the idea and he and Ragnar turn to watch the clearing while the mage casts his spell.
Allistair quickly has the rope up to the level of the first main branches, almost 30 feet in the air. He climbs and finds a good spot on the limb. Even though the tree is almost dead, the limbs are still solid. He motions down for Mund and Ragnar to help Salix. The two do their best to help the 1/2 elf but the going is slow. Salix moves slowly up the rope, taking his time, slowly regaining a bit of his composure. He is just about to the branch when his strength fails him. His hands slip loose and he can just start to feel the odd weightlessness that comes as one freefalls from a great height. His fall is jerked up short by soft hand grabbing him by the back of his armor.
Allistair's voice rings out "Grab the damn rope. Mund might be able to carry you all day, but I sure as hell can't." With Ally's assistance, Salix is able to work his way onto the branch. He sits with his back against the trunk, gasping for air, trying not to throw up on those beneath him. During the climb the elementals had gone back to their own plane and Harp's sword had vanished. A few minutes later Surin pops up in front of the party. "I looked all I could guys but did not see any sign of any type of caster out there." Mund tells them to split up into two's and that he and Ran would go out as a pair and that Harp and Kal should go out as a pair. "Ragnar, you and Surin stay here. If we run into anything we will come runnin back here."
Harp and Kal nod and move a bit north and to the west, placing some distance between themselves and the other two. Mund and Ranthir move east a bit and forward as well. Everyone keeps their eyes on the ground, trying to see if they can find the insects that they suspect are hiding there. After a few minutes of moving slowly, Mund holds up a hand and Ran stops. The barbarian whispers to Ally "Tell Harp and Kal to stop for a second." Ally relays the instructions and in the few seconds that all four of them are still, they can here a buzzing, like a beehive. They are not able to pinpoint where the sound is coming from, but they know that the creatures are still out there.
OODM: What do you do? The reason the characters have moved so little is that I have them searching each 5 foot square with a "Taking 20" That is 2 minutes per square, but this way they are sure that they are not missing anything. Ally and Salix are 30 feet up in the tree.
Where did they go, part 2
Subject Where did they go
Harp stops when he hears Allistairs voice come thorugh his head. He could hear the damn things, but where where they? When he had been a little one, he had seen farmers in his village burn infestations of bugs out in the fields, but these things sure did not seem like they had been hurt by Allistair fireball. And, he sure did not seem to be able to hit them with normal weapons. What did Mund have in mind?
Harp wispers back to Allistair "What's your brothers plan?"
From: Porter
Subject Where did they go
Mund whispers "I don't think this is something we can just ignore. Let's keep looking around, real careful like. Let everybody know as soon as you hear anything."
"Alley -- what's going on with Surin?"
Status, spells still going and there they are
Subject Turn
I will try and get a turn out tonight. You have until this evening to get anything in.
From: Karl
Subject Status
What's Salix's nauseated status? Still nauseated?
From: Mark
Subject Status
Yes but feeling a bit better. It will last another minuted and then he will be in the sickened status.
From: Jason
Subject Spells
OOC I've been reviewing the cleric spell list, and I must say that their options for dealing with invisibility are fairly limited. I have invisibility purge at 3rd level, which makes invisible people visible within 35 feet of me, and that's it, unless someone else can see another such spell? It seems a shame to use a 3rd level spell to counter a first when you can't even be sure it will work; if I'm not close to this hypothetical invisible person, nothing happens (and we still can't be sure there's no one there either.)
From: Derek
Subject Where are they
Allistair whispers to everyone. "We know they're around, we just don't know what's going on yet. Let's save our more powerful spells for when we're sure we'll need them. If these bugs pop up again, running back to the tree should keep you safe. Surin is still out there, I assume. I couldn't locate him with this spell, and I don't want him to give away his position unless he's going to get a critical strike against an enemy."
From: Porter
Subject Where are they
Mund whispers to Alley, confident that his words will be forwarded to everyone. "Gotcha. Let's keep looking."
From: Derek
Subject Where are they
Allistair relays Mund's words to everyone else.
From: Mark
Subject Where are they
I am assuming that most of you did not see the part where Surin showed back up next to Ragnar, at the tree?
Ashley had him search around for a bit but the invisibilty spell only lasts 7 minutes and he had been out for a couple when the swarm showed up.
He is next to the tree now.
From: Kevin
Subject Where are they
Harp continues to move foward slowly, trying to see or hear anything that might give a clue as to where the bugs are really at.
From: Mark
Subject There they are
The four fighters slowly move forward, carefully searching the ground before them. They spend the next 10 minutes conferring with Allistair about what they have not found and where they should go next. They still hear the occasional buzzing sound, but are unable to locate it. They have advanced about 25 feet when the cloud pops up about 20 feet from them and moves towards them. Kal and Mund get surrounded by the swarm before they realize what is happening. The stinging and biting insects swarm over the two(Mund damage 13, Kal damage 8).
The bites and stings burn. Mund body is able to fight off the cold heat that tries to seep into the wounds (DC18 Fort save, 12+13=25, save) as is Kal (DC18 Fort save, 16+6=22, save). The glittering bodies, however, are more of a problem. The scintillating patterns and images cause Mund to become dizzy and nauseas (DC18 Fort save, 4+13=17, fail.). Kal, however, is able to throw off the effects and keeps his composure (DC18 Fort Save, 16+6+22, save).
Round 1 Init: Kal (24), Swarm (23), Ranthir (21), Salix (20), Ally (13), Mund (12), Ragnar (12), Surin (10), Harp (7).
I need round 1 actions. Mund is nauseated. Salix is just sickened right now.
From: Jason
Subject Still going
Are any of the spells we cast still in effect after 10 minutes?
From: Mark
Subject Still going
The magic circle is as well as message. Those are 10 minutes per level. The Doom is not and neither is the invisibilty. The spiritual weapon is gone as are the elementals.
From: Porter
Subject There they are
"We.. found...something...Getting hurt... *blech*," Mund says to his brother as he bends over, emptying his stomach.
He musters all of his strength to yell out "Take my axe! It can kill them!" and tries to hand it to whomever grabs for it.
From: Josh
Subject There they are
Kal's gonna high-tail it back to wherever that circle of protection is. By Ragnar?
From: Josh
Subject There they are
OOC: Kal can't swing no axe.