rolled 1, 3, 2 = 6

---

Name: Maru Red
Race: Tiefling
Class: Townie
Specialization: Skald (bardbarian)
Higher Ambition: Fame, glory, and the perks that come with it
Lower Ambition: 420 blaze it
Phobia: Being forgotten from this world/dying without becoming famous
Mutation: Filed down horns protruding from her forehead
Supernatural Vulnerability: much like a reptile, gets sluggish in the cold, and will become comatose if she is in extreme cold for extended periods of time.
Innate Power: She can summon forth a two-handed, spectral ax, fueled by blood, which sings a battle dirge to inspire her allies and intimidate her foes

Inventory:
Left hip - Lead bullets & sling
Right hip - clean cloth, hooked needles, & thread
Left shoulder - feathers, penknife, lots of parchment & ink (for mapping)
Right shoulder - Weed, or an appropriate substitution
Chest/neck - Lantern
Top of head - Blanket, wrapped to conceal horns
Somewhere uncomfortable - Coin purse

Maru was conceived via rape, and was largely unwanted and resented by her mother. Her mother had demonic blood in her ancestry, and Maru inherited these traits. After running away from home, a group of towns people from a nearby village found her, and filed her horns down in an attempt to purge the demonic influence from her body. Not long after a group of "orc" bandits raided the town, and ended up taking her in and nursing her back to health. She joined them, and some time later was put on trial for the murder of her father, of which she was proudly guilty. She escaped the custody of local law enforcement, albeit on her own, and made her way out to the frontier to get a clean start and make a new name for herself. She entered the ruins hoping for gold glory and inspiration for a epic to be told through the ages, but after being cut off from the main expedition force, a rare voice of reason tells her that perhaps a hot meal, soft bed and cheap wench would be preferable to starving to death in a crumbling fortress. And so, she now attempts to get un-lost, and hopes that the others can figure out the riddle behind this puzzle because she is stumped.

Name: Hore Wutashi
Species: Gnoll-Human Hybrid
Class: OUTSIDER SHAMAN (Technically Hedge Witch)
Higher Ambition: Go 'Home'
Lower Ambition: Murder-Sex. Endless. Murder. And. Sex. At the same time.
Phobia: Realization of Nightmares - Every time she falls unconscious by any means she will switch her phobia to a new entity or phenomena found within her dream. Should she witness something similar to her nightmare she grows twice as afraid of it. If she actually FINDS a physical manifestation of her nightmare she shuts down completely, falls unconscious, and dreams up a new nightmare. Being stunned or drugged causes her to also develop a second phobia, one that causes her considerably less distress but requires a full rest to recover from. Note that if for some reason she is unable to dream, she will have no phobia for that period but will have considerably less mental acumen.
Equipment:
- Superior Clothing
- Malfunctioning Plasma Pistol (1/10 chance of actually firing)
- Plasma Core (Holds seven shots, automatically used when the pistol is fired)
- Datapad (CORRUPTED DATA, DRAINED BATTERY)
- Random Assortment of Pills
- Mother's Locket
- Scythe

You're probably wondering what this sci-fi geared character is doing in a medieval low fantasy story. Well, twenty years ago, a magic experiment performed by the chieftain of a generic gnoll tribe accidentally latched onto a quantum portal energy signature from another world. As you can guess, one of the staff from the lab was sucked in and fell into the arms of a really lucky gnoll. She wasn't even one of the scientists, just an intern from the biology department! But then, all the actual scientists that went through the portal fell in less fortunate places and died in a matter of seconds. So after five rapes, a few medical miracles, and one really loud childbirth later, Hore was born into a tribe of rapists with a deity-figure as a mother and showered with all the attention of a classic chosen one. She learned much about mathematics, biology, natural sciences, and basic quantum mechanics from whatever her mother could still retain.

Then her mother died in a freak accident when she was ten. Perforated by falling bull horns. Go figure.

After fighting her way out of her own paranoid psychopathic tribe, Hore wants to know more about her mother's world and if she could have a place there. Barring that, like any among her tribe she has a lust for murder and rape matched only by her desire to create a working system for endless murder and rape. The weapons and gear she inherited are almost shattered and will not work in most situations, but could give her an edge in battle if she has enough luck on her side.

rolled 1, 3, 2 = 6

---

Decaro Vos
Eel-man knight, worshipper of the God of Flesh and Growth
Class: Soldier
Specialization: Grappling
Higher Ambition: Protecting the weak
Lower Ambition: Bedding other sentient species
Phobia: Deserts
Mutation: Big eye on chest
Supernatural Vulnerability: Big weak point on chest
Innate Power: Flesh growth - can touch a creature to cause a horrible mutation

Inventory:
Left hip - Spear
Right hip - Jug of Water
Left shoulder - Lantern
Right shoulder - Blanket
Chest/neck - Chain Armor
Top of Head - Plate armor
Somewhere uncomfortable - Block of Soap

Vos was born of noble parents, the fourteenth hatchling in his clutch. He was raised steadfast in the teachings of his deity, and one day decided to leave his village to spread these teachings and give aid to the many other people of the world. During his travels he heard tale of a dungeon full of secrets and possibly evil, so he joined forces with a band of attractive people to investigate. Vos is now lost and a little bit scared, but he knows his faith will protect him. He was never much for poetry and does not know how to play chess, so instead he attempts to force his way through whatever door/obstacle is in his path.

To clarify what I mean by 'chess puzzle:' past the stone pedestal, the floor is split up into an 8 by 8 grid of alternating black and white tiles, 54" square, separated by 6" wide borders of red-veined stone inlaid with gold images of elvenoid figures and demons. The demons are, for the most part, depicted in the act of eating the mortals. Another pedestal is dimly visible on the far side, and a door beyond that. The whole room is filled with dull orange light, just barely enough to read by, so lanterns and such will only be necessary if you're concerned about colors.

Let's call the eight tiles closest to the door 'row 1,' and the eight tiles flush with the left wall 'column A.' A1 is black, A2 and B1 are white, and so on. Rather than flowing evenly, the pervasive red mist hangs in dusky columns over the darker squares, leaving the air over the lighter squares relatively clear.

You could easily step out onto any part of row 1, or attempt various clever tricks. What do you do?

>>765424
>an appropriate substitution
Pipeweed, of the sort cultivated by the little people known as 'mound-builders.' Relatively mild and slow-acting euphoric. Stored in a dried-and-compressed brick, like tea. Kit could also reasonably include a small water pipe (in a padded box for travel) and packet of seeds. Grows well in a variety of climates, hence the name, but subtleties of post-harvest treatment have dramatic effects on flavor and potency.

>coin purse
More copper than silver, but also holds a ruby of extraordinary size and quality, "inherited" from her father. It's got to be worth hundreds of gold, but strangely difficult to find a willing buyer, and wasn't confiscated by the law while she was on trial. Might be cursed?

"their right' seems to be a play on words. Vos steps onto H1.

Oh boy, this is back. Marijke's player here, but I think these circumstances call for rolling up a new character.


Name: Davina
Class: Rich bastard
Sub-specialization: fencer (Or in sillier slash broader terms: the non-tanky quick on her feet style of swordsperson)

Higher ambition: Legacy (explained / elaborated on in character bio).
Lower ambition: Ladies. Doesn't help with establishing a family legacy, but hey, dad had mistresses too.

Phobia / parasite / vulnerability / innate power: Gonna try lumping these all into one. In the course of earlier adventuring Davina has acquired an extra-planer / extra-dimensional / incorporeal parasite. As a result, this makes her metaphysically less here than she should be, and her position in our reality less stable. (Granting the parasite more stability than it would have otherwise, and a kind of anchor).

Her connection to an otherworldly entity means she shares a vulnerability to banishing or abjuring effects ordinary mortal creatures lack (I'm thinking pain to incapacitation first as it interferes with the thing connected to her, escalating to random displacement, then being knocked outside reality if subjected to repeated attacks without recovery). Also makes teleportation / spacial effects targeting her unreliable (will either fail, or send her elsewhere than intended. Going inside a wagon of holding would probably be a Bad Idea).

Innate Power, would be some form of limited control blink (pending GM balance). Reaching out to her connection to the parasite and exploiting her instability to change location within a short range. (Overuse would probably trigger the same problems as the vulnerability, making her less stable and open to negative consequences).

(Potentially, some kind of phase power could be stacked on her sword style to cut through things she has no right cutting through, but that's probably a bit too far to reach for level 1).

Not 100% sure on the phobia, but I feel it should be something from the parasite's influence? Something it fears.


One seriously expensive thing: Ancestral sword, appropriate to style. (I'd think due to material and/or enchantment it would be more durable and have more penetrating power than a real-world equivalent).

Equipment:

Left hip: coin purse (gotta live up to the rich in rich bitch)
Right Hip: Aforementioned sword
Chest: Armor (I'm not sure what the appropriate type to pick would be? Assuming she needs to both maintain mobility and being a rich bitch means she might have better gear for less weight / encumbrance than otherwise).
Right shoulder: (I assume that's where you'd put a bandoleer) Knives (throwing, worn openly)
Left Shoulder: Dried fruit
Top of head: signet ring, hidden / tied in her hair
Hidden somewhere uncomfortable: soap

(Left handed, so weapons are drawn from the right).


Backstory: The daughter of a noble house (or at least a rich and successful one with a good history), Davina benefits from an upbringing where she had everything that was needed to prepare her to face the world. She was the heir to and recipients of these advantages as part of her legacy. A legacy that no longer exists, as her house has fallen.

(Exact details as to what happened to said house flexible to fit in with world building- I imagine between politics, military conflict, disaster, there are many ways a once-powerful and established family could be largely destroyed).

She's now on a quest to restore that legacy. Nothing so trite as taking back her exact family holding- this isn't about a right to rule or a territory. As far as she's concerned, she's a link in a chain, and she will not be the point where it breaks. Before she dies, Davina wants a reestablished power base or holdings to see that the next generation of her family gets at least as good a shot as she did.

>>765435
>phobia
Something consistent, please.
>equipment
Please pick starting equipment from the given equipment list, and specify where you're carrying it. If you want a plasma pistol, either make that an innate power, or change class to Rich Bastard and take it as your minor permanent magic item, as Letkra did.
>gnoll-human hybrid
If you want functional canid features, take that as a concealable mutation.

>>765437
Given mutation already implies your chest-eye would be a physical weak point. Anything specific the extra eye is useful for? Nonstandard wavelengths of light, resolving microscopic details, piercing magical invisibility, sizing people up based on their auras? In any case, supernatural vulnerability should be separate. How about dehydration?

Phobia of deserts will also be associated with any dry and excessively dusty environment, thorny plants, mummified corpses, scorpions, and powdered silver (or silvery metals, but not, for example, liquid mercury, silver coins, or iron filings), or apparent unnaturally-accelerated erosion of stone. Nightmare scenario might involve being trapped in a room with the exits barricaded by animate cacti while white sand pours in through rapidly widening cracks in the walls and ceiling, with the roof blowing away like a cheap tent in a hurricane only after you're buried to the neck.

>attempts to force his way through
Onto which square?

>>765457
FINE.

Phobia: Fear of the unknown, mostly anything that can kill her without showing itself.

Innate Power: Plasma Beam - Based on her mother's broken plasma pistol, this signature spell allows Hore to fire a concentrated beam of generated plasma at any opponent. She has been working on plans to modify the quantum wave pattern of the plasma, which would change the beam's special strength from armor piercing to enchantment piercing.

She has lost two fingers from misfires. She doesn't like using this spell without ample protection, which is in short supply.

Also, she'd like two replacement fingers. Please.


Inventory:
Left hip - Knives
Right hip - Lantern
Left shoulder - Axe
Right shoulder - Spear
Chest/neck - Leather Armor
Top of head - Tools for Lockpicking and Field Surgery (disguised as a headband)
Somewhere Uncomfortable - Jug of Water

Mutation: Canine Features. Ears. Tail. And yes, Gnoll [[censored]].

Name: Eric Grimwald
Race: Human
Class: Rich Bastard
Specialization: Commanding others.
Higher Ambition: To become a lich and rule a mighty kingdom.
Lower Ambition: To lead others.
Phobia: Monophobia - Fear of being Alone/Without companion.
Mutation: Bouts of Trismus.
Supernatural Vulnerability: Due to a weak fortitude, Eric tends to pass out if he feels enough pain.
Innate Power: Eric is able to command undead* creatures of a lesser intelligence to follow basic commands.
Minor Permanent Magic Item: Necromancer's Amulet. Grants the ability to raise a defeated creature back to the mortal coil that is life.

Starts with boots, gloves, a hooded cloak, knife, flint for sparking, and food and water for a day.
Inventory:
Left hip - Dried Bread
Right hip - Crossbow Arrows - 20
Left shoulder - Crossbow
Right shoulder - Boiled Leather Armor
Chest/neck - Jug of Water
Top of head - Plate Armoured Cap.
Somewhere uncomfortable - Coin Purse

If Eric becomes incapacitated, any creature under his command shall be free to act as they please.

rolled 6, 5, 5 = 16

---

>Anything specific the extra eye is useful for?
Sizing people up based on their auras sounds good. I assume he has to lift his shirt to use it.

>In any case, supernatural vulnerability should be separate. How about dehydration?
Sure thing. Dehydration sounds perfect.

>Onto which square?
H1. I'll roll again in case I don't get to keep my sweet 6 haha.

rolled 4, 5, 6 = 15

---

Maru finds most things you can't solve with an ax distasteful, but currently she's tired of waiting around and decides to see is she can get anywhere with this riddle. If she thinks of it like a poem it's almost bearable.

Almost

From what she can gather, the second and third line seem to be referring to death as a peaceful and restful slumber

lines four and five seem to indicate a prize for charging into battle with their convictions, but the use of the possessive form of "their" rather than the contraction "they're" might have been intentional; there is a chess piece commonly referred to as a "knight", so perhaps it's a play on words, indicating that a specific piece somewhere on the board needs to be moved towards the right, from the perspective of the plaque

lines six and seven are less clear to her, possibly a continuation of the ideas from lines four and five; she doesn't quite know what to make of them

line eight again refers to direction, this time to the left

the phrase "stay the true course" could mean go straight

line ten could indicate direction again, with the word east, and lines 11 and 12 seem to indicate that successfully solving the riddle will lead to some sort of valuable prize

The final lines seem to indicate that the aforementioned prize is tied to the grid in front of them, and that the dark god Orcus is perving on them and getting off to watching them dick about in his dumb puzzle room. What an ass.

She's gonna wait to see if the floor bursts into flames or any such non-sense when Vos steps on it before making a move, but assuming nothing happens, she's gonna scope out any potential exits from the room, and check to see if they're currently functioning as exits she can use. She'd rather get treasure from shit she's killed than fuck about with some underworld god and his play toys if possible. After all, no one sings about how the great hero tottered around in a dusty puzzle room for 3 hours before they slayed the dragon; that part of the song is usually just covered with the word "clever".

rolled 1, 3, 5, 7, 6 = 22

---

>>765450
Whatever number I just rolled, Vos takes half that much damage from a mostly-dodged lightning bolt. Six or more damage from a single hit probably requires prompt and prolonged medical attention, more than nine damage cumulatively is going to slow you down structurally even if you're immune to pain, more than 12 cumulatively is incapacitating, more than 24 cumulatively is potentially 'sudden death' territory (in which case, make another roll to see if you can stabilize on your own), and it's all downhill from there.

Assuming Vos is still standing, where next?

>>765451
So, breaking that down, how about this:
Phobia: Spoor of those bodiless hounds which lurk in the corners of time, such as deep yet bloodless wounds in otherwise normal flesh, stringy blue caustic-alkali slime, locked-room murder mysteries, sharp corners on convex architectural elements (especially when filled in with something more smooth and round which has cracked or been left incomplete), and ill-conceived efforts to directly observe the distant past.
Mutation: Appears normal when calm, but becomes blurry, and thus harder to sense or strike, when in the grips of passion, including most combat situations. 'Clipping' through solid walls or out of manacles is possible, but usually involves heroic exertion and a risk of injury. Berzerk rage, paralyzing grief, blind panic, etc. result in total intangibility for the duration of the insanity, which may be a lifesaver or a debilitating inconvenience depending on context. Clothing and other equipment comes along with, if it's touching and you honestly think it's rightfully yours.
Also, odd dietary requirements, and downright bizarre (though consistent) distortions of smell and taste, ever since a childhood incident that shifted some birthmarks around and made you left-handed.
Supernatural vulnerability: Bags of Holding, portals, and other technological exceptions to Euclidean geometry are treated as if wrapped in razorwire, though you'll need something far more exotic than heavy gloves for safe handling, and banishing or warding effects never treat you as 'one of the locals.' If you don't yet have any native realm to be banished back to, or are already there, I'll roll on the Fascinating Parachronic Disasters table or something.
Innate Power: Teleport anywhere within line-of-sight, including through windows, and even around corners with the aid of an appropriately-angled reflective surface, but no more than a few hundred yards per hop. Requires a fine sword with which to cut a hole in the air (or at least some edge sharp enough to cut paper, but the very thought of using any tool lesser than your ancestral sword feels gross and wrong on an instinctive level) and the tunnel stays open for a minute or so, allowing partners or pursuers to follow unless they're considerably larger than you. If your feet are glued to the floor or you've broken your spine or something, you might be able to open a hole and then fail to propel yourself through it, but you can't reliably do that on purpose. If you want to open a tunnel while staying in place, or for that matter, teleport several times in rapid succession, there should be some surface solid enough for you to kick off of as part of changing direction.

As for armor, plate provides the best protection against all conventional threats. Properly fitting it to torso and limbs, and maintenance and repair and so on, is just too expensive for commoners. Leather might have a small edge against exotic stuff like rust monsters or electricity, but how often does that kind of thing really come up?

rolled 2, 1, 2 = 5

---

Regretting his poor problem solving skills, Vos lets out a screech and scurries off of the board as soon as motor function allows. He examines himself for surface injuries.

Considering the riddle again, it's possible 'eternal night' means white squares aren't safe. Either way, Vos is reluctant to test things with his person again.

>Vos takes half that much damage from a mostly-dodged lightning bolt

Called it.

"Ay mates, unless you wanna get fekkin fried like that lot, I suggests we forget the treasure and look for a way out. I haven't had anything hot in my body for longer than I'd care for, and 'm not too eager to keep playing with the death god's death puzzle."

She'll approach Vos, check for blood or other surface wounds she might be able to help stitch up.

"If I touch you I'm not gonna fuckin swell up and grow warts or anything am I? I've seen what you can do and I'm in no rush to grow a third eye or any of that shite."

>>765483
For the mutation, how about difficulty chewing solid food, combined with willingness and ability to eat stuff that's badly rotten, and resistance to poison in general? Fits with the lichdom, that image of a withered king slowly picking at his plate of moldy yet once-fine food in some sepulchral feasting hall.
Magic item still needs to occupy an inventory slot. How about combining the power to reanimate bodies (but only those slain by you personally, or by those under your direct command) with the authority over weak undead, and getting a magic quiver that can transmute any dry bones you find lying around into more crossbow bolts?
Tendency to pass out when in pain isn't enough of a vulnerability. Instead, let's say conventional healing magic causes problems for you. Agonizingly painful, sometimes makes the wound worse instead of better. Alchemical potions work fine, though.
Pick something else for the lower ambition, preferably something weird and tangential. Solid concept overall but sorta one-note.

>>765466
>Top of head - Tools for Lockpicking and Field Surgery (disguised as a headband)
>Somewhere Uncomfortable - Jug of Water
Switch these two. Tools are concealed, so the big jug of water should be balanced on her head rather than improbably tucked into some orifice.

Phobia of invisible assassins and mutation are both fine. Let's say you've got the plasma pistol built into a cybernetic arm, and treat potential complications from damage to the cybernetics as a supernatural vulnerability.

>>765488
Decaro Vos collapses on square H1, severely burned and apparently having some sort of seizure. After a minute or two his head clears. Feels like he could stand up and move under his own power, but might be wise to have something or someone available to lean on, and avoid any strenuous exertion without a healer's approval. His cloak's on fire, but only a little bit, thanks to that unplanned 'stop, drop, and roll.'

>>765494
Maru Red has deduced, from literary analysis of the poem's various cultural references, basic principles of logic, and observation of Vos's mishap, that D1, C3, and either E5 or F4 (but definitely not both) are probably safe.

rolled 6, 2, 3 = 11

---

Hore decides to use a mathematical algorithm to determine the shortest possible means of getting the enemy King in check, using a knight, bishop, rook, and her fists.

Specifically, she decides to cheat by preventing the enemy pieces from moving. If she can stop that one pawn from moving two spaces forward and declaring checkmate in three, that one strategy could win...

>>765510
>>765508
>diagnosis/first aid
>rolled 2, 1, 2 = 5

Could have been much worse, but it's still pretty bad. Vos probably owes his life to that chain shirt creating so many conductive paths that didn't lead through his heart. No bleeding per se, no foreign matter in the wounds (despite rolling around on the floor) since most of the damage was underneath clothing, but burns so extensive still present a major risk of infection. Even if you get it all sterilized and properly bandaged up, the cooked skin tends to slowly ooze lymph over the days or weeks of healing, which, if fluids can't be replaced quickly enough, leads to dehydration, reduced blood volume, and a slow, miserable death. If only somebody here had some brassfruit balm.

>>765520
There aren't currently any visible pieces on the board, so most of those grand strategic calculations come back 'insufficient data.' As for unconventional approaches... the hewn stone walls are pretty rough, so it could be possible to climb along them without touching the board. You could try jumping over undesirable squares, or tiptoe along edges, or soak your boots in lamp oil, get a really good running start, and maybe just power-slide across the entire board without technically stepping on anything. There are probably even crazier options.

>>765498
You have a marvelous talent for apply interesting flavor to an idea. I approve of this implementation.

>but becomes blurry, and thus harder to sense or strike, when in the grips of passion
Combined with the low ambition, my mind very quickly goes to a dirty place with that. http://www.shortpacked.com/index.php?id=2020

>Also, odd dietary requirements, and downright bizarre (though consistent) distortions of smell and taste, ever since a childhood incident that shifted some birthmarks around and made you left-handed.
I'm reminded of a science fiction story where they accidentally mirror reflected an individual and the cost of keeping him alive skyrocketed as they had to artificially manufacture certain chiral molecules that were now a dietary requirement but did not appear in nature. (Proooobably not exactly what happened here or I wouldn't have survived childhood).

>innate power
Ooh, I really like that you tied that to the sword.

If it works with any sufficiently sharp object, I might want to swap out the soap for a needle concealed somewhere in my clothes. A holdout, emergency teleport focus if I'm unforgivably disarmed.

Technical questions:

How dangerous are we treating these portals to someone who attempts to follow me through one? Portal-the-game-style portals that are "safe" and at worst prevent transferal if one closes on you, pushing you back? Portal-cut danger for anyone who's timing is off? Wheel of Time style ridiculous razor edges at the seams? (Honestly I think a teleporting melee fighter is deadly enough without weaponizing the portals, but if other party members risk dismemberment trying to follow me, they deserve to be forewarned).

There's no use count or cooldown specified- do I treat it as an at-will ability like Yeven's gravity? (Sufficiently paid for in vulnerabilities and fears).

>As for armor, plate provides the best protection against all conventional threats
I was unsure if plate were a reasonable choice for a dexterous type fighter, but if it works, it works. And teleporting sure does a lot for speed.

>"If I touch you I'm not gonna fuckin swell up and grow warts or anything am I? I've seen what you can do and I'm in no rush to grow a third eye or any of that shite."

Gonna go ahead and assume it's not a Midas' Touch situation, or my lower ambition will be a little complicated. For the sake of getting treatment, Vos replies by shaking his head, which is probably about the only thing he can get out considering the amount of pain he's in.

>>765523
Bandages won't do much of use at this point it seems. Nothing on their for burns currently, no one around with magical healing, so she does her best to help Vos up and into a comfortable position without getting electrocuted herself and leave them to nurse their wounds.

She calls out to Davina
"Mate, ya fancy sword lets ya jump all over the place right? Think ya can cut us a tunnel across this death trap so we can sidestep all the "dirge of shadow" nonsense?"

Traditional plate armor actually didn't restrict movement to that great of a degree! The major restriction was the weight- as long as you were buff enough to wear it though you had a pretty full range of movement

>>765528
>Combined with the low ambition, my mind very quickly goes to a dirty place with that.
Kind of the reverse of the situation in that link, actually. It'd be incredibly frustrating: the more excited you get, the more difficult it is to interact in any firm tactile way with your latest paramour. Sooner or later you'll want to invest in a +1 Ghost Touch strap-on.

>I'm reminded of a science fiction story where they accidentally mirror reflected an individual and the cost of keeping him alive skyrocketed as they had to artificially manufacture certain chiral molecules that were now a dietary requirement but did not appear in nature. (Proooobably not exactly what happened here or I wouldn't have survived childhood).
That is absolutely exactly what happened. Remember, this setting has magic which can conjure the cosmic essence of Well-Balanced Food and condense it into a physical object so easily that overuse of the technique is a major political issue among elves. When some rich family's heir shows signs of malnutrition, they don't need elaborate chemical synthesis industries, or even an exact diagnosis. They've got an over-the-counter panacea for that entire category of problem. Sure, it's got some long term side effects...

>If it works with any sufficiently sharp object, I might want to swap out the soap for a needle concealed somewhere in my clothes. A holdout, emergency teleport focus if I'm unforgivably disarmed.
Use the class ability to get nicer versions of stuff to upgrade the soap into an all-purpose hygiene kit, including small scissors and a razor, and move it to your head slot. Some sort of carrying case that doubles as a fancy hat. Take the signet ring out of your hair, put it on your finger where it belongs, add a needle and maybe some reservoir for poison (currently empty), then expand that to a full spread of covertly-weaponized jewelry. Mechanically, a second slot of knives, all uncomfortable to wear and somewhat impractical to wield, and hidden in plain sight. Plain? Nay, gloriously extravagant! She'll show them all, but those fools won't really see until it's far too late.

>How dangerous are we treating these portals to someone who attempts to follow me through one? Portal-the-game-style portals that are "safe" and at worst prevent transferal if one closes on you, pushing you back?
Mostly like that, but, as requested, it's inextricable from the vulnerability. Trying to carry a Bag of Holding through one of those tunnels would be ill-advised for anyone who values whatever limb they're holding it with.

>use count or cooldown
It takes precisely as much time and effort as cutting something and then stepping forward. Might be able to do it two or even three times in a second, with considerable practice and some compromises on precision, or maintain a more reasonable pace to tear across the surface world at highway speeds for a few hours per day.

>I was unsure if plate were a reasonable choice for a dexterous type fighter,
Plate on the chest only means a breastplate and maybe something for the back. Her limbs are free. Going by GURPS rules, there isn't any special mobility penalty for armor, it's all about the weight. With abstracted inventory slots like this, weight for different options is assumed to be approximately equivalent. If you wanted a full suit of plate armor, that would mean using all (or nearly all) your inventory slots on it, having presumably discarded other supplies in order to more effectively flee one of those previous problems.

>>765531
>Gonna go ahead and assume it's not a Midas' Touch situation
Generally speaking, mutations are always-on, while innate abilities are strictly intentional. You won't zap somebody with sacred mutagenic energies by accident unless the situation is messy enough that you might punch or stab them by accident. It's possible to direct the growth toward beneficial effects to a certain extent, classic example being an approximate replacement for some recently removed limb or organ, but it's pretty much always going to resemble deep sea horrors, half-melted tumor-tentacles, or both.
>>765534
Dressing the wounds somehow is still a sensible precaution against infection. It also helps slow the leakage, and prevent painful abrasion or irritation from shifting clothes which could delay the healing process. Bandaging and treating for shock takes thirty minutes, and once that's complete, Decaro Vos's HP is back up to 2 out of 12. He's also fully recovered the three points of fatigue lost to that seizure. He can stand and walk unassisted, or maybe even run... but it'd really be more of a limping jog, at half normal speed, at least until he can somehow recover two more HP.

What is everyone else doing during that time?

rolled 1, 1, 1 = 3

---

Hore decides to find a large boulder and throw it onto the board. Vos nearly died because he threw himself into a deathtrap, might as well play it smart and create game pieces. Better yet, Hore beckons other characters to help her smooth out the boulder into a die shape and carve out chess pieces on each side, thereby acting as both an easily interchangeable piece that can be transformed on the spot if someone is standing nearby, AND can be turned into a stepping stone / cover if things get dicey.

>>765550
With a few quick, tidy bursts of plasma you've sliced a perfect 30lb stone cube out of the wall and seared it's faces with recognizable chess-piece symbols. An underhand toss sends it soaring across the board, bouncing noisily on F4 and the edge of E7 right near D. Then it comes to a stop right up on top of the far side's pedestal, balanced on one corner.

No traps seem to have been triggered.

>but it's pretty much always going to resemble deep sea horrors, half-melted tumor-tentacles, or both.
Heehee excellent...

Well if Maru is helping Vos dress his wounds then he'll go ahead and make small talk. "My power acts only by will of Tittivila, Flesh God. Tittivila favors you. Its many many eyes gaze upon you with kindness!"

rolled 2, 4, 4 = 10

---

Hore: Gawp for five seconds. Stare. Begin laughing maniacally.

Then dodge to safety.

rolled 1, 1, 4 = 6

---

>>765543
Cool, works for me. Character frustrations are a fun to play with, and who doesn't like a jaunty hat. I'll assume my starting fruit is appropriately left hand molecule fortified if that's all right, since counters to make purchases over may be in short supply underground.

>>765551
>Kome rolls a perfect crit immediately
Of course.

Davina eyes the offending die with a literal flicker of irritation as something inside her insists that's not how corners are supposed to work.

>>765534
I suppose if we're the survivors of a larger organized expedition, we'd know each other's capabilities. (For what it's worth, I didn't choose a build specifically to bypass the first puzzle. I didn't even bother paying attention to that part of the OP at first).

Davina considers the proposal. On the one hand, as the child of nobility a simple chess puzzle should be well within her means to solve. And the lightning demonstrates this is no mere mechanical puzzle, and may have mechanism for retribution against attempts to 'cheat'.

On the other hand, a Gordian solution that cuts through the matter entirely is attractive to her on several levels.

"I am no pack beast for your convenience, but I suppose where I lead, others may follow."

Davina draws her sword and steps, attempting to reach the far side of the cavern and bypassing the chess board all together.

>>765556
You successfully dodge the harmless non-event.

Planning to dig further into the walls next, or mess with the chessboard more directly? That plasma pistol isn't actually a very efficient rock removal tool, you just hit some conveniently aligned pre-existing fault lines with that first shot. It could be enough to carve out some handholds, though, which would simplify the process of climbing.

>>765561
Tunnel opens easy as slicing a piece of cake. Davina finds herself standing on the far side of the room, two paces away from the suspiciously upright stone cube. Anyone who follows her has a brief but intense sensation of being watched.

>didn't choose a build specifically to bypass the first puzzle
I handed you that teleportation when you were barely even asking. Also, please remember that skipping past this challenge isn't quite the same as solving it enough to secure the prize.

>>765564
That's fair, I assumed bypassing the puzzle would be skipping the reward for solving it fairly.

Waiting to see who else follows before taking other action.

>>765564
Maru follows, more than happy to skip the puzzle altogether, even if it means forfeiting treasure, and brings Vos along for the ride if the other-worldly eel creature is amenable to her help. She suggests to the others that they follow suit, and focus on the very real treasure of not having to spend any longer in the poorly lit dungeon than necessary.

>>765566
Lifeless trinkets hold little value to Vos, and he's not too keen on getting zapped again. He follows happily.

Beyond the door (stone slab pivoting on a vertical axis, inch-wide gaps at the top and bottom, no obvious locking mechanism) on the far side of the room, there's a 10' wide hallway that continues more or less straight for 30', then turns sharply to the left, curls right again, and zigzags for another fifty or sixty feet before opening into the next large open area. Lots of crimson fog in the hallway, and no more ambient light. What's your marching order, who's mapping, who's got a lantern lit?

Eric follows closely though the portal sliced open by his companion, as his Monophobia keeps him from staying behind. He takes up the rear of the group as his indecisiveness in leaving the puzzle made him last to follow.

>>765573
Maru should either be the one mapping, as she actually has the supplies, or she should be the one out front if she hands them off? She's itching to sink her axe into something, after all, and her background makes her the closest thing we have to a rogue who might spot traps, I think.

Vos is injured, and the closest thing we have to a healer, so he gets the safety of the middle.

If Maru doesn't take point, and Vos as the other melee type is injured, that leaves me I guess.

I'm not sure I'm such a great break stop though as rather than holding a line, my best option would probably be stepping behind anyone attacking us from the front and stabbing them in the back. We don't really have a tank, I think.

Or maybe we could just put Kome out front to blast everything, if crossed.

We also don't have an actual hedge mage, so that leaves us without someone to check for magic, unless Vos' eye or Eric's ability give them any second sight.

Uh, translating that ramblings into actually orders that might work:

Davina, Maru (Map), Vos (Lantern), Eric, Hore (If she hurries up and isn't left behind)

Or

Maru, Davina (Map?), Vos (Lantern), Eric (Map?), Hore (If coming)

I hope I didn't forget anyone already.

>>765585
I suppose Eric could be our Map-maker for now if you want. He doesnt really have too many Melee combat capabilities unless he uses the generic knife.

Hore decides to follow the expedition party. This puxxlr wasn't getting solved anyway.

>>765583
Maru isn't so much blood thirsty as glory hungry; solving a puzzle is simply a much lamer way of attaining treasure in her book than epic battles packed with nail biting suspense and dazzling heroics.

As for the map making supplies, Maru actually uses them for composing songs and poems inspired by her travels; she not only has no real inkling of cartography besides star navigation, but has no real inclination to do so either. If someone wants to use the supplies though they're welcome to them

As for travel order, Maru suggests the following order

Maru, front line fighter and defense
Hore for ranged support
Vos in the middle, so that they are insulated and hopefully protected from further injury
Eric towards the rear due to the less combat oriented skill set
Davina bringing up the rear as the other melee fighter, to act as a rear guard from any surprise attacks and offer more defense to Eric who is, as noted, less combat focused. It's also much easier for her to jump to the action than anyone else in the party.

Maru also has a lantern, which is generally the most helpful to the person in front trying to see, and would be happy to pass mapping supplies back to Eric if they think they're up for it

She is also to other ideas if her suggestion isn't well liked, but she insists that protecting the wounded needs to be a priority in the formation line. If there's contention about the order, or any other future matters, she suggests problems be solved via voting. Her first choice is obviously her plan, but wants to play by majority rules to ensure team cohesion and unity

>>765595
Vos concurs with this plan but insists he can still fight if the need arises. He offers to light his lantern instead, as the light radius should be sufficient to illuminate the way ahead while leaving the one taking point unburdened and prepared to defend themself.

The space up ahead isn't really a room so much as a chasm. If you'd continued walking in a straight line (rather than turning about sixty degrees left, to follow the ledge that's hugging the wall) you would have plummeted off a cliff, hundreds of feet down, far beyond lantern-light range in the mist, toward the source of some titanic thrashing noises. Perhaps two to five scaly serpents the size of freight trains fighting and/or making love.

The ledge is about ten feet wide, straight along the wall, for about fifty feet. At that point, there's a natural-looking bridge, connecting to another ledge on the far wall, forty feet away. If you don't feel like crossing the bridge, the ledge on the near side continues past it, beyond range of vision. Off to the right, the chasm gets much wider, but there aren't any convenient ledges to walk along, so further exploration would require flight, teleportation, or mountaineering.

Currently on the bridge are a dozen mutilated elvenoid corpses ululating in joyous polyphony. These are no run-of-the-mill shambling zombies. They prance about almost weightlessly, seemingly pulled upward by random strands of skin, viscera, or sinew, constantly unraveling and restringing as they move. Any grisly fragments that tear loose seem to fall upward. They either haven't noticed you yet, or don't care. The crowd is spread out enough that you might be able to cross the bridge without shoving any of them aside, or even touching - provided you time it just right, and they continue ignoring you - but not without passing through arm's reach.

Mortally deep yet unbleeding wounds, strings of slime, and the smell of lye, in combination, set off a chain of mental associations to something Davina would prefer to pretend can't possibly exist. That eerie cadaver-song, drifting in and out of harmony with itself and with the grinding from below as it reverberates off the uneven stone walls, isn't a problem in itself, but certainly doesn't help. Accordingly, she must roll to resist her phobia.

rolled 4, 3, 6 = 13

---

>>765595
That works. Hore was basically only tacked on in my order since I wasn't sure if she was coming, and that makes better tactical use of her. (If laser gnoll is technically a hedge witch putting her near the front might mean she spots magical traps before walking into them).

And yeah, putting me at the rear makes sense with portals.

Forward march, roll spot and mapping checks.

Rolling for spot, not that I'm likely to notice danger first in the rear.

rolled 6, 1, 5 = 12

---

>>765597
Davina takes a shuddering (and stuttering) breath and tries to remain calm, fingers tightening on her sword-hilt.

Roll versus phobia.

rolled 2, 3, 2 = 7

---

>>765597
Vos makes an apprehensive squealing noise and lifts his chain shirt to attempt to more discern the nature of these corpses. The undead are an abomination unto Tittivila.

rolled 4, 6, 1 = 11

---

>>765597
Maru Will Pull out her pen knife and grit her teeth as she makes a quick surface laceration across her thigh, hopefully just deep enough to draw blood. She'll smear the blood across her palms and summon forth her her spiritual weapon, a large ax, made from crimson mist that seems to coalesce- no, congeal, into a solid form in her hands. It lets out a soft, dull rhythm, bp-bp, bp-bp, thumping gently like a calm and untroubled pulse.

To her undiscerning eyes she'd guess the cadavers were being puppeted around on some sort of invisible strings, like a children's marionette gone macabre. She turns to the others, to see if anyone else can get a bead on these creatures, and notices Davina apparent discomfort; she suggests the group back peddle a bit and take 15 minutes on solid ground so Davina can perhaps get a better grip on herself and not risk plummeting into the snake fuck death ravine. Roll to ensure I dont slip and gouge myself, and to see if I can help inspire any confidence in Davina that the nightmare corpse puppets are THAT bad

Eric retrieves a bolt from his quiver of magical properties and begins loading it into his Crossbow. That is, until he sees the dancing creatures with his own two eyes. Eric aggrees with Maru, and thinks that a quick retreat to more stable ground would benefit the group.

>>765600
Slime in question is the wrong color, and there isn't a stationary straight line or square corner anywhere to be seen in the immediate environment, so Davina just barely manages to keep her wits. The borrowed writing kit flickers through semitangible hands, though, and she wastes a few moments fumbling to catch it.

>>765606
>aura sight
They're definitely undead, but not completely mindless. Maybe on the same level as monkeys? No exotic immaterial attack forms, thank the Deep, but they'll resist blunt force, and rapidly regenerate from any type of damage until and unless the magic holding them together is somehow disrupted. Cold-forged iron would work, but you haven't got any on hand. Your mutagenic power... might do the job, but it would probably have other weird effects as conflicting energies mixed, and somebody would still need to physically hack them apart to finish the job.

>>765608
Between Sami and Payet Best, I'm having trouble picturing Maru Red's weapon as anything other than a magical electric guitar which incidentally has some blades on it. Anyway, down by one point of injury for the blood price, and Davina seems shaken but functional.

rolled 3, 4, 5 = 12

---

>>765610
That's exactly what you should think because it is 100% an electric bass guitar-ax. The devil loves rock n roll "dawg".

Seeing that Davina is keeping it together, she takes point and continues down the ledge, whispering in a hushed tone her intention to explore the ledge past the bridge in case there's a way around the dozen DR5/cold iron corpse puppets with magical regen; she points out the simple existence of a bridge does not demand they cross it.

Roll to
A) keep an a watchful eye on the puppets to see if they become aggressive upon closer proximity
B) Check their possessions and the surrounding area to see if there's anything of value on the bridge or signs that it might have been used for foot travel or regular crossing at some point- any worn grooves, torch holders, long rotted remants of a side railing, or anything else that might indicate and ancient civilization utilized this area.
C) Not do anything that excites or draws the attention of the corpse puppets

rolled 4, 1, 1 = 6

---

Vos will of course relay this information to the others and make an attempt to calm Davina with a minor gesture of affection. He rests his lower jaw on her shoulder, about the equivalent of a pat on the back for his culture. Assuming the same formation as before, Vos keeps moving, using his mutant eye to continually check the puppets for any change in aura.

>>765621
Vos manages to shift his chain shirt around so his chest-eye can peek through a gap where three or four rings came undone many years ago... which, considering the position, may have been the same day some previous wearer stopped needing it.
That raucous coppery twang of Maru's axe being drawn forth sends nauseating ripples of lavender and green through meat-puppet auras. They aren't turning to attack just yet, but some cyclical acoustic equilibrium has been disturbed, and the mad dance is accumulating eccentric wobbles, like a neglected potter's wheel with an off-center load.

>>765616
No readily apparent attachment points for lights or railings. In terms of tracks, countless feet have worn a smooth path over the bridge, but far fewer continued along the ledge without crossing.

Davina 2016/12/13(Tue)17:03 No. 765635 ID: 3abd97
File 148167742987.png - (6.39KB , 421x386 , crude map.png )

rolled 3, 6, 1 = 10

---

>The borrowed writing kit flickers through semitangible hands, though, and she wastes a few moments fumbling to catch it.
Ah, well if I'm on mapping duty, here's what we currently see. Should be mostly to scale, although I didn't have a number for the bridge width, nor the degree of widening of the chasm to the right. (Rolling for cartography).

>>765621
I'm going to say this actually works, and after a moment or two, Vos more often than not has an actual shoulder to rest his jaw on, compared to the jittering outline before. Her nerves still show in occasional flicking or blur- those things are not pleasant to be around.

Davina is somewhat nonplussed by this- usually attempts to grab hold of her when she's not there are more frustrating than comforting.

>whispering in a hushed tone her intention to explore the ledge past the bridge in case there's a way around the dozen DR5/cold iron corpse puppets with magical regen; she points out the simple existence of a bridge does not demand they cross it
>40ft chasm, other side in line of sight
Her wits about her once more, Davina points out she can simply cross here rather than pushing through the... creatures, or searching for an alternate bridge.

>>765635
>Rolling for cartography
>rolled 3, 6, 1 = 10
>I'm on mapping duty, here's what we currently see. Should be mostly to scale,
Yep, looking good.
>although I didn't have a number for the bridge width,
I figured it'd be hard to judge that kind of thing from the initial perspective. With a quick jaunt to some toehold higher up the wall, you can tell it's about twelve feet wide and two feet thick at either end, narrowing and arching up to eight feet wide and three feet thick in the middle.
>nor the degree of widening of the chasm to the right.
The chasm is about sixty feet wide wall-to-wall right above the bridge, and twenty yards is more or less the blurry limit of what can be seen by lantern light through blood-hued fog. Widening just means the far wall curves away out of view. You'd need a stronger light source, or clearer air, or... I dunno, some sort of echolocation? Judging by the gut-churning acoustics, there's probably no more than another fifty or hundred feet of horizontal open space beyond what you can see. However, given current resources, your only adequate option to observe the overall contour of that wall (let alone tactical details such as doors or monsters) would be to move closer.

>>765635
>Davina points out she can simply cross here
At this point Maru lets out a sharp, loud laugh that sounds more like a seal bark than anything else, her ax echoing a metallic but somehow upbeat riff that mirrors her mood

" 've had to chop my way through so many situations in the past 'a downright forgot about ya little sword trick. All in favor of following the lass of the hour with the magic sword that's saved our asses not once but twice in the last 10 minutes, shuffle on through. I'll bring up the rear just in case THESE FELLAS decide to get a little fresh with us since we've so cleverly avoided their shag pit" she proclaims, perhaps a bit louder than nessicary, while rather aggressively pointing a thumb over her shoulder at the undulating bodies behind her

rolled 2, 4, 5 = 11

---

Eager to leave this unpleasant room, Davina nods and cuts across the chasm, making her own damn bridge, 100% zombie free.

>>/questdis/106459
I can accept those terms.

Yisheng Ji
Hedge Witch
Specialization: Healing / Medicine
High Ambition: Become immortal and eternally youthful
Low Ambition: Make money
Phobia: Being crushed to death
Mutation: Feathers growing from arms, legs, and back that passively help regulate body temperature in non-extreme conditions, and ward off damp, but are obviously somewhat disturbing to look at
Vulnerability: Consuming birdflesh makes him incredibly sick
Ability: Frictionless, lightweight movement - He can treat non-solid surfaces as if they were perfectly solid and rigid, and move as if he were near-weightless. For example, walking across the surface of freshly-fallen snow without leaving any trace of his presence, walking across water without causing it to ripple, jumping into long (albeit quite slow) glides like 90s/00s wire fu movies, and slow-falling in the same fashion.

An ancient, divine spirit beast came down from a celestial realm on business, taking human form when it arrived. (Specifically, its true form was a celestial rooster.) However, before it returned home, it encountered and was infatuated by a village maiden who happened to pass by, and inevitably seduced her. Yisheng Ji was the product of that pairing, although his father left before he was born, likely to never return. Due to this unusual heritage, he enjoys some measure of divine power, not granted by an external source. As he gets more experienced, he'll naturally unlock more and more of that bottomless divine potential. (aka standard level progression) He was apprenticed to, and eventually became a local doctor when he grew up. However, he felt his quiet life was too stagnant to allow him to truly grow, so he set off on his own to master both his medical skills and latent powers, hoping to eventually cheat death and the passage of time itself.

Left hip: Brass Balm
Right hip: Jug of wine
Left shoulder: Clean cloth, hooked needles, & thread
Right shoulder: Tools for field surgery
Chest/neck: Blanket
Top of head: Dragonweed
Concealed: Greekfire

>>765670
Ledge on the far side is only about forty feet long, with the bridge in the middle. It tapers away to nothing at either end. When you arrive at the near end, you're facing an archway of neatly dressed stone, immediately beyond which there are two perpendicular hallways. The wider one - roughly ten feet square, but slightly arched at the top, with a river of thick vermilion mist flowing around knee-height and pouring out into the chasm like a ghostly waterfall - continues straight in the direction from you entered the chasm area for twenty feet, then turns 45 degrees left and slopes upward.
The other hall is only four feet wide, but at least sixteen feet high, and filled floor-to-ceiling with opaque rust-colored vapor. Mostly stagnant, but the occasional ripple or swirl resembles fragmentary calligraphy. Any experimentation with projectiles reveals that it seems to go on, perfectly level and arrow-straight, for a very long distance, though you can't see more than arm's reach ahead.

>>765679
Looks good.

So, one not-so-fine day, or possibly night, Yisheng Ji was lost underground, meditating on a stubbornly inscrutable demon's riddle. He came to some incomplete, yet possibly valuable, enlightenment, and asked to borrow a bit of chalk from one of his companions in order to record it, but was met with silence. Looking around, he found that they had somehow already crossed the chessboard and were swiftly departing without him. In that moment of dismay he forgot his partial insight into the riddle.

What did he do next?

rolled 4, 1, 6 = 11

---

>>765692
Yisheng Ji sighs unhappily at the lost potential for treasure and puts the chessboard out of his mind. Anticipating no difficulties, he passes airily across the board's surface to rejoin his companions.

Vos's injury will require some minor medical attention, so he'll try to treat it when he arrives. A little brassfruit balm and he'll be right as rain, yes?

>>765702
>Anticipating no difficulties, he passes airily across the board's surface

Please specify exactly which part of the board he's gliding across. If the traps were simple pressure plates, don't you think that rock would've set off at least one?

rolled 1, 1, 6 = 8

---

>>765718
Ouch. Alright then, diagonally straight across, from one corner to the other, like a bishop, on the black tiles.

Roll is for reflex.

rolled 3, 3, 1 = 7

---

Eric follows Davina through the portal, not wanting to be left behind. He wonders just loud enough for Davina to hear if it would be possible to destroy the bridge while they are still on it and take them all out.

rolled 6, 5, 4 = 15

---

>>765595
Hore is more of a close quarters combat fighter with some ranged powers for Tank enemies. Her fighting style is based around taking out squads of weak melee enemies in record time, before they can dog pile.

>>765597
Hore really wants to fight the zombies, but after some thought she decides that dying from a few zombie scratches isn't a risk worth the murder high. Hore decides to check for traps while following Maru.

>>765682
Davina looks between the two paths, and then turns and eye back on the direction of the bridge, wary that the dancing zombies might pursue.

"Between the two paths, I vote for the one in which we can see."

>>765718
Noooo. Here's hoping the puzzle-board doesn't nuke him. The backstory was neat, and I see potential for power interactions.

>>765748
"My talents lie in precision and speed, not demolitions. Others might posses the necessary aptitude." Davina here spares significant glance in Hore's direction, "But I am not sure that is wise. They are held aloft, and might survive the felling of the bridge. This is not a foe I wish to face on equal terms."

>"Between the two paths, I vote for the one in which we can see."
"Agreed."

>"This is not a foe I wish to face on equal terms."
"They mock us. Perhaps they will follow; attack from behind?"

While the party deliberates, Vos takes a moment to examine his companions' auras.

rolled 5, 1, 2 = 8

---

forgot to roll

>Hore is more of a close quarters combat fighter with some ranged powers
Maru takes note- she got tunnel vision on whatever that impressive ray of magic was back in the chess room, but the main goal is protect the people who aren't good at fighting so whatever gets the job done. Preferably, in her personal opinion, without any sort of murder fucking occurring in front of her or anywhere that she's consciously aware of, but right now she'd rather have you with her than against her so she's not gonna do anything to endanger the group

Upon suddenly remembering the existence of a doctor with very useful skills pertinent to their current situation, Maru suggests they take the 5 minutes needed to back track and portal jump 2 times in order to secure his safe passage before returning to their current location as a group

She makes this suggestion, not knowing that the venerable doctor has just decided to hurl themself as fast as they can across the span of the chess board and will likely be incinerated before they manage to rendezvous.

To save time, if they make it to Ji before they're blasted into a charred lump, Maru votes they take time to rest up and apply the appropriate salves and healing items to their injured party mates, and take the green mist entrance upwards, in the following order

-Maru - front line muscle
-Ji - made sight, falls back when combat occurs
-Vos - injured, not to fight unless the front lines are broken and Ji + Eric are endangered
-Eric - Picks up mapping where Davina left off, and carries the light so it doesn't get stuck on either end of the formation. Fall back with Vis and Ji when combat breaks out
-Hore - back line defense and ranged support if needed
-Davina - flexible defender, ensures that whatever group is getting attacked, they can flank the enemy

rolled 2, 2, 3, 4, 5 = 16

---

>>765745
The only square on that path which has an outwardly apparent harmful effect is F6, which bursts into flame, inflicting the amount of damage I just rolled. However, by the time he's reached that point, Yisheng Ji is suffering mental fatigue equivalent to a day or two without sleep, unwholesome yet fascinating intrusive thoughts, and a disorienting feeling like he's been cursed to never again find the auspicious path toward Heaven. Also, when he stepped onto E5, all the white squares turned red, almost as if the reddish veins in that border material were spreading.

Assuming he survives the brief inferno and decides to continue (it would be possible to sit down on F6 and treat his own wounds before proceeding, if he remains conscious), upon crossing G7 he is struck blind, and at H8 his problems are compounded with clumsiness equivalent to a night of heavy drinking, but that's the end of the immediate ordeal.

>>765748
Demolishing the bridge would amount to cutting through a two-foot-thick stone wall, and nobody brought rock-breaking tools... unless you count Hore's plasma pistol, but the waste heat from a continuous beam would probably make her arm smell like overdone bacon long before it finished vaporizing a structurally significant portion of that much rock. Also, the meat puppets could just walk over and interrupt whoever was digging, unless you had some way to climb around underneath, and, well... do I really need to explain the problems inherent in deliberately bringing a thousand cubic feet of rock down on your own head while dangling precariously over a chasm of indeterminate depth?
More generally, major earthmoving projects are possible, but require either relevant magic, or appropriate tools and many hours of hard labor, or a little of both, as in the case of delegating the brute force effort of excavation to tireless constructs or undead.
>>765750
No traps are apparent on the visible portion of either path.
>>765767
The team's spiritual health seems to be within acceptable parameters overall, but something's missing... Vos realizes Yisheng Ji was left behind, just in time to hear an anguished squawk from back the way they came. To be audible over the chasm's racket, that god-blooded roosterman must have impressive lung power, once he sets aside the usual quiet, unobtrusive decorum and really tries his best to attract attention.

Of course, in an environment like this, more attention isn't usually a good thing. The 'river' of mist starts to get lower and slower, as if blocked off at the source, and there's a faint slurping, sucking sort of sound echoing from the upward passage.

>>765788
>take the green mist entrance
Vermillion is a bright red, not green. All the fog in this whole maze so far has been various shades of blood-colored.

rolled 6, 1, 4 = 11

---

>>765812
Could our bird man resist some of the fire damage if he's treating the gaseous flame as a solid object per his ability? Running into a hot, irregularly shaped object instead of being immolated.

>forgetten party member
>squack
Davina's form blurs as she turns and cuts her across the chasm, and then again from the chasm to the door, disappearing back down the twisting hall at a run alternating with jumps as far as line of sight will allow along the turns of the irregular path.

(I expect attempting to follow her will probably result in the pursuer losing the trail of portals somewhere in the hallway as they wink out).

>>765813
>resist some of the fire damage if he's treating the gaseous flame as a solid object
To the extent that such a thing might be possible, doing so would have required better reflexes.
>losing the trail of portals somewhere in the hallway as they wink out
Hasty, ragged cuts take longer to heal. The faster you're going, the less useful that ability is for evading pursuit.

Speaking of pursuit, the meat puppets' dance on the bridge has completely broken down. Six of them charge toward whoever is still standing around the archway, wailing and swinging their fists with murderous intent, while the other six chase Davina.

rolled 2, 4, 1 = 7

---

>>765813
As soon as Vos sees the portal open he pushes past Maru and rushes after Davina's trail, trying to navigate the frequently opening and closing portals left in her wake.

rolled 3, 2, 2 = 7

---

>>765824
Hmmm. So how far along my rapid backtrack do I get before I notice the hostile pursuit of my would-be rescue, how close are they, and what sight greets us in the chess room, if I've made it that far?

Rolling for spot / awareness.

(Gonna laugh so hard if the parts floating upwards or the regeneration are spacial effects and react explosively if/when they cross a portal).

rolled 5, 6, 1 = 12

---

>>765812
>16 damage
I'm not sure how much health I have, but if Decaro Vos only has 12 hp as a soldier... well, at least everyone'll be treated to a nice roast.

Roll to cling desperately to life, I guess?

>>765813
Maru is dismayed as the party decides the best thing to do when trapped on a small ledge with hostile creatures to either side is to split up and leave half the party to be assaulted on both sides, without even stopping to consult with the group or ask if maybe taking half the party's muscle is a good idea.

If at all possible, Maru would like to round up Eric and Hore and follow Davina, so as not to split the party. This isn't too far outside of her original plan anyways as she was suggesting they travel back as a group to retrieve their feathered medic; she is baffled and unsure as to why Davina would attempt to dash off without a word to the rest of them.

IN THE CASE SHE CANNOT FOLLOW, she will suggest Hore take on the zombies, using the power of ranged weaponry to crisp them up a bit before they engage, while she turns to face whatever is oncoming in the red mist. Eric can support Hore from range for the time being, but she doubts that his crossbow will be of much use against those things given their regenerative powers and seeming resistance to normal weapons.

Again, note that this is only her preferred action if she cannot get the others to follow davina through her portals.

rolled 2, 1, 2 = 5

---

If Eric is unable to follow, he will grab his crossbow and aim it at a zombie closest to an edge. He hopes that hitting the creature with one of his bolts will be enough to have the creature fall off into the abyss. Aiming for head/chest region.

>>765832
Yisheng Ji is still conscious, but too dizzy and injured to confidently stand. He could speak, or crawl, or attempt to treat his own wounds with chi manipulation (restores 1d8+1 automatically, no materials required, limited uses per day) or brassfruit balm (restores up to 4d6 depending on how skillfully it's applied, works by transmuting the damaged flesh to brass, which is physically inconvenient for about as long as it would have taken the wound to heal naturally).

>>765830
Meat puppets are stumbling and partly crumbling whenever they emerge from a portal, but pull themselves back together pretty quick. Davina will have 20-30 seconds in the chess room before the first meat puppet arrives, and they're strung out rather than clumped in a close-order mob, so if she can disable them quickly enough one-on-one, they might not get a chance to do any tricky flanking maneuvers.

She also sees the group's main healer half-collapsed on square F6, looking charred and miserable but clearly still alive. Also, all the formerly white squares are now red for some reason.

>>765924
Critical hit! One down, with s bone bolt right between the festering eyesockets, five more to go from that group. Apparently whatever force pulls them upward isn't enough to support the full weight when they stumble off into open air.

>>765834
Maru hops through Davina's portal back across the chasm, but then find that she's landed right between the last two meat puppets in the group which is pursuing Davina, and her axe's strings have somehow become severely tangled. Roll to cast Power Chord: Dismember without being grabbed.

>>765943
For clarity: did Eric manage to run and gun that kill, or his he now stranded on the far side of the chasm with 5 zombies and (possibly a mist monster)? I suppose Hore must still be there too.

Where did Vos end up? I'd guess he's somewhere between Davina and Maru, but if he's made it to the room with me, or if he's further back with a zombie close on his heels feels like something that should factor into my immediate decision making.

rolled 4, 3, 6 = 13

---

Power Chord: Dismember, for all you zombie obliterating needs

Maru now realizes that with the way davinas portals work, who she was asking to follow her and the number of creatures attempting to intercept them her plan to keep the group together was doomed from the start. Internally she curses herself for stupidly hoping it might work, and externally she curses just about everything else

"Damn these strings, and damn these FEKKIN ROTTERS and DAMN davina for leggin it like that and DAMN THAT BIRD FOR BEING SO! DAMN! QUIET! AND FORGETTABLE! Damn that STUPID FEKKIN MUTT AND THEIR DISGUSTING MURDER BONER, and may CALISTRIA STING THIS FEKKIN CHASM! IN IT'S SNAKE FEKKIN DICK! SHITE SHITE SHITE SHITE S H I T E"

rolled 2, 2, 6 = 10

---

Hore begins her assault! Playing it smart, she starts off by throwing a few of her knives at the zombies that look the fastest, then equips both her axe and her spear. Using the spear first, she tries to stab the zombies until they get into cleave range, at which point she uses her great cleavage (and her boobs) to force momentum into the axe, potentially killing many zombies at a time. Hore's knife and spear skills are below par and she may not kill many zombies with them, but her dexterity with an axe is unmatched by any in the party and she is expected to kill any zombies within punching distance without a scratch.

Note that Hore will use her Plasma Pistol spell if she gets a bad roll (13 or more) and is in danger of dying, but an EXTREMELY low roll will cause the Plasma to misfire and fire in a random direction, which if she is unlucky [16+] can hit her somewhere vital and if she is REALLY unlucky [18] can even hit her in the FACE, potentially killing her (second roll to determine if she survives). The plasma will continue in the trajectory until all its energy has been spent.

rolled 6, 5, 1 = 12

---

Eric looks deep within himself, contemplating what kind of Lich would be slain by some simple undead. He musters up the courage to try and command these lesser creatures to do his bidding. A simple order of "HALT KNAVES. CEASE MOVEMENT IMMEDIATELY." would do.

rolled 4, 3, 3 = 10

---

It's hard to make a call without knowing where I am, but if Vos is surrounded by zombies he will try to reach out and mutate the closest one. If he is lost somewhere in the dark hallway he will light his lantern and continue to the chess room. If he's with Davina he will try to look for a way to get to Ji. Another question worth asking is whether Ji managed to make it across the chess board or is still stuck where he got roasted.

>>765965
Two of the meat puppets kneel and groan some approximation of "Yes, my liege." Not a moment too soon, as one of them was closing it's hands around Eric's neck. He's got a few bruises, but thanks to that armor, nothing serious.

Hore is having way too much fun with the remaining meat puppets on your side of the chasm. Two were run through on her spear before they managed to close the distance, then the one in front walked into her axe and lost both arms somewhere around the elbow, and some leg ligaments to knife-work. The one behind keeps trying to step past, but just ends up getting them both turned around. Both of them are at least partly on fire. Last got decapitated by a tighter-focused plasma blast, and she's making ready to impale it's exposed neck on, ah, let's just say a different spear. All three remain animate and hostile, but will be combat-ineffective for at least a few minutes as regeneration catches up.

>>765962
>Note that Hore will use her Plasma Pistol spell if she gets a bad roll (13 or more) and is in danger of dying,
You can't just change what action you're taking based on the die roll for that action.

>but an EXTREMELY low roll will cause the Plasma to misfire and fire in a random direction, which if she is unlucky [16+] can hit her somewhere vital and if she is REALLY unlucky [18] can even hit her in the FACE, potentially killing her (second roll to determine if she survives). The plasma will continue in the trajectory until all its energy has been spent.
I ask that you refrain from telling me how to handle critical failures, or for that matter, any of the dice mechanics.

rolled 6, 3, 3 = 12

---

Okay, Davina sees Ji is alive, but quickly decides she cannot safely render aid, even telporting, if the tile he's on is trapped It is, but she didn't see that, she could set it off again and kill him trying. The more immediate risk to his life is the approaching zombies, who might kill him themselves, or set off more traps approaching him.

I'll turn and try and pick off the strung out zombies with swordmanship. Teleporting behind the lead zombie is likely a bad idea as that puts my back to the next, but I might be able to safely surprise it by coming at it from the side / the wall.

>Another question worth asking is whether Ji managed to make it across the chess board or is still stuck where he got roasted.
He's on F6, so he's two rows deep into the board from our edge.

>>765969
Vos is two or three paces behind Davina. Ji is still stuck where he got roasted; reaching him would most likely involve somehow crossing rows 8 and 7 of the board. There are several ways to do that, including at least one option that everybody seems to have overlooked so far.

>>765975
>Meat puppets are stumbling and partly crumbling whenever they emerge from a portal
Too late to edit / delete without messing with my roll, but this means it would be strategically sound to try and time attacks on pursuing zombies as they emerge from one portal, and are off balance and less able to relatiate or defend adequaetly.

>>765975
That last portal makes an excellent choke point, but shallow cuts and flicker-swift thrusts to traditional vital areas fail to efficiently incapacitate the meat puppets. The hole in the air begins to close, and then they're approaching through the hallway the old-fashioned way, two or three abreast.

Obvious options at this point would be to lure them onto the chessboard somehow, or close the stone door and hope Maru chops 'em all apart.

rolled 6, 5, 6 = 17

---

>He's on F6, so he's two rows deep into the board from our edge.
Sorry, missed that

Vos stands front and center before the doorway ready to jab whichever meat puppet provides a target first, and also prepares to mutate any that get closer than jabbing range. He quickly asks Davina if it's possible to open a portal beneath Ji and simply let her fall through.

>>765986
Davina is momentarily distracted by superficial contradictions, and underlying possibilities, of oddly-angled portals. One of the meat puppets slips past her defence, and is now loose in the chess room. When Vos attempts to smite the giddy abomination with mutagenic energies, it seems to be unfazed, but there's a feeling of maggots slithering under skin from the point of contact, moving rapidly up his arm.

rolled 4, 1, 4 = 9

---

>>765996
Awwhhh fuck. Vos immediately retracts his hand and circle steps the meat puppet. He lays the haft across the abomination's belly and shoves in the direction of the nearest chess board square. If this is successful and the creature's still moving, he'll run it through from a safe distance.

>>766011
Fortunately, the meat puppet seems to have no sense of self-preservation. Upon being knocked back onto E8, all it's flesh melts away from the bone like spun sugar dunked in a hot bath.

>>765955
Maru bisects one meat puppet at the waist and sends it's majority portion tumbling into the abyss, then removes an arm and several ribs from another, but that second one tackles her and grabs on like a constrictor snake with it's "strings." Rim pf the ledge is digging into her mid-back, leaving shoulders and head dangling over what might as well be a bottomless pit. Despite both her own hands digging into it's deliquescent wrist, the meat puppet's remaining hand is inching steadily closer to her neck.

rolled 4, 4, 3 = 11

---

>>766032
Maru is, at this point, seeing red. ha

She tries to use the extra leverage of dangling off a bit to whip her head upwards and slam it as hard as she can into the creatures face; she hopes to conserve the momentum of her sudden jerk upwards to roll so the creature is underneath her, allowing her to add body weight and gravity into the occasion as she tries to turn the creature from corpse to paste with a combination of blunt force trauma and slamming any part of it she can against the stone beneath them

>>766037
The meat puppet's forehead caves in, but it doesn't let go. After some confusing tumbles, Maru is clinging to the ledge with her left hand and forearm and a few fingers of her right hand, while the meat puppet is hanging off her right elbow with it's remaining hand, and has semi-prehensile entrails tangled around her legs.

Rancid cerebrospinal fluid is dripping into her eyes. Not her own, fortunately, but it's still very unpleasant, and she doesn't have a free hand to wipe it away.

rolled 5, 2, 5 = 12

---

Davina feels a growing frustration- not only are the creatures repellent, not only do they lack traditional weapoints, but their regeneration prevents methodical disassembly!

>>765986
"I cannot easily nor reliably move without moving."

>What do
Davina will open a portal directly ahead of the undead, obscuring their view of the door.

The other side I'll place immediately behind the balanced die, perpendicular to the path across the chess board. (So the view through the portal is not facing the board, but along the edge).

This should allow me to carefully step or hop over the die (I'm assuming it's not bigger than a milk crate, to be 30 pounds and throwable?), and clumsy zombies to trip over it as they stumble through the portal.

If we're lucky, they might fall into the board. If we're not, we might be able to follow up with a shove or flesh blessing the tangled pile of undead. We'll see.

rolled 4, 2, 1 = 7

---

Hore is done @#$%ing with zombies for now~

She decides to throw zombies into the portal, starting with the limbless ones!

>>766045
Uh, the portal near you has probably expired by now, and just leads to near Maru if it hasn't.

You're probably better off aiming for the cliff.

rolled 6, 1, 1 = 8

---

"One of you! Assist the Gnoll in fighting these fleshy corpses. The other! Assist my companion hanging off of the cliff edge over yonder!" Edwin begins loading a crossbow bolt into his crossbow (19/20). He looks back towards the supposed mist monster's location expectantly.

rolled 5, 3, 6 = 14

---

>follow up with a shove or flesh blessing the tangled pile of undead.

Sounds good, though Vos is a bit reluctant to touch the things again. Speaking of which, he takes the short reprieve to examine his arm/hand, grabbing at different points along the length of his forearm and wiggling his fingers.

>>766046
Huh? Okay...

Still, we should find a way to keep them dead. Bury them? Force their regenerating limbs to fuse together? Fire won't work. Hore contemplates what power source they run on.

rolled 8, 7 + 2 = 17

---

>>765943
He'll stop to treat his own wounds. Since his body is pretty much charred all over, the Brassfruit Balm will probably be a significant inconvenience, so he'll opt for chi healing x2.

>>766067
Nice heal, even if it's only the physical injury. Yisheng Ji will crawl backward one tile, onto E5, juuust in case the fire tile decides to act up again, and stay there for now. He doesn't like the look of the red tiles.

>>766045
>>766046
Two more meat puppets off the cliff, and Hore even manages to safely retrieve her spear, though the haft is somewhat burnt. The third one she was 'dealing with,' however, has reassembled it's lower jaw, along with a lot of miscellaneous bone fragments and giblets, into a sort of belt around her waist.

>>766047
Eric's first lieutenant starts punching the torso of the feral meat puppet around Hore's waist, cracking it's ribs and spine, but is oblivious to the friendly-fire risk which this presents. Hore is now experiencing severe pain (-4 to most rolls).

Eric's second lieutenant bounces across the bridge and grabs Maru, one hand around her left upper arm, the other tangled in her hair, and starts hauling her back up onto solid ground. Feels like her left shoulder was nearly dislocated in the process. The one-handed meat puppet is still clinging to her, squeezing hard enough to cut off blood circulation to her feet, but she's no longer at immediate risk of a long fall.

>mist monster
A section of oddly clear air approaches, it's back edge defined by a perfectly vertical wall of vermilion fog.

>>766071
Yisheng Ji's burns are fully healed, but that's about as much heavy chi manipulation as he can safely do in a day. There are still a variety of minor tricks available to him, and it's possible to 'dig deep' for more, but those disturbing intrusive thoughts just doubled in intensity, so it's really seeming like a bad day to take risks.

>>/questdis/106536
>>766032
Sorry, that was an error on my part. Flesh-dissolving acid trap is on C8, not E8.

Speaking of which, the puddle of goo and disarticulated bones on C8 is visibly pulling itself back together.

rolled 5, 6, 1 = 12

---

Maru will very loudly and aggressively use whatever means she has at her disposal to detach the remainder of the creature from her body and send it hurtling into the chasm below, and assuming success, insists that Eric and Hore get across the bridge as quickly as possible. She hasn't yet seen the creature in the mist most likely, given the description concerning its lack of a visual component, but her intent is to hold the bridge from a monster she assumes is coming and guard the rear as everyone crosses, hopefully reaching solid ground and getting one step closer to reuniting with the others

>Speaking of which, the puddle of goo and disarticulated bones on C8 is visibly pulling itself back together.

Vos will scatter whatever bones are still loose with his spear. Standing back as far as he can, he pushes them one by one off in random directions across the chess board, trying to take care not to send any toward Ji.

rolled 6, 3, 2 = 11

---

>>766110

>>766111
Reassembly process seems to slow down, though not halt completely, once part of the mess is smeared over onto B7.

>>766109
Visible portion of the one-handed meat puppet has been reduced to a few tenacious strands of tendon coiled around Maru Red's ankles, but the rest of it seems to be hanging on just below the ledge. Whenever some other part starts to come up, Eric's minion kicks it back down. Only so much can be done to further detach it without amputating her own feet; a bloodthirsty two-handed axe is not the ideal tool for this job.

Laying down like a spent fish and taking a few minutes to catch her breath is starting to seem like a very appealing option.

>>766050
Maggoty feeling fades away just as the leading edge was spreading into his chest, but Vos remains uncertain whether it was psychosomatic, or if a swarm of parasites have now settled in to positions they find comfortable.

>>766043
Um, I don't think this action got resolved in the last batch or two. Unless it's not relevant anymore due to other things that happened, or I badly misinterpreted the size of the die?

rolled 5, 4, 4 = 13

---

Eric grants new commands as he makes his way across the bridge. "Follow me my lieutenants! We must make haste to our other companions! Without causing them injury this time!" Eric waits for his first lieutenant to follow across the bridge before continuing with both of them to the chess room.

>>766043
Considerable misunderstanding of the situation here.
>Davina will open a portal directly ahead of the undead, obscuring their view of the door.
Her portals are about 6' high and 3' wide. while the door is a 10' square stone slab on a vertical pivot, so that's like trying to hide an elephant behind a phonebooth. Might be possible to jam the door partway closed and set up a pair of portals so that when they try to move past it on one side, they pop back into the hallway from the other side, but you'd need something the right size to wedge into that inch-high gap under the door, or some other method to keep it from opening the rest of the way.

>This should allow me to carefully step or hop over the die (I'm assuming it's not bigger than a milk crate, to be 30 pounds and throwable?)

Stone cube is about 6-7 inches on a side. The more relevant obstacle is that waist-high pedestal it's balanced on top of.

>clumsy zombies
If anything, they're somewhat more agile than average humans. Various pratfalls can be attributed to lack of forethought, structural damage, and active opposition, rather than lack of basic physical coordination.
>>765597
> These are no run-of-the-mill shambling zombies. They prance about almost weightlessly,

>>766134
The remaining meat puppet on that side of the chasm stops thrashing as soon as the first lieutenant stops pummeling it, then picks Hore up in a symmetrical hands-free variant of the fireman's carry and moves to follow Lord Grimwald across the bridge. With no head, and a blockage in it's throat besides, it can't speak at the moment. The fact that it can apparently listen for and understand orders is already some sort of noxious miracle.

Going to help Maru first, or charge ahead and flank the three that Davina's been holding at the chess room door?

rolled 4, 3, 2 = 9

---

>>766152
Hmm. Thanks for the correction, then.

Further random trivia: what do the portals look like from the "back" (invisible? Semitransparent?).

>suggested action
Simpler plan then: Davina shuts the door in front of the zombies, and jams a dagger or two into the inch gap as improvise wedges when they try and shove it open.

Not sure how strong these particular zombies are, but if that doesn't keep them out, it'll at least slow them down and buy the three of us a little time to regroup (get Ji off the trapped board, maybe cross to the other side and so we can hide behind the traps).

>discussion

>Decaro Vos
>Specialization: Grappling
Hmmm.

"Vos, if I go to open a door, are you strong enough to hold me back from passing through?"

Ji's on a "safe" tile of the chess board, unless there are rules against two pieces occupying the same space, or captures are enforced. I could just step to him to open a portal for him to exit by, but it's probably safer if I don't actually set foot on that side.

>>766163
>safe tile
It's not 100% safe. It fills your head with intrusive thoughts. Being tele-fragged would be a pretty nasty fate though. Think I should I just dash across and take my chances?

>>766163
>what do the portals look like from the "back" (invisible? Semitransparent?).
Like a funhouse mirror, a really cheap one with lots of bubbles in the glass and so many gaps in the silver it's almost more of a window, getting hit by a sledgehammer, in slow motion. Higher-dimensional scar tissue. If somebody runs into it, the texture's sort of like mud mixed with cobblestones on a rained-out road, main difference being that if you force a hand in deeper, it seems oppressively hot and oily rather than cold and damp.

>Davina shuts the door in front of the zombies, and jams a dagger or two into the inch gap as improvise wedges when they try and shove it open.
Available knives are slightly too narrow for effective wedges, and would probably snap if stuck vertically into cracks in the floor, but they function well enough as reinforcement for a tibia and the pelvis from C8.

On closer inspection, the underside of the door seems to have a series of deep vertical holes, which would suggest a locking mechanism involving bars rising from the floor. No sign of a keyhole or lever or any other readily accessible method to engage such a lock, though.

>"Vos, if I go to open a door, are you strong enough to hold me back from passing through?"
Seems likely to work, but potential consequences for a slip-up are serious enough that he'd definitely need to roll for it.

>Ji's on a "safe" tile
There are some important differences between "no immediate deadly explosion" and "safe."
>>765812
>when he stepped onto E5, all the white squares turned red
>>766071
>Yisheng Ji will crawl backward one tile, onto E5
>>766099
>those disturbing intrusive thoughts just doubled in intensity

rolled 1, 2, 3 = 6

---

Hore regroups and tears the zombie off her waist, then asks her teammates which tile she should throw it on. Hore defends and asks where the lowest common denominator of cluster@#$%s is.

>>766192
Oh, good catch. Intrusive thoughts of that nature might be particularly bad for me, since it might skew me toward intangibility and uselessness.

>Think I should I just dash across and take my chances?
Honestly, I would try rolling for insight against the initial poem / riddle to try and determine safe squares before running blindly. Worst case you don't lose anything, and your character is kind of suited for it?

>telefrag
Unless the board itself has a "one piece per tile" mechanic magically enforced, I don't think I actually can. Not with the portals, anyways. Unless you find a bag of holding. Or I'd have to try and clip through you when I was blurred intangible, which would be terminally stupid.

Also worth considering, in addition to portal mechanics:

>There are several ways to [move across the board] that, including at least one option that everybody seems to have overlooked so far.
Might be worth thinking on this. Maybe if you "jump" like a knight you're only exposed to the start and end tile traps? (And maybe not the end, if you go off the board).

>Other possible portal antics
If I jumped and cut up, could I open a portal above me? (And fail to follow through it due to gravity). Now that Ji is actually standing and I can see the the floor under him, I *could* open the other end under him. Normally that would be a dumb idea that would immediately drop someone on me, but Ji has built in feather fall.

>>766199
The tiles should be down a hall and behind a closed door from you. Throwing anything there would be pretty hard, unless you're holding onto it till you get there.

So are there undead between Eric and the Chess room? Also is the door closed? Just want to confirm some things before posting.

>>766192
Specifically, the intrusive thoughts resemble a pair of obnoxious children, with voices like crows, competing for your attention. They refer to square E5 as "the Cube of Extremely Limited Psyche," but are just bored to tears with this whole room and refuse to discuss it's other features any further, except to confirm that "the prize" is real, and they aren't it. Both have promised (with obvious sincerity) to depart and trouble you no more just as soon as you attempt any one of the many courses of action they constantly propose... which are mostly nonsensical atrocities, but seem to reflect profound insights into the labyrinth's greater geomantic structure, so their advice might, eventually, turn out to be useful.

>>766203
Yes to both.

rolled 1, 2, 3 = 6

---

>>766201
>>766204
It says to "stay the true course in blooded sight", and all the white tiles turned blood red. I'd think "the true course" would have been a straight shot across, but E8 melts all the flesh off your bones, so that's right out. I could hop forward-left like a knight onto D7, then forward one to D8, onto the King's space, and hopefully capping the King = Treasure? Alternatively, I could move diagonally onto B8 and then right to C8, which would clear the knight and bishop, which would allow the "castle" to "fall east" and allow the king to "bound to the left" as the black player castles their king, which is kind of a "foolish whim whose meaning is deep" move?

Roll for insight on the puzzle + voices, I guess. I really don't want to take another 5d8 damage.

>>766209
Some hint from the smudged-out chalk notes left on the pedestal by previous adventurers clicks together in Yisheng Ji's mind. Loaded with vague symbolism and contradictory implications, it's not a riddle at all; more of a koan, turning the reader's cleverness against itself. If he's right, that poem contains no information whatsoever about which squares are safe.

rolled 3, 3, 2 = 8

---

>>766163
Sure willing to try it. Wish me lucky dice

rolled 1, 3, 4 = 8

---

Eric stares down the unloyal beasts and attempts to gain control over them. He clenches his fist as he commands "Kneel to me and accept me as your one true king!"

rolled 1, 2, 4 = 7

---

>>766213
Hahahahahah, wooooow.

>>766213
>>766214
Davina nods, then turns does her best to ignore the eel-man behind her and what she's trying to do, focusing simply on what she's doing. It's easier that way.

Just a push and a cut like any other.

Opening a portal to Ji's tile and hopefully being stopped from passing through by Vos.

rolled 1, 2, 6 = 9

---

>>766213
Alright, new tactic then. Yisheng Ji will call out to Davina, if she can hear him, to drop some nasties onto the board in front of him, to see if the tiles are safe, and then he'll be able to cross based on that information.

>>766215
At this point, half the meat puppets have been more or less irretrievably pulped, and the other half are successfully recruited.

>>766214
>>766216
>>766219
Ji is interrupted in mid-sentence by a blade, appearing as if from nowhere, pressed against his throat. Davina and Vos grab him from behind and yank him through the portal, off the chessboard, without further complications.

Vos still has some fairly serious injuries, which brass balm would be useful for treating. One of the disembodied voices "helpfully" interjects that the balm is made from fruits of a tree which only grows in the Murderfuck Forest, demon realm of Hrotsvitha. This claim is... probably false? One of the major components is imported from some otherwise unfamiliar distant land, but that's metal, not fruit. A particular type of brass with unique alchemical properties. Every other reagent is well-understood, and can be produced locally.

Vos sets Ji down safely on solid ground and releases his grip on Davina, clearly looking pleased with himself. His posture quickly weakens again though as the adrenaline high seems to wear off. "Should regroup with others. Let's go."

>>766236
>Regroup

Eric Grimwald, Hore Wutashi, Maru Red, and six no-longer-hostile meat puppets are right outside, ready to reunite as soon as somebody un-jams the door for them.

After that, and possibly treatment for their various (comparatively minor) injuries, there's the matter of which way to go next.

rolled 6, 2, 2 = 10

---

>>766250
Assuming someone communicates through the door that they're not a group of hostile zombies and would like to be let in, Davina will remove the improvised doorjams and reclaim her daggers.

She's going to be less than happy to see the zombies brought along, though.

"You're ke——ing them?" she says with obvious distaste, flickering momentarily.

>there's the matter of which way to go next
Is there an apparent alternative exit to this room besides the hall to the chasm chamber? (There's two or three possible paths once we get there, at least).

Does the mist in the hall show whatever it was in the other room following the group? (At least as far as we can see from the door).

rolled 6, 4, 5 = 15

---

>>766235
>>/questdis/106571
Yisheng Ji will apply some Brassfruit Balm to Vos. Here's hoping the mental debuffs aren't severe enough to make me fail basic medical treatment.

>>766263
>rolled 6, 4, 5 = 15
>various curses and distractions

Some embarrassingly haphazard pawing at Vos's wounds nonetheless manages to restore 3 HP. The remaining damaged tissue is now sealed under a layer of brass, which largely removes the risks of longer-term bleeding or tearing something open by exertion, but, if something in there was already contaminated, you'll have a hell of a time cleaning it out surgically when the infection starts to spread.

Yisheng Ji feels like eight to twelve hours of sleep would fix maybe half the things that went wrong during his own attempt to cross the chessboard, including some things that are impairing his medical skills.

On Vos's end, the restricted movement from brazen scar tissue is comparable to wearing slightly-too-tight clothes on the relevant areas.

>>766255
>Is there an apparent alternative exit to this room besides the hall to the chasm chamber?

Door you came in through leads to a dead end, courtesy of that sliding-wall trap.

>Does the mist in the hall show whatever it was in the other room following the group?

Nope, no sign. Given the rate at which it was moving, though, you wouldn't expect the fog anomaly to have even crossed the chasm yet, unless it's much faster in a wide-open space.

rolled 2, 5, 4 = 11

---

Vos fidgets and squirms painfully during the process, but when all is said and done he is very grateful for the minor reprieve in pain. He nuzzles Ji's face in appreciation. Vos asks if Ji can look at his arm, and goes chattering on about feeling a very unpleasant sensation when he touched one of the creatures of stagnant flesh.

His train of thought is interrupted however by the sound of Davina's protest and then the sight of the targets of his ire. He immediately moves to impale one of the meat puppets on his spear.

rolled 1, 4, 1 = 6

---

>>766255
>>766289
Eric's eyes shoot to attention at Decaro Vos's sudden movement and Davina's disgust towards the now tame creatures. He shouts in protest to the assault on the undead elvinoid creatures.

"Wait! I have them under my control. There is no need to continue fighting Vos!"
Eric shoots a glance at his creatures.
"Do not harm these beings, they can be useful to our escape."

>>766289
>He immediately moves to impale one of the meat puppets on his spear.
>>766300
>Do not harm these beings, they can be useful to our escape.
>There is no need to continue fighting Vos!
>rolled 1, 4, 1 = 6

Lieutenant Dangle is stabbed somewhere in the general vicinity of the heart, and, as ordered, makes no move to retaliate. Hole in the meat puppet's chest closes up again almost immediately.

Lieutenant Dan burbles some semicoherent questions about this larger strategic objective of "escape."

rolled 3, 2, 5 = 10

---

>>765682
>>766204
>two perpendicular hallways to choose from
>intrusive thoughts reflect profound insights into the labyrinth's greater geomantic structure
Yisheng Ji, now capable of walking and out of immediate danger (albeit too woozy to accomplish anything useful), figures he may as well query the horrid voices in his head as to what lies down each of the available path options, once everyone's regrouped and he's been informed said options exist.

rolled 1, 5, 2 = 8

---

Hore, feeling absentminded, decides to carry whoever needs help moving. She's not sure what is going on anymore.

>>766313
"You mean the chasm? There's way more than two. Ten, at least, depending on how you count. Most just have rocks and fog and stuff that kills you. Say what you want, we'll tell you where to go, one decision each. Tools? Secrets? A giant mantis who squeals and moans while being ripped apart? Gold? Safe place to sleep?"

>>766300
>Lieutenant Dan burbles some semicoherent questions about this larger strategic objective of "escape."

"They talk?" Vos is significantly alarmed by this revelation.

I assume since everybody knows of each others' talents, Vos had an idea this would happen. He decides to go ahead and lay a ground rule. He'll tolerate Eric's practices for now, as long as Eric does not kill a creature for the sole purpose of converting it into an undead pawn.

rolled 1, 1, 6 = 8

---

>>766366
Yisheng Ji snaps his fingers loudly in Maru Red's direction to get her attention and urgently requests a piece of parchment and a writing utensil from her to record "what may well be supernatural guidance being channeled through [him]," and assuming he receives them, prepares to record in writing the responses to his mental queries.

"Knowing the most reliable path to the nearest safe location to rest and recuperate would be ideal," Yisheng Ji mentally vocalizes to his unwelcome intruders, and after a moment's thought clarifies "where 'safe' refers to the personal safety of both myself and my present companions, as well as that of any and all items belonging to us, and not necessarily any other item or entity, up to and including yourselves. Furthermore, 'the absence of threat' implied by the term 'personal safety' should also consider the 'threat of starvation and/or dehydration' brought on by a lack of supplies exacerbated by, for example, being imprisoned in an otherwise perfectly safe chamber."

After a short pause to collect his thoughts, Yisheng Ji continues with the second request: "While it is true that material wealth is a goal of this expedition, the love for gratuitous violent suffering you two, in the short yet eventful time we've so far spent together, have made quite well-known, coupled with my understanding that this labyrinth will most certainly couple any available treasure with profound sources of precisely that, make me reluctant to request it of you. Therefore, I will instead request a reliable route, not from this location, but from the safe location you will be providing in response to my first request, to a location where may be found more detailed and reliable information regarding both this labyrinth's layout and inhabitants, with emphasis on the hostile. I suppose such information could be considered secrets, though it matters little to me whether or not others exist who know it already."

>>766370
"Of course! They also have regenerative capabilities, are seemingly unstoppable, and in general make very useful subordinates. If we just work along side them then fame and glory is sure to come." Eric smiles, seemingly beaming with admiration towards the undead creatures. "Imagine the possibilities my friends. hmmmm. I best start naming them, unless they remember their old titles? Do any of you have a name that you wish to be known as."

>>766389
>safety
"Cross the bridge, down the narrow hall to the end, and flip the table."

>decent map
"Request an audience with the fallen duke, whose servants you may recognize by their being entirely covered in blood apart from hands and lips."

>>766397
>Do any of you have a name
The six meat puppets briefly burst into... song? Something like an attempt to reconstruct the laughter of children using only mis-tuned violins, a pipe organ, and terminal emphysema.

Seems to be a 'no.'

rolled 4, 1, 3 = 8

---

>>766412
Hore's ears perk up. That music sounds familiar...

Roll to determine if her eldritch lore (from her mother's nerdy attempts at horror stories) can figure out what dialect they're speaking in.

>>766412
Got it. If Yisheng Ji was granted parchment and writing utensil previously, he'll return them now, with information recorded. Either way, he'll relate this information verbally to the rest of the party.

Once that's accomplished, Yisheng Ji will await the rest of the party to finish their immediate business, so they can cross the chasm. Notably, he'll be standing with someone else between himself and the bridge, such that anything hostile coming from that direction doesn't find him to be the most convenient prey.

>"Cross the bridge, down the narrow hall to the end, and flip the table."

Maru hands over the parchment and writing supplies without qualm, but makes a statement leveled with a tone of seriousness not customary in her regularly brazen and unfiltered cockney voice:

"Ay doctor, 'eres the deal: we go down that tunnel we can't fight. 4 feet wide aint enough space to swing an ax, and we can't trust how reliable ya "guests" are. If ya fink'in this is a good idea, or at least betta than wandering aimlessly, I'll back ya up. Hell, I'll walk in front. But if this goes tits up, im 'oldin ya responsible, ya 'ear me?"

She turns to Vos- "Lieutenants Dan and Dangle is it? The way I sees it, they can't all be lieutenants o'wise the title means notin, ya see? So I'm thinkin Lts Dan and Dangle, with their mates dip dodge Delilah and bob, what ya think a that? And, while we're on the subject can ya ask if they're plannin to get all antsy again next time I swing my ax? I don't like the idea of gettin flanked by these... things."

>>766416
Yisheng Ji handwaves (literally making a hand-waving gesture) Maru's statements. "Both concerns easily solved. Have the deathless creatures sent first. If there is danger, they will bear the brunt of it. You may choose to 'hold me responsible' for whatever comes of this route if you wish, but future harm is assured whether we choose to take the path or not, and in my regrettable current state, I am capable of doing little to mitigate any injuries that may occur. I believe the potential benefit to be worth the risk." With particular dryness, he adds "If it does indeed go wrong, perhaps you can leave me to be cursed and charred to death somewhere alone. That would certainly give me cause for reflection."

Eyes flickering tiredly, he finishes with the assertion that either way, a course of action should ideally be decided upon in short order, before any more hostiles converge on the area.

>>766370
>>766397
>>766412
Davina watches the exchange between an alarmed Vos, the enthusiastic Eric, and the cheerfully horrifying band of cavorting corpses with an expression caught somewhere between incredulity and disgust. She almost speaks twice, only to be shocked back into silence first by "Lieutenant Dan"'s elocution, and then by the chorus' mockery of anything even resembling music.

Eventually she responds "If they must accompany us, put some of your toys on point. Better they run into the next trap than any of our number."

>>766415
>>766416
Shaking her head and making a deliberate effort to put the creatures out of her mind and focus on other things, Davina joins Ji and Maru's conversation.

"We are to trust these spirits that the path to safety is the one in which we blind ourselves? I cannot step where I cannot see, and we would all be in a poor position to defend ourselves if attacked."

>>766422
"Touché gov, didn't think yad take to runnin full speed across the board after seeing what happened to Vos, but we don't know eachother that well so I guess I shoulda kept a closer eye on ya and reminded ya not to play with the death trap. Smart thinkin what with the meat sacks takin the lead though- have 'em split rear guard and front, walk down the path ya monster friends suggest, and upend some furniture for us, make 'em a right handy tool what with their regeneration and all. 'Ere, for the time bein lets revise our marchin order.

Lt Dan
Dip
Delilah
Maru
Ji
Vos
Eric
'ore
Davina
Dodge
Lt Dangle
Bob

Sound good? Remember, there's still an invisible mist monster waitin to do what 'ore does best, so let's all be on our best behavior alright luvs?

>>766424
>Remember, there's still an invisible mist monster waitin

Hore Wutashi should definitely roll for that phobia of hers if you're going to be discussing a potential enemy whose only known feature is how hard it is to see.

rolled 4, 4, 4 = 12

---

>>766397
Vos does not share one bit of Eric's enthusiasm. He makes a sound that resembles a sheep receiving a surprise heimlich maneuver and stows his spear.

>Remember, there's still an invisible mist monster waitin to do what 'ore does best, so let's all be on our best behavior alright luvs?
"If foe still stalks us, should confront it before making further discussion." Not wanting to waste anymore time deliberating, Vos cautiously approaches the dark hallway and scans for any hostile auras.

>>766424
"I want my Lieutenants by my side, so here is how I believe the marching order should be. We should surround ourselves with a reliable shield of undead flesh."

Pvt Dipper (Undead Elvinoid)
Pvt Delilah (Undead Elvinoid)
Maru
Ji
Vos
1st Lt Dan (Undead Elvinoid)
Eric
2nd Lt Dangle (Undead Elvinoid)
Hore
Davina
Pvt Dodger (Undead Elvinoid)
Pvt Bobby (Undead Elvinoid)

Remember that in a 10' wide hallway it's possible to march two or three abreast. Might make sense to compress the group into four, five, or six such ranks for most of the trip to the narrow hall.

>>766438
Examining the unlit, zigzagging hallway with aura sight finds no signs of life (nor undeath) more advanced than slime or lichen on the walls.

rolled 3, 6, 4 = 13

---

>invisible mist monster
If it's smaller than than the narrow hall (not that we know that yet), that would be one reason to risk being blinded by fog (although I really think any advice from Ji's headvoices is trapped).

If I can see through it, and it's larger than a portal, that means blinking past (or through it) could be an option... although that might be a Bad Idea if it's a snake or some other long creature. Not sure how attempting to open a portal inside it as opposed to beyond it would go, but I doubt well.

>preparing to move on
>>766439
Inner and outer screens of disposable minions seems reasonable. Prevents losing them all to one trap, and provides layers of cover for the PCs.

>before we move on
Maru's looking a little battered, and Hore lost, um, well. Perhaps our healers should attend to them before we charge back into battle?

>>/questdis/106610
To keep her mind off the zombies while waiting for that, Davina will contemplate the chess board. The poem seems to make reference in turn to a knight, a bishop, and a rook. Possibly implying a series of moves, one as each piece? (Although the rook sounds as if it is captured, so maybe East-rook-position is just telling us the square the knight finishes his journey on, capturing A8).

>>766472
Sorry, that should be "if it's larger than the narrow hall"

Vos would roll his eyes if he were physiologically capable, looking back at his companions still arguing over what order they should walk in. He idly steps back over to Davina as she ponders the chess board. "Perhaps could simply cross along space between squares?"

>looking back at his companions still arguing over what order they should walk in

Maru will point out that the 5 minutes needed to get a plan together and organize yourselves can make the difference between life and death. If you all want to attempt a puzzle solution, she'll stand guard with Vos, on lookout for the potential threat approaching.

If they need to walk down the wide hall before anything is discovered and slain she suggests a box formation like so:

1 2 3
4 5 6
7 8 9
10 11 12

1: dip
2: dodge
3: bob
4: maru
5: davina
6: hore
7: Eric
8: Ji
9: Vos
10: Dan
11: Delilah
12: Dangle

Meat shields in the front and back, fighters make the second row with Ji, who is less combat oriented and also somewhat impaired in the middle, Vos and Eric to the sides as padding

She's fine with Eric's proposed matching order for the narrow hallway. We just need to make sure the group all stays together and no one wanders off. It's a shame no one brought rope.

A point of clarification I forgot to add:

She insists she and Vos stay inside the chess room with the door closed. Whatever was in the hallway seemed to take up a respectable volume, so if they can see it normally it's safer to have a visual cue, like a door opening, that said creature was approaching. She'll ask that someone else put their blanket at the foot of the door in case the creature can become gaseous or something like that and slip undearneath.

rolled 4, 6, 5 = 15

---

Hore tries to calm herself with a swig from her water canteen. Assassins would need to spend two bombs, fifty knives, and a suicide zombie to assault this phalanx... right?

Focus, Hore. Time to march.

>>766496
Everybody okay with this marching order and overall plan? Any last-minute experiments before heading out?

>>766414
>figure out what dialect they're speaking in
>rolled 4, 1, 3 = 8
It's either some fiendishly sophisticated code, or random noise on a really creepy carrier wave.

>>766472
>contemplate the chess board
>rolled 3, 6, 4 = 13

No further insights.

>>766496
This also seems reasonable as a marching order.

>We just need to make sure the group all stays together and no one wanders off. It's a shame no one brought rope.
Davina has an sudden and unpleasant mental image of gutting one or more of the zombies to harvest their intestines and then quickly discards this idea as both impractical and distasteful.

>attempt a puzzle solution
I'm not going to advocate for this, though if Eric insists on sending a few of "his boys" across, I'll provide a portal to the far "starting" side of the board for them.

(I think the anon in the dis thread had the right idea though).

I'm ready to move on, though I still think Ji or Vos should take a look at Maru and Hore before we continue. Maru's probably just a little battered, but Hore suffered an amputation, didn't she?

>>766501
When Hore squeezes her waterskin, a little puff of the ubiquitous red mist comes out. What if it's been poisoned? Sure, still smells like normal slightly-stale water, but some poisons are really hard to detect. What if they're already inside this room, tying our shoelaces together and slipping black lotus extract into our rations?

Hore is mentally stunned for a few seconds, and loses 3 points of fatigue due to hyperventilating.

>>766505
>Hore suffered an amputation, didn't she?

...no? She stuck her dick down a meat-puppet's esophagus, which then got punched a few times, but by the time the two of them disentangled it was under explicit orders not to hurt her. Maru and Hore have both taken bruises and scratches from close combat with the meat puppets. Nothing obviously serious, maybe 3-5 total damage each, but some attention from a competent medic would still be time well-spent once you find a safe place to rest.

Unless you're counting those two missing fingers, from goofing around with the plasma pistol before she even came to the dungeon.

rolled 5, 6, 5 = 16

---

>>766472
>>766505
>Hore suffered an amputation
I'm re-reading to see if I missed this, but it looks to me that Hore only took a sucker punch to the groin? That's just normal pain. Nothing that requires special treatment. ( >>766099 )
Similarly, Maru seems to have just been squeezed and knocked around a bit. Some blunt trauma from being grappled by an undead creature.

Nevertheless, since there seem to be complaints, Yisheng Ji will look over them to the best of his currently-somewhat-addled ability to determine whether or not their injuries may necessitate brass balm, or if they'd be able to walk it off for now. He'll also offer Hore a drink of his wine to help soothe her panic, on the stern condition that there'd better still be most of it left in the jug after she takes her drink.

>>766508
I believe I misread the earlier exchange as something being bitten off when it was just bitten, then.

>>766510
Same here

Maru looks around the room. Hore is going off about imaginary threats, and doesn't look too hot. Ji and Vos have both seen better days, and she herself is feeling the effects of combat. She proposes that the group should take a short rest soon, but that there's 2 options she can conceive of for how to do this. First off, they could rest in this room for an hour or two. However they've been rather loud, and she's not confident their possible pursuer is the only creature aware of them. The inscription of the room even mentions Orcus watching them. Given the grim reputation of that particular being, this room may not be the best place for a breather.

The second idea would be trusting the voices in Jo's head, which are a result of the highly deadly Orcus dedicated death trap treasure puzzle mind you, and go to the "safe room" they've outlined. This obviously assumes these voices are real, and furthermore can be trusted, neither a fact Maru can be sure of. It should be a group decision, but perhaps an hour or two of rest here wouldn't be so bad. She'll trust Ji and vote for whatever the doctor votes for, bar any new ideas or information.

>>766512
Vos votes we keep moving. Ji's lead is as good as any.

I don't think the choice is between rest and trusting the voices. There's the perfectly valid choice of not trusting the voices and taking the other path (assuming we circumvent or deal with the invisible presence in some manner).

Either path, I'd vote to return to the chasm room for now.

Eric aggrees with these line ups. He goes on to discuss if the group should rest or press on.

"This room offers a very defensible position. Its got a door, and a section of flooring that can kill. If we wish to lick our wounds here would be the best choice. We could rest on the opposite side of the board, get accross via portal or possibly climing the walls."

Eric sizes up everyone individually, then continues, getting progressively quieter and quieter.

"However, there could be a beast in the fog, and we dont want to be caught at a bad time. We could lead it here and fight it on our own terms...."
He starts to mumble to himself, possibly to lost confidence or a sore jaw.

>>766509
>Yisheng Ji will look over them to the best of his currently-somewhat-addled ability
>rolled 5, 6, 5 = 16
He concludes that Hore has too many kidneys, that Maru's sprained ankle will need to be firmly punished before it becomes self-aware and embraces the Ysbelite Fox Heresy, and that he'd very much like to lay down and take a nap.

>>766523
>>766496
>>766520
>>766439
Alright, one more question before setting out: who's got light sources? Even a meat-shield can hold a lantern, and hedge witches can create various magical equivalents, but should beware the doom that came to Sergeant Nick.

Move. Move before they find us and find a way to ambush us all at once, never giving us a single chance to attack. Check the path for traps, check the walls, the floor, the ceiling, check your inventory, and GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF, HORE.

Hore takes a deep breath. She'd like to @#$% someone to relieve stress. She wonders why even the staunchest of perverts refuse to lead her into a dark alley for a quick rape. Seriously, she's got big honking DDs and she keeps her dick in baggy pants, why does everyone stay ten feet away from her, even when it means staying within five feet of that fat orc who swings a giant axe while singing "The drunken drake who ate my trouser snake"?

Boy, that was a weird weekend. Hore and 'Porky' split the dead bystanders' corpses and @#$%ed them raw before the guards even heard about the accident. Hore isn't sure what he's doing these days.

Actually, people stay away from the girl who can shoot plasma beams out of her hands. Accidentally. While aroused. Word travels fast when the rumormongers don't know what that green, armor piercing light show of gore-tastic decapitation is and want to make rumors about what it could be.

>>766616
who's got light sources

Maru's got a lantern that she'll pass off to Eric for the time being in case she has to get her hands bloody

>taking the other path
That's good and all, but Maru suggests that path is less likely to get them somewhere they can rest, simply by virtue of not being the easily defendable chess room, or a room vetted as safe if we trusts the voices. We don't have to rest, but take a look at the rest of the group Davina- we're definitely not at peak performance right now. Maru says she's fine pressing on herself, but she's not so sure about Hore and Ji currently- who knows what actually happened to him on that chess board? Just a thought that an hour or two of down time might do some good for those of us who are less well off

rolled 1, 4, 4 = 9

---

>>766510
Though for future reference Vos is more than capable of regrowing any lost or missing genitals.

>>766616
Vos has a lantern.

>>766624
Lower ambition dictates Vos would be willing to have sex with the hybrid murdergnoll, but he's also terrified of her.

Vos turns his attention to the die still resting on its corner on the pedestal. He sets off across the chess board, trusting blindly in Tittivila's sudden provided inspiration, going along the small 6" trim space between squares A8 and B8. He carefully plants one foot in front of the other, making sure not to accidentally step on a square.

>who's got light sources
Maru, Vos and Hore all have lanterns. As a hedge witch, Hore could also create light another way. (Although considering flavor, that probably means trying to hold a ball of plasma on the end of her blaster without firing. Which probably has a even more room to go wrong than Marijke's gum-fire if she rolls poorly).

In the skinny marching order this spaces lights around the middle (which is probably fine, since no one can see more than a foot or two in the mist anyways) but it the compact marching order that puts all light in the second (living) row. We might want to pass one to one of the lead corpses?

>Lower ambition dictates Vos would be willing to have sex with the hybrid murdergnoll, but he's also terrified of her.
I'm gonna say in spite of lower ambition, half-crazed dog things with extra organs lie safely outside Davina's preferences. And even if that weren't true, humping a zombie would have been a deal-breaker.

>>766662
Concern and alarm flicker across (and through) Davina's expression as she witnesses Vos walk out onto the trapped board.

>>766662
>He sets off across the chess board, trusting blindly in Tittivila's sudden provided inspiration, going along the small 6" trim space between squares A8 and B8. He carefully plants one foot in front of the other, making sure not to accidentally step on a square.
>rolled 1, 4, 4 = 9

Vos slowly but surely reaches the far side without incident. Replicating the feat at full combat speeds might be more difficult, but puzzle solution attempts no longer need to worry about intermediate squares between those deduced to be safe. Yisheng Ji, or anyone else with perfect balance, can walk along the borders at speed without even needing a roll, provided the floor isn't slippery and nobody attacks or otherwise severely distracts them mid-traversal.
>capable of regenerating
With exciting new variations every time.

So, assuming Eric passes Maru's lantern to one of the expendable corpses on point, so they won't be in the way of the beam... just after you round the last corner and the straight path to the chasm comes into view, Bob notices something wrong and raises it's fist to silently signal a halt. There's a section of floor and wall with less ground-in grime, no fog, and it bends the light just slightly.

Something unseen grabs Bob, lifts it up near the ceiling where everyone can see (thanks to Vos's light) and starts twisting limbs off with glacial slowness. The lantern Bob was holding gutters and goes out, as if dropped into water.

Davina now has a just-barely-usable line of sight all the way across the chasm, thanks to some rock over there still glowing cherry red from plasma fire. Hore should roll vs. phobia.

rolled 6, 4, 4 = 14

---

HORE IS FIRIN' HUH LAZER!

rolled 1, 2, 6 = 9

---

Does this unusual floor section take up the entire hallway? Vos quickly balls up his blanket and tosses it forward.

rolled 3, 6, 2 = 11

---

Oh, also checks for weird auras. Don't know if that's a separate roll.

rolled 6, 3, 3 = 12

---

So, this might be the same thing the original party ran from with the goblin patrol back in thread 1.

>"Yeah, an Empty Sweeper. Maybe you heard it seal off the way back? Unstoppable. Kills at a touch. Slow, st least, and up here," he kicks up a splash to indicate the liquid on the floor "we see where it is."

We never saw the sweeper pick anything up before, but none of us got that close, and it would make sense that a death touch doesn't work on the undead? (Hence the methodical dismemberment).

I don't think barricading the chess room door would stop it (can't fully plug the gaps at the top and bottom of the door).

Vos' aura sight might pick up on a weakness we can exploit (not that we can know for sure it's unavailable, just that the goblins didn't know of a way), but otherwise our best bet is probably bypassing it and then getting a move on before it can catch up. Call Bob and the lantern acceptable losses. (Hopefully it's too slow to reach the portal, or too large to fully pass through, before it reaches us. Although if it is like a big slime or gelatinous cube, I'm not sure what happens if the portal closes on it).

>what do
Rolling for attempting to open a portal to bypass the murderous invisible obstruction.

>>766685
Default self-control number for phobias is 12, -4 for ongoing severe pain, so that's a failure by six. Rolling some additional dice and looking up the result on the Fright Check table... looks like Hore Wutashi will spend the next fifteen to twenty seconds vomiting. Apart from the obvious effects, that's a further -5 penalty to most actions, and mental concentration is simply impossible.

She also squeezes off a bolt of plasma into the ceiling, to no immediate effect. That's one of the better plausible outcomes at this point, surrounded by allies and with marksmanship down at 'miss the broad side of a barn' levels.

>>766686
Full width and both walls, yes. Whip the blanket out and the far end gets stuck in mid-air at about the same point Bob got grabbed, then the weave starts to separate, fray, and dissolve.

>>766687
Aura sight shows only extremely primitive life, much the same as before, >>766471 but it's incredibly dense and dimly hungry.

>>766689
Davina is now safe on the far ledge, and one person can follow her per second. Who's first?

She could also pop back and open additional tunnels, accelerating the evacuation while increasing the risk of pursuit.

rolled 6, 2, 2 = 10

---

>>766701
Guessing I can't get my blanket back without risking life and limb, but if I can just tug it back then I will.

Vos will carefully pull Hore back and try to comfort her while allowing the rest to evacuate first.

>>766704
I mean, don't know what I'm thinking. Hore should definitely go first unless we want to be swimming in puke.

rolled 6, 2, 4 = 12

---

Forgot to roll

Eric shoots the invisible creature with a bone bolt, he orders his boys to back away from the invisible death mist and to not engage.

Hore would REALLY like to @#$% someone to ease the pain. She'll focus on defending herself until they reach a safe room.

rolled 2, 4, 3 = 9

---

>>766701
>>766704
Yisheng Ji will take Davina's escape route without complaint, then. He has nothing to contribute to the situation, and is not at all eager to be slaughtered.

>>766715
>>766704
>>766707
Hore goes through first, and Vos's blanket now has far too many varieties of digestive juices soaking into it.
>>766716
Yisheng Ji goes second.
>>766713
Eric steps to the right, into the space Ji just vacated, and leans around the portal to deposit a crossbow bolt in the tentatively-identified Empty Sweeper. The projectile glides smoothly to a stop, as if fired into clear water.

Dip and Dodge retreat into the spaces previously occupied by Hore and Davina, and not a moment too soon. The Sweeper advances. Looks like it's moving about a foot and a half per second, so you've got two or three more seconds before it's touching the back of the current portal.

Maru goes last among the living, but preferably before the rest of the dead

rolled 2, 6, 1 = 9

---

So... we can get 2-3 people out of the current portal, and we still have Vos, Maru, and Eric to evac, plus 5 zombies (Although we're gonna lose some of those, I think).

Davina curses under her breath, then attempts opening a second portal, further back back as lighting / tunnel curvature will allow (delaying how long till it's overrun). Should be obvious, but the second safety-side portal should be spaced some distance away from the exit of escape portal #1, so if the sweeper starts coming through the first one evacuees don't find themselves immediately running into it.

Davina will suggest Eric order any undead who do not evacuate in time to attempt to lure the creature into following them back down the hall and across the chess board, perhaps delaying it turning to pursue us.

She will then step back through portal #2, rather than opening a third.

>>766707
If the sweeper has to stop or slow down to eat / break down organics it overruns, maybe leaving the puddle of vomit will delay it slightly?

>>766728
New portal opens just behind the back rank of meat puppets, and it's lower edge is about four feet off the ground. Passing through that way efficiently will require either a jump after a running start (made easier by kicking off the adjacent wall), or some sort of assistance.

rolled 1, 4, 6 = 11

---

Rolling for a safe and speedy evac. Won't fight Maru on going last.

>>766733
>>766734
Roll is now to help Davina back up into the portal, and then Eric next.

Did my roll and stated action cover returning, or am I still in the back row with the zombies?

(Because if I'm still there, a hard to access mid air portal is trivially solved with another portal).

>>766740
>Did my roll and stated action cover returning
Yes. There's a certain amount of tricky simultaneity going on here, though. In the two seconds after opening the first portal, while Hore and Ji were coming through, Davina moved six yards away from the first portal (by the glowing rock), right up to the edge of the ledge, opened a second portal (facing the archway that leads to the perpendicular halls) and stepped through it. Then she fell four feet, and started rattling off tactical advice to Eric about where to send the meat-sheilds. Takes at least a second or two to pronounce a fifty-syllable sentence intelligibly. Once she's done that, Vos is kneeling and cupping his hands to help her step up and back through the second portal.

With Maru and Vos arguing (however briefly) about who gets the honor of being rear guard, and considering how Eric's phobia applies to a situation where someone might be left behind, the aspiring lich presumably followed Yisheng Ji through that first portal, and was out of earshot when Davina began speaking. You see, Davina's portals don't transmit sound very well, due to some sort of boundary effect, like the surface of a body of water.

Dip and Dodge, in turn, followed Eric through the first portal just before it was engulfed, as a reasonable extrapolation of their standing orders. Vos boosts Davina, Maru boosts Vos, Davina and Vos turn around to hoist Maru by the arms, that just leaves the two lieutenants and Delilah.

>>766751
Vos sees no reason to help the puppets, if the portal even stays open long enough for him to try.

rolled 3, 4, 6 = 13

---

Keep forgetting to roll. Sorry guys.

Eric looks back at his lieutenants/Delilah with regret.

"Don't let the creature get close to you! My two Lieutenants, get through the second portal over to me. That is an order!"

Eric issues some commands, knowing time is of the essence... He then looks over to bob's remains to see if there is anything left.

"Delilah, lead the beast back to the chess room and try to stall it! Dont touch the chess board and dont attack it. Just waste its time long enough for us to get away, then try to return to my side!"

Cool, all living party members alive and undissolved.

>>766780
You'd have to stick your head back through the portal to be heard, but yeah, the zombies should be able to pass one or two of their number up in time?

We should probably getting the heck out of here though, since the blob will have engulfed the first portal by about now, and we have no idea if it can get though.

Which passage are we fleeing down? I favor the wider one, as the fact the sweeper came down it means there will be nothing living in our path for a while, and we can see, and I don't trust Ji's voices.

>>766784
Maru favors speed over arguing and discussing right now. First idea gets first choice, Mary will let Davina take point while she herself guards the rear, with a commanding
"Ya got it mate, take da reigns and everyone else get ya asses in gear. Eric dere's more dead fings in dis 'ole guaranteed, so get ya bleedin 'ead out dat portal and move it."

After that corner, the wider passage climbs about 40' over the course of 60' horizontally, then there's a T-junction. Left or right?

>>766784
Yisheng Ji favors the narrower one, on the grounds that he'd like to get some rest, and if the monster came down the wider path, it can easily go back up that way and kill us in our sleep.

rolled 3, 3, 6 = 12

---

>>766792
If Ji tries to argue or go down the narrow path, Maru will attempt to knock him unconscious with blunt force to the head.

>>766796
An important caviot to this action is that she intends to carry his unconscious body with her as they go, to ensure he doesn't run off alone and get himself killed or waste so much time stalling and arguing about where to go in the hallway that the creature catches up and does them in. This is an act done with the intent of ensuring everyone makes it out alive; if it works is an entirely different story.

rolled 6, 1, 6 = 13

---

>>766796
Awfully generous of you to surrender your share of any future healing from this source. Roll for reflex save.

If he gets K.O.ed then two undead will most likely carry him.

rolled 5, 6, 5 = 16

---

Vos will also try to grab/grapple Ji if needed and carry him if he's knocked out. Vos does not trust zombies with the healer's life.

>>766798
With total defense, and a retreat, bonus from the innate power and penalty from the curse more less canceling out... that's just barely enough to dodge. Maru's punch grazes Ji's nose as he backs away down the narrow corridor. After those first few steps back, Yisheng Ji discovers something odd:
>>766800
Vos is stumbling after him, groping around as if blind, bumping into the walls and audibly complaining about the impenetrable fog, but looking back toward the archway intersection, Ji can see everything clearly, only obscured by a few faint rust-colored wisps here and there.

rolled 5, 3, 2 = 10

---

>>766803
Huh. Well no point in trying to turn back now. Vos will continue and attempt to follow Ji's aura, if he can see it. Not gonna try to grab him if I find him now, just want to meet up.

>>766818
Assuming Ji keeps backing away, and/or continues with his previous plan...

The 4' wide hallway is about a hundred feet long, then turns sharply left and continues another thirty feet. Along that entire distance, it's filled with rust-colored fog which has the bizarre property of allowing more than thirty feet of visibility one way, less than three the other way.

At the end, it opens out into a 20' cubic room with a 6' x 15' table surrounded by twelve chairs. There are no other apparent exits. The table is set with the picked-over remains of a feast, most prominently the skeleton of a giant boar. There's a large open barrel of dark green sludge in the opposite corner, apparently collecting a slow drip of water from the ceiling, and a web of rotting timbers 10' up which might once have supported a second floor.

One of Yisheng Ji's head-voices is insistent that he "flip that table turn-ways," apparently the final necessary step before he can attain a safe place to sleep and it can be on it's way, but fails to elaborate further.

Vos's aura sight confirms that the skeletonized boar is not an undead monstrosity. On the contrary, it's still alive, and in considerable distress.

rolled 1, 5, 1 = 7

---

Go to bed for a few hours and I discover we've split the party again and chased the healers off. Eesh.

Uh, that brief bout of the party turning on each other happened behind me, and they went in the opposite direction- should I assume I missed that?

Rolling for a spot check I guess. Do I notice anything about the left and right paths on the T intersection, who do I see following me, if anyone? Any sign of the Sweeper (or another one) approaching ahead or behind?

>>766825
Pff. Is the voices' safe space literally baricading a dead end with a wooden (?) table. I don't think that will stop an amorphous organic eater if it comes that way. A stone table might work, although I'm wondering if you need a water tight seal.

rolled 2, 1, 3 = 6

---

"I sense life in these remains." Vos makes a quick prayer to Tittivila. Assuming the plate is not too huge to move, he'll set it gently on the ground and then prepare to attempt to flip the table. "Will need your help. Table looks very heavy."

rolled 6, 1, 3 = 10

---

ZZZ...

Eric followed Davina, along with his small army of 4

rolled 6, 5, 2 = 13

---

>>766832
>voices' safe space is literally barricading a dead end with a wooden table
Classic jackass genie moment. I'd have hoped being as specific as I was would prevent this sort of thing, but apparently not.

>>766838
Yisheng Ji will help flip the table, once everything on top of it has been safely moved to the floor, and then prop it up tightly against the entryway.

>>766844
You've got to give me something to work with, here. An actual action, or at least a complete sentence somehow related to what's going on in-game.

>>766860
>jackass genie
You asked for the nearest safe place, while inside the Bloodmist Labyrinth. There ain't many to choose from. This room has a supply of food and water, in the form of a rain barrel full of palatable pond scum. That one-way fog combined with an arrow slit in the table gives you plenty of options for posting sentries, and in a narrow hallway like that, a single heroic guard could hold off an army. You could even rearrange the chairs into halfway decent beds.

Once Ji and Vos wrangle the table into position, it turns out that an odd fist-sized lump on the floor is perfectly positioned to brace one of the table-legs. If some outside force were trying to move the barricade aside, they'd need to somehow lift it over the obstruction without the benefit of any good handholds.

>>766832
>Do I notice anything about the left and right paths on the T intersection
Judging by the echoes of grinding and thrashing, the left path leads back to the chasm.
>assume I missed that?
Sound carries well in narrow corridors with flat stone walls. If there was any shouting, or even somebody getting cut off in mid-sentence by a punch, you'd probably overhear even if you'd already run off scouting ahead. Working out the direction a sound came from can be much trickier, but in this case it'd be obvious.

>Any sign of the Sweeper (or another one) approaching ahead or behind?
Nothing ahead. It seems to be held up on that first portal, which is bulging and rippling somewhat, but there's enough debris on that part of the floor from Hore's fight with the meat-puppets that it would be fairly easy to notice if it came all the way through.

>>766866
After the table is moved into place, Vos sits down on the floor. He takes a long drink from his jug of water and then offers it to Ji. "Why did you run? Do you not trust us?"

Maru grunts angrily, and presses onward with Eric and Davina
"Blast it all, I 'ope those two make it to the surface some'ow. F'now doe we betta press on and try not to get ourselves killed. Maybe if dey're lucky dey'll find a way to catch up wit us soon."

>>766874
Yisheng Ji will politely refuse the offered water, preferring instead a drink of his own wine. "It's not a question of trust. It's a question of priorities. I rather enjoy being alive and functional, and when myself being in such states are assigned a low priority among group decision-making, it is occasionally necessary to take one's fate into one's own hands. We will surely rendezvous with our companions again. I do not expect them to fall victim to a monster as slow as that one, invisibility or otherwise." Almost as an afterthought, he'll add "Hopefully, that monster does not attempt to break in here. I am not certain this impromptu barricade will hold against it." With that, he'll arrange four chairs into a roughly-square shape in a corner of the room away from the entrance and curl up with his blanket to roost.

rolled 2, 2, 2 = 6

---

>>766885
Guess Vos will keep watch. Turning off the lantern to save fuel, he'll stare at Ji all night with his big eel eyes and bigger chest eye. Roll to stay awake.

rolled 6, 3, 4 = 13

---

Hore is too stressed, scared, hurt, and exhausted to consider any form of modesty whatsoever.

Hore offers sex to any who want it! Roll against her low charisma to see if she can convince the others she isn't that scary. If not, she'll fap herself to sleep.

>You've got to give me something to work with, here. An actual action, or at least a complete sentence somehow related to what's going on in-game.
Assume it was dialog and rolled for delivery?

>>766884
"What was that." Davina demands of Maru. She is understandably upset to discover their successful reuniting of the party and evacuation spoiled by the seemingly sensible (if coarse) voice of cooperation in the group attacking one of their number, undoing the rescue she just executed and somehow getting Vos lost in the process.

Assuming Maru answers honestly:

Grumbling: "You couldn't have just grabbed him and dragged him along? He's as light as a bird. He floats."

Davina will reluctantly agree to continue without their missing comrades and hope for a later reunion. If they're in trouble in that mist, they're beyond her ability to help.

>Judging by the echoes of grinding and thrashing, the left path leads back to the chasm.
To the right, then.

>>766936
"Put that away lest you wish it cut off. And get up, we cannot afford to sit on our heels and allow that creature to catch up with us."

>>766898
>>766936
Vos will have no trouble staying awake, thanks to a faint but unscratchable itch inside his brass-bandaged wounds. He overhears Hore howling about her urgent need for certain reproduction-related sacraments. Shout back, inviting her in, or remain silent?

>>766943
>To the right, then.
Passage continues about 40-50 feet, curving gently to the right, then there's another T-junction, but this time you're on the crossbar. Straight on ahead, or turn left toward a musky smell and sound of running water?

rolled 2, 6, 2 = 10

---

>>766994
Hahaha absolutely will do. Roll for lung strength.

>>767006
Unless someone's willing and able to physically drag Hore Wutashi along, I think that brings the two groups to 3 PCs each. Group A, mobile, has the bardbarian, the necromancer, and the air-tearing fencer; group B, encamped, has the healer, the tumor-paladin, and the lusty DPS.

Maru won't stop Hore from joining them- hopefully she won't have to deal with its fetish and the added muscle will add to the second groups survivabity

"Look mate, do ya really think I'd do somefin like take a swing at the doctor wifout good reason? I was finkin he wanted to peel off and get 'imself killed lickity split like, and not wantin to waste our time arguin and chasin and the like, I figured if I gave 'im a good clout round the backside 'e'd be out cold before he knew what 'it 'im, and we could wake 'im up later after whatever 'appened in Orcus's death trap wore off. He didn't take kindly to me poppin off and split. Bloody rooster musta been a fast one." She pushes on towards the route with the hint of water, signaling to the others that they should move slowly and with caution because water generally tends to bring out things that are thirsty, not all of which will be friendly.

rolled 4, 4, 1 = 9

---

>>767059
Rolling for stealth

rolled 3, 4, 4 = 11

---

(Except he doesn't do that, because Maru wants to be stealthy and yelling at a huge band of undead to call out is a bad bad decision.)


Eric follows closely behind Davina and Maru, careful not to be left behind.
"I do hope no misfortune comes to them. I have started to grow attached to you all and would feel great remorse if any of you were to join my undead escapade."

Eric looks over his shoulder to his compatriots.
"Follow from a short distance behind, men. Be as quiet as you can, and do not make any sounds as you follow".
Eric does a quick head count to make sure everyone is here, or at least, everyone but Bobby and Delilah...

rolled 6, 1, 1 = 8

---

>physically restrain the offensively crude lusty bitch prone to indiscriminate plasma fire from running off.
Dav's good, thanks.

>>767059
>Maru's explanation
>Vos calling out in invitation
*Sigh* "Well at least they appear to be alright."

Davina accepts that their half of the party will be scouting ahead, and will attempt to regroup with the holed up half later.

>She pushes on towards the route with the hint of water, signaling to the others that they should move slowly and with caution
No objections.

Rolling for spot, stealth, etc.

Marching order? (Assuming Maru took the lead, and we're following).

M
Z Z Z
E D
Z Z

>reproduction-related sacraments
Why would anybody want to worship another God? Vos will never understand.

>able to physically drag Hore Wutashi
Pff

Vos will perform his duty to Tittivila, ignoring any protests Ji tries to raise.

>>767060
>>767063
>>767064
Mobile group moves quietly toward the sound of water. Passage continues relatively straight for a hundred feet or so, then abruptly opens into a massive natural cave, comparable in size to the chasm area but oriented vertically. Blood fog is mostly concentrated near the ceiling.

Immediate area is around a hundred feet square, with three obvious exits. Most prominent feature is a 40' wide scorch mark on the floor, surrounding a half-melted full suit of orc-sized plate armor and several dismembered goblinoid corpses. Looks like there was a battle here relatively recently. Measuring from the center of that mess, with the way you came in at 6 o'clock, there's another 10' wide tunnel at 8 o'clock, the main bulk of the cavern (including a small lake) from 2:00 to 3:30, and a musky-smelling side chamber from 4:30 to 5.

>>767079
Rank these objectives by relative priority, and gimme a roll:
* Hard enough to satisfy her lust
* Steady enough to calm her fears
* Religious indoctrination
* Other social influence - specify (optional)
* Personal gratification
* Bondage and other safety precautions (see where it says "murder" on her character sheet?)

Using algae-water from the barrel to rinse some of the vomit and doom-slime off your blanket before getting started, or other contextually appropriate preparatory actions, might provide bonuses on the roll.

rolled 1, 3, 1 = 5

---

>>767103
How about a wine-boosted roll to stay asleep through all this.

>>767104
You attain near-perfect emptiness of mind, and for those 12 hours of sleep, will remain a serene little feathery spheroid no matter what sounds, smells, sprays of fluid, etc. may fill the room.

rolled 1, 5, 4 = 10

---

Hore is nervous, she needs to do something to calm her nerves!

...

Hore decides to fap in a corner. She pays attention to her hands, decreasing her stress relief but also lowering the odds of her accidentally burning her dick off. She feels that she can trust the others to protect her but is worried that they cannot protect her from living walls... Hore faps harder...

rolled 5, 1, 3 = 9

---

>>767103
Assuming kome reads the last several posts and gets caught up, I will go with the following...

1. Hard enough to satisfy her lust
2. Steady enough to calm her fears
3. Religious indoctrination
4. Personal gratification
5. Bondage and other safety precautions

Vos is nothing if not a selfless lover. He specializes in grappling so should be okay if things get out of hand.

>Using algae-water from the barrel to rinse some of the vomit and doom-slime off your blanket
Will do this. Also will arrange a nice bed from the remaining chairs and lie down on it awaiting Hore's arrival.

rolled 79, 96, 26, 31, 73, 22, 1, 49, 32, 62, 37, 61 = 569

---

>>767111
>>767122
Before you know it, it's been an hour, and you're idly discussing the possibility of going for a third round. Hore is feeling much better, and was joining in on some the sacred chants without even being asked. Vos had an enjoyable enough time himself. However, that's... rather more blood than is supposed to be coming out of an eel-man's butt. Might have been wise to at least scrounge up some sort of lube.

I'm rolling for twelve hours worth of random encounters. Feel free to specify how you're using the remaining eleven. Rest, food preparation and/or consumption, investigating various features of the room, and guard duty would all be reasonable options, I'm sure you can think of others. Since both Hore and Vos brought lanterns but no refills, you've got a bit less than twelve hours of lamplight remaining, so some thought should be put into oil rationing and/or alternative light sources.

rolled 6, 1, 6 = 13

---

Okay, first up, let's keep our distance from the water, in case something hides in the depths.

40 ft scortch and the tableau suggests battle with offensive spellcasting rather than a group stumbling across a trap.

Davina will examine the "crime scene". She's no forensics expert, but martial training and an education should help with insight after the fact for combat. What happened here? She'll be careful not to touch anything with her hands (using a blade to turn things over if necessary) in case one of the dead carried a bag of holding or something similarly dangerous. Are any of the dead identifiable as members of our original expedition? Is there anything of practical use or value undestroyed by flame or heat?

I suppose mechanically this is search / spot.

rolled 6, 6, 2 = 14

---

>>767127
Knew I was forgetting something important.

>joining in on some the sacred chants without even being asked
Tittivila is pleased.

>blood
Vos is sure his good friend Ji will be more than happy to provide some sort of remedy when he wakes up.

Rest is much needed, and Vos feels safer with Hore around. He would like to take the time to get a closer look at that boar though. Perhaps with Tittivila's blessing he could grow its flesh back. Pieces of the wooden supports could be used for makeshift torches. He'll fill his canteen from the rain barrel and try to eat some of the algae. Probably not very appetizing, but also not the worst thing he's ever eaten.

rolled 5, 2, 2 = 9

---

Hore feels much better now~

Now that she can think straight, Hore analyzes the boar's skeletal structure for abnormalities. Since the boar is kept alive by unknown magic / tech and is technically not an undead, Hore proposes that they take the boar, bones and all, as emergency rations as the inside bone marrow is nutritious; her mother taught her that bones produce blood from nutrients. Hore is worried that the bones might be coated or enchanted, but if someone cleans them they should be safe to chew. Besides, the fat from the boar would obviously make a good candle wick, there should be just enough for an hour of candlelight, but the fat would serve greater purpose as calories. Hore doesn't really care that her teammates don't know what calories are.

Hore also spends some time reciting the periodic table while searching for anything that could be useful. Roll to see if she finds anything.

Eric shuffles around, uneasy about all the dead bodies. He asks Davina if he should make like a necromancer and Undead-them.

>>767144
Armor has some charred bones inside and bears a barely recognizable insignia of the Fire Hawks, a somewhat more reputable "troubleshooting and frontier archaeology" company than your own. Looks like the armored orc and somebody else, agile (judging by the oddly-spaced footprints) and wielding a pair of handaxes (judging by the wounds), ran into a patrol of goblins. Somebody set off a fireball, killing the orc and most of the goblins, then chopped up the remainder and ran off toward that other narrow tunnel.

>valuables
Nothing magical. Armor is basically scrap. The Fire Hawks might reward you somehow for retrieving one of their fallen, if you can find them once you get out. Thorough search of the bodies could turn up a few intact arrows, mediocre knives with grips sized for goblin hands, and maybe some coins. If you're hungry enough or have something unpleasantly clever planned, there's also the goblin bodies themselves. Everything else either got burnt up, or picked over already.

>>767167
>Pieces of the wooden supports could be used for makeshift torches.
Standard torch is a bundle of rushes dipped in tar. The beams are too thick and too damp to ignite directly with flint and steel, difficult to apply directly to a lantern without damaging the lantern, and nobody brought kindling, so let's say another hour to get a little fireplace and fuel supply worked out
>He'll fill his canteen from the rain barrel and try to eat some of the algae. Probably not very appetizing, but also not the worst thing he's ever eaten.
It's like really thin, bland, lukewarm vegetable soup.
>He would like to take the time to get a closer look at that boar though. Perhaps with Tittivila's blessing he could grow its flesh back.
Soon as he touches the boar's skull, that maggoty feeling from before comes unraveled all at once, like the tingle of circulation returning to a no-longer-constricted limb. Hurts, but it's a good kind of hurt. Necessary.

The boar starts to regenerate, a flash-flood of flesh flowing from nose to tail. Leg bones and even ribs slough away, replaced by a random array of misshapen fins amid fine, green-black scales. Each scale curls around into a tiny barbed hook.

Long ago, during the decadence and decline of the Old Empire, Duke Aerim got it in his head that "you are what you eat." Accordingly, he began to dine exclusively on plants and animals characterized by extreme longevity. Bread and beer of amaranth-grain, the flesh of tortoises, olives and pine nuts from gnarled thousand-year trees, jars of honey stolen from tombs that were already ancient even in those days, wine of dragon's-tears, and yet stranger delicacies. Eventually, longevity alone no longer satisfied, and he desired to consume part of a creature that would truly never die. Some hired wizard worked abominable arts of stasis upon a boar, changing it's body into something which could survive any conceivable injury or deprivation, yet remained edible. In this very room, there was a banquet, but Duke Aerim found the taste disagreeable, so that was that. His servants ate the rest, and the empire fell before they got around to cleaning up.

Your goddess thanks you for bringing her a new convert, and providing a channel through which she could break that ten-thousand-year old curse. With it's form changed, the unnatural stasis no longer applies. Now you just need to lay the poor, maddened creature to rest.

>>767193
Reanimation wouldn't work. Apart from being burnt to ash or chopped to pieces, they all died before any of your people got there.

>>767187
Hore notices that the rain barrel is slightly warmer than it's surroundings, and the photosynthetic algae are still alive, implying that there's a source of heat and light sunken somewhere down in the opaque green water.

Hore twitches slightly as the realization that Vos just undid the elder magics of a potentially unlimited food source (given that the boar could have been relocated to the surface and spammed with enough genetic modification to induce regeneration without interfering with the stasis enchantment) sinks in, and to add insult to injury, he anointed it with his goddess' blessing so eating / using what will be left of the damn thing after he puts it out of its misery would get her cursed. Hore is slightly pissed off that Vos did the ethical thing and saved a boar from eons of torture, when he could have brought it back to civilization and saved hundreds of orphans from starving to death. EVERY. @#$%ING. YEAR. Not to mention all the expensive-to-maintain pigs that will be slaughtered for a few meals.

Focus, Hore. The boar would likely have died on this nightmare of a campaign. But given Vos' mutterings about the boar, if this really is a ruined capital of the old empire, and they had this level of magic, this expedition might come out with a profit after all. Hore decides to fish out the nearby miniature artificial sun, as it likely acted as a magic power source for the boar's stasis. Hore calls over to Eric to help her, as her recent bad luck has made her apprehensive about doing anything alone. (Hore will roll for fishing check once someone comes over to assist.)

>>767195
Vos is honored he could serve his deity and offers a prayer telling her so.

He finishes off the boar as humanely as possible.

So the moral of the story here is if we come across an elvenoid with hand axes, they might be able to fireball us.

>The Fire Hawks might reward you somehow for retrieving one of their fallen
Yeah that's not really going to be feasible. If there were dog-tag equivalents or an emblem or something similar we could carry it out, but we can't afford to drag the orc's remains with us. (If there was something like that though, the Orc's surviving companion likely took it).

>a few intact arrows, mediocre knives with grips sized for goblin hands, and maybe some coins
Dav's not hard enough on coin to scrabble for coppers, and she's already covered in knives.

Eric might be able to use the arrows (even if they're likely inferior to his bone bolts), and maybe the zombies could use the knives? Actually, the fire might have left some burnt-dry bones for his quiver to process.

>He asks Davina if he should make like a necromancer and Undead-them.
>Reanimation wouldn't work. Apart from being burnt to ash or chopped to pieces, they all died before any of your people got there.
Doesn't apply in this case, but in general, Davina would probably favor the tactical utility of disposable pawns over leaving the remains of slain enemies unmolested. (So long as they don't have creepy, bloodless wounds, run of the mill zombies shouldn't trigger off her phobia).

>what do
So the obvious question then: "Do we follow the path the survivor took, or the other?"

If we assume neither the goblins nor Fire Hawks had means to bypass the sweeper as we did, that means they arrived here via the other two passages into this room. So one passage likely leads (eventually) to the dungeon entrance the Fire Hawks used, and one passage likely connects to a goblin settlement. (Too bad that there's no way to know if the elvenoid pressed forward, or retreated).

Probably more likely the Fire Hawk, after losing a companion, would retreat? That's probably the more promising path. How do Eric and Maru feel?

>insane flesh horror boar covered in hooked scales
Well on the plus side, if you kill it, maybe Eric can reanimate it as a zombie pet.

>>767203
To be fair, Hore probably isn't privy to the insight the flesh god granted the flesh paladin. Unless Tittivila opted for the booming voice and glowing lights thing.

rolled 5, 6, 3 = 14

---

>>767206
Maru votes they check out the musty side chamber, solely on the property of it being a side chamber with a hopefully smaller and more easily searchable space, before they move on to follow the other path. She does however, leave it open to a vote- provided we can be relatively quick about it. Rolling for a general perception check to keep an eye out for any threats or important sensory cues that could give valuable information

rolled 4, 1, 1 = 6

---

>>767238
Ah, sound logic. If we assume the side chamber is a dead end, it would make sense to check there first.

(If it is a dead end, and we assume they didn't get past the Sweeper, then the potential exit and potential goblin settlement would lie off the same path).

Roll for spot / search / movement / not getting killed by a surprise attack / whatever as we go to check the side chamber then.

>>767206
Perhaps I was unclear. The former boar is still somewhat bigger than you, entirely covered in sharp bits, and flailing around trying to eat your face. That mercy kill is neither trivially easy nor safe, so you're gonna need to roll.

>>767207
>if we come across an elvenoid with hand axes, they might be able to fireball us.
Might also have been a single-use item, possibly even set off accidentally. Goblins are reputed to be pyromaniacs.

>Eric might be able to use the arrows (even if they're likely inferior to his bone bolts)
Overall quality is actually somewhat higher, and barbed broadheads do more damage to flesh (at the expense of armor penetration) but they're arrows intended to be fired from a shortbow. Crossbow bolts are shorter, with thicker shafts, and a different sort of stabilizing fins. Using the wrong ammo type wouldn't be quite as disastrously stupid as loading the wrong sort of bullets into a modern gun, but it certainly wouldn't do accuracy any favors. A long, thin arrow would probably buckle when fired from a crossbow, and then you're basically throwing a flimsy bent stick at the target with excessive force.

>>767238
>>767241
Side chamber is sort of an egg shape, about 30' front to back and 40' side to side, with the narrow end on the left. It's piled with shredded dried fungi, shed fur, and other debris in a sort of nest. Smells like a large, lonely, carnivorous mammal with poor personal hygiene spent a lot of time there.

It's not a dead end. Half-buried in the back wall there's a tunnel, about 15 feet wide.