Kahan nods and casts the requested spell. "My augury did say the air was good to breathe 'for now' so you might be right about the mold," he agrees.

"Hmmm.  I bet some oil would do the trick." Tahldar says as he starts to take out oil and flint and steel.

OOC:  As long as there is no trap leading up to the mold, Tahldar will try to use a couple of vials of oil to splash it. Then light it.

You want Sark to be your guinea pig? Not clear on what you meant by that.

I think he meant that he wants to use Geebo's antimagic aura to disable any magical locks, and just got him and Sark confused.

You can try that. Just keep in mind that the antimagic aura has a chance of disabling something on any of you and any positive magic items in the room as well as traps.

Are there any traps in the room? Regardless of what we're doing to disarm them, I fully intend on using the spell to find them anyway.

Kahan casts the spell while facing south, revealing that there are traps in the room. He gets the impression that there may be multiple traps, or traps that are both magical and mechanical in nature, or all of the above. He also gets the strange impression of a living trap--neither mechanical or magical--whatever that means.

The cone of area revealed for the trap is everything in the green triangle of the map below.



OOC: I assume he faces south since that seems most logical, and the spell as I see it extends in a conical format from where he stands by the bear trap.

Here is the spell text in the 2nd edition rules. I post it because I initially was posting after looking at 5th edition rules. They are slightly different:


When a priest casts a find traps spell, all traps—concealed normally or magically—of magical or mechanical nature become apparent to him. Note that this spell is directional, and the caster must face the desired direction in order to determine if a trap is laid in that particular direction.

A trap is any device or magical ward that meets three criteria: it can inflict a sudden or unexpected result, the spellcaster would view the result as undesirable or harmful, and the harmful or undesirable result was specifically intended as such by the creator. Thus, traps include alarms, glyphs, and similar spells or devices.

The caster learns the general nature of the trap (magical or mechanical) but not its exact effect, nor how to disarm it. Close examination will, however, enable the caster to sense what intended actions might trigger it. Note that the caster's divination is limited to his knowledge of what might be unexpected and harmful. The spell cannot predict actions of creatures (hence, a concealed murder hole or ambush is not a trap), nor are natural hazards considered traps (a cavern that floods during a rain, a wall weakened by age, a naturally poisonous plant, etc.). If the DM is using specific glyphs or sigils to identify magical wards (see the 3rd-level spell glyph of warding), this spell shows the form of the glyph or mark. The spell does not detect traps that have been disarmed or are otherwise inactive.

This message was last edited by the GM at 11:23, Wed 03 Nov 2021.

OOC: As a reminder, Dalharen put three rings on Geebo to confuse you into not knowing if he was the doppleganger. He cannot remove the rings without removing the fingers due to a cursed nature. One of the rings has a 10 foot antimagic radius which will eliminate all magic within 10 feet of it of weakly magical items (such as non-relics or special, unique or simple bonuses--in practical terms, it means that every time he comes within 10 feet of you, I roll to see if and how many magic items lose their magic.) You don't know what, if anything, the other two rings do.

The hall leading to this room is only 10 feet wide. I am assuming you kept Geebo to the north end to avoid him canceling any magic (though one approach was necessary to enter the hall, resulting in one roll already).

If you keep shuffling him back and forth in a 10 foot hallway, it will result in multiple rolls, so let me know if and how many times this will happen.

OOC: So where exactly are the traps? It doesn't outright say, but I would assume that it would show at the very least where the activation point for such traps are, or that he would be able to figure it out during the three turns (not rounds) that it's active. He would also look at both the western and eastern sides of the room before it expired.

Also also, Kahan had mentioned wanting to chop Geebo's finger off, but nobody ever agreed or disagreed with the idea, and he's still all for that idea, as much as it sucks, he would gladly heal him of any damage, even if he can't replace the lost digits yet.

To make it easier, I added a grid with roughly 5x5 foot areas. Please indicate the letter you will move to and each letter you will pass through to get there. We will say you can have two people per letter, but up to 4 if you want to squeeze really close together with no room for movement.

Similarly, if you want Geebo or Sark to go somewhere, indicate their path. I will assume Sark stays up in the hall.

The starting point is where the bear trap is at.

Tahldar moves west.  Starting from 'C' he moves through 'B' to 'A' and takes out two vials of oil and flint and steel.  Working quickly he attempts to lights the mold on fire in 'A'.

OOC:  Tahldar will attempt to burn off the mold in 'A'.  When it's burning he'll move to 'B', and if it burns off, he'll move to 'C' while Geebo or Sark enter the room.  When dealing with chest F, Talhdar will move back to 'C'.

Given that Geebo's antimagic aura is a 10 foot radius (and each square is 5), I assume everyone will move to A, F, K, P, or U before he comes in.

Tahldar moves to A and burns off the mold. The greenish mold lets out a strong smoke when burnt and leaves a black scorch mark on the wall.

OOC: I think we should have Geebo stand outside, and watch to make sure the lava (or the golem things) aren't coming in. Of course, if we see the lava, it's probably already too late, but it's better than nothing I suppose...

Shae will follow Tahldar to A.

Tahldar moves back to 'A' to let the others get to work.

Not sure who is doing what next, so please post moves and location of your character in doing so.

As for how this progresses, i will assume you are acting in the order that you post, unless indicated otherwise, such that those who post later are waiting, watching and thinking of how to proceed.

Just following up here.

With Shae and Tahldar on A and the fire heating up that area, Shae accidentally steps a little bit on the area marked F. The rock there begins to crumble away. Shae catches herself but you see that the area marked F is mostly a pit covered with a burlap tarp on some thin pieces of wood and then with stones placed strategically on top to cover that it is a trap.

From the pit below, more of the toxic fumes that you just escaped start coming up into the room, no longer blocked by the tarp.

You figure you probably have about 3 minutes before it fills the room enough that you will have to hold your breath again.

This message was last edited by the GM at 11:27, Tue 23 Nov 2021.

Kahan casts a spell.

Shae jumps over to K to let Kahan have room for his spell.

Thanks again for everyone's patience.


SUMMARY/RECAP:

You are currently escaping this (now active) volcano, which was also an ancient temple of some sort. You fought the Goddess of Fungi (who didn't turn out to be much of a "fun guy"), and now she will want revenge.

Your goal is to get back to the gnome village with the ingredients (now in your possession) to save the affected gnomes and companions. You have less than one day left to do that.

Tarimar is the recurring villain in this campaign, a human with designs on the world through experimentation, manipulation of magic, and improving and cloning humans/creatures. You saw his menagerie of collected creatures once. He apparently used this volcano's unique properties to set up a lab. When he had to suddenly evacuate, he trapped it. THIS IS WHERE YOU ARE NOW AT.

You had interaction with two of the three doppleganger brothers: Dalharen, Haklara, and Izlaka are three doppleganger-like creatures experimented on and created by Tarimar, with their powers increasing in that order. Dalharen appeared dead but then his body disappeared. Haklara disappeared after the fire giant encounter. You have not yet met Izlaka.

See "Villains" here: http://wiki.rpol.net/?id=11516/Villains

With you is a translator gnome you rescued (Sark) who had been captured by Tarimar, and Geebo, the young gnome who is your guide to and from the village. You also have Fingas Hatt, who is a bit of a braggart, a bit foolhardy, and a bit cowardly at times, but competent enough of a fighter to help when needed.

All you have to do now is get back to the gnome village within the next 12-24 hours, as those who are infected will start succumbing within that time period--XP will be based on how many survive, in part.

A toxic fume in the air (flammable) covers the entire area, except as noted, and you must hold your breath.

Note also that Borimer was sent through a portal...somewhere...and is now lost to you.


CURRENT AREA SUMMARY:
AREA 5: The giant statue animated when you stepped in front of it. (The other statues did not move.) There is a stairway leading west, but a door of flesh heads and faces blocks your path that way. They writhe and move. (See message 63)

You moved down the southwest hall. The door had been sealed and you have fresh air to breath.





CURRENT ROOM:

The room is divided into letters for convenience of movement. Top half of room is crumbling rock and bottom half is old wood. Area F was just rocks over an airproof tarp that Shae stepped on and almost fell.

Four chests in locations noted.

A poisonous mold lines the wall on the west (A and F), and apparently is now seeping in from below.

The toxic fumes, which were apparently blocked off by the floor, are now seeping up and starting to fill the room from F, no longer blocked by the tarp.

You figure you probably have about 3 minutes before it fills the room enough that you will have to hold your breath again.

There are four identical chests, as pictured.

On the south wall are three strange mounted figures. On the southwest is an orb made out of some sort of steel with spiral edges (like a baseball). In the center is the stone head of a dragon. On the southeast wall is a bluish crystal.

And on the east wall is a strange eyeball protruding from the wall and surrounded by a grayish brown mass of what can only be described as vines, bark or roots. Unlike the other figures, the eyeball appears somehow living. It eerily rotates in your direction as you enter the room.

On the northern wall on the west side, you notice some sort of moss or ochre growing on the wall. It is different from the stuff in the northern rooms and appears to have grown there due to the long encroachment of time.

Sark told you that this was an experiment room for Tarimar, with research notes in two chests. He never saw four chests before and doesn't know which two hold the notes.



Your actions so far:
Tahldar burned the mold, which emits a strong smoke and odor.

You had Geebo stand near the door by the golem statue to keep his anti-magic aura from affecting you.

Kahan cast stone shape and blocked up the hole again, thus blocking the toxic fumes from entering through that hole at F.

Shae jumped over to K. The area K seemed solid.

OOC: As a reminder, Dalharen put three rings on Geebo to confuse you into not knowing if he was the doppleganger. He cannot remove the rings without removing the fingers due to a cursed nature. One of the rings has a 10 foot antimagic radius which will eliminate all magic within 10 feet of it of weakly magical items (such as non-relics or special, unique or simple bonuses--in practical terms, it means that every time he comes within 10 feet of you, I roll to see if and how many magic items lose their magic.) You don't know what, if anything, the other two rings do.

Kahan had suggested cutting off Geebo's fingers, but Geebo is a little freaked out about that. (He is only the equivalent of a teenager.)
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:21, Tue 15 Feb 2022.

Sark says, "Tarimar, he keeps control words in scrolls. They were in the chests. I remember blue one was lightning, dragon was fire, and round one was...yes, some sort of acid. Tarimar experiments with all three to show if experiments were invulnerable."

Sark's memory is a little vague since his imprisonment in the ring of fire. You have deduced that he was there for about 10 years, which mean that Tarimar left here about 10 years ago.

Shae moves to the southwestern chest and opens it if it is not locked.

As everyone else watches silently, Shae opens the chest in the southwest corner (U). Surprisingly, it is a latch that is shut and locked, but there is no actual lock on it, so it is easy to open from the inside.

The lid opens with a slight mechanical sound behind it. Apparently, it is attached to something mechanical (not magical) in the wall.

The eyeball on the eastern wall suddenly blinks! When it does so, a paralyzing ray shoots out into the room:

Shae...is not paralyzed
Kahan...is paralyzed
Fingas...is paralyzed
Tahldar...is not paralyzed
Leo...is paralyzed
Sark...is paralyzed

Everyone except Shae and Tahldar are paralyzed, stuck in place unable to move as if turned to stone. Shae doesn't seem to notice. She is more shocked by what she sees in the large chest.

It is a body...or rather, a decomposed skeleton of what appears to be a halfling. The wretched thing must have been locked in the chest (by Tarimar, presumably), and then either suffocated or died of thirst. It clutches something between bony hands.

Shae gently pulls out what is clenched. It is a scroll. It has three spells on it: flesh to stone, stone to flesh, and petrify.

There is a tattered piece of cloth apparently ripped from the halflings now rotted clothes. The halfling holds it in its hand behind the scroll. Something appears to be written on it in blood, but the 10 years since Tarimar abandoned this cave have left the words faded.

The words are "DAR HA." You don't know if this is the complete phrase or the control word or anything.

There is a gem in the pelvic bone of the halfling. You surmise that the halfling must have hit it up his...well...rectum, so that it would not be discovered by Tarimar. It is a clear gem like a diamond but with flecks of gold and silver, almost perfectly round, and small enough to fit easily into...

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Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
...the palm of your hand. (What did you think I was going to say?)

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It is slightly larger than the size of a marble.

After this, Shae turns back to everyone. The paralysis spell is wearing off (lasting only about 2 minutes), and you can all move again.