A Gap In Time (Part 2)
Log Info
- Title: A Gap In Time (Part 2)
- Emitter: Whirlpool
- Characters: Culix, Disaster, Lillianath, Rumbo
- Place: Alexandria - A Frigid Grotto
- Time: Thursday, January 29th, 2020 11:00AM
- Summary: Griva Brassbringer and the adventurers have survived their fall and the cracking of ice over a freezing lack and are set to begin their mission proper. As Griva begins her assessment of the Magus Point they are attacked by Ice Elementals. Will the daring adventurers managed to prevent the Ice Elementals from disrupting the sensitive calculations Griva Brassbringer is considering?
- APL: 2-5
- Encounter 1: Swarms of Ice Elementals in the heart of the Frigid Grotto
-=-=-=-=-=-= At a glance around Staff: Room of DoooOOooooOoom! =-=-=-=-=-=-=
Culix 1m 3'2" 36 Lb Goblin Female
Beady-eyed goblin female in leathers and hood.
Disaster 2m 3'4" 40 Lb Gnome Male
Gnome, small, gears, tools and TERROR.
Lillianath 1m 5'0" 117 Lb Dawn Elf Female
Perpetually worried-looking elf woman.
Rumbo 0s 3'2" 35 Lb Goblin Male
A gun-toting gobber with a wooden peg-leg.
Whirlpool 2m Lb Otyugh
I am stinky!
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Rumbo manages to wind up the silk rope back into his battered old Goblin Army Knife as he follows behind Griva and asks "Warming event?!" There is a broad Gobber smile that he flashes and, after a sidelong wink to Culix offers, "You brought the right people for a warming event! Let me find my fire flasks..." The dashing Gobber hero trails off as he sets his Goblin Army Knife away and starts rummaging in his possessions.
Culix grumbles as she makes her way the rest of the way across the broken lake to the other side, "Maybe someone firing their thunderbelcher at the darkness made the ice crack." she suggests, as she heads along. She pulls her hood up, and hunches over as she travels, so accustomed to skulking that it comes naturally to her.
Lilli's steps are markedly more careful, as she ducks into the opening and beyond. "Perhaps," she says to Culix, "but I'd sooner blame our fall than the weapons. Still... if the ice isn't supposed to *be* that thin, it's a good reason to keep an eye where we step?"
Carefully, you pick your way into the grotto. It takes some time to pick your way through the tunnels leading to the Grotto's heart. "Really, teleproting has been terribly unlucky for me as of late," she grumbles.
"But then, I haven't been here for some time, so perhaps we'll... ah, there! We have it!"
She points ahead and, in fact, there's a shining heart of ice in nexus of tunnels here. The crystalline structure is both elaborate and beautiful, slightly pulsing with the magical energy that surely passes through its magus point. From the ceiling and floor errupt at irregular intervals erupt icicles great and small and stalagmite like strcutres on the ground. It's dangerous, so watch your step, that much is clear.
One can feel a definite *tingle* of magic in th4e air here.
GAME: Rumbo casts Detect Magic. Caster Level: 2 DC: 15
Rumbo draws his dragonspitter with a twirl as they approach the Grotto's Heart and stops his idle chatter of warming things up, gobber style. There is a few words of Eldritch spoken before Rumbo squeezes the trigger and cast-fires his spell with a subdued bang and eyes that glow briefly. He then proceeds to gaze around the nexus of ice by sighting along the dragonspitter's barrel as he detects magic!
Culix's nose wrinkles at the strange tingly sensation in the air, and the tips of her ears droop as she looks around the area. She eyes the icicles with open suspicion, as she skulks deeper into the buried frozen grotto.
"Amazing," Lilli breathes, at the nexus of the tunnelways. "So that's a magus point, then?" Shaking her head to get herself back on track, she slowly turns her starknife in her hand, limbering up her arm.
Which point, she takes note of the *other* tunnels leading off from the fascinating structure. "That is... also rather a lot of avenues for assault," she murmurs, drawing in a breath. "Well... Hopefully at least *this* way will be one we can put our backs to..."
Griva takes a moment to sense the magic, that much is clear, and she lets out a sigh. "Well, everything *feels* normal. Still, that was worrisome." She glances over her shoulder back at the lake they came from.
She reaches into her pouch and pulls a long, metal rod from it. She carefully extends fangs from the bottom that will allow it to grip the ice and stand up right.
"I'm going to put this here. It's going to tap into the ley lines with my help, and there, I should be able to get our first set of readings."
Culix offers their client a dip of her head, acknowledging her words, and then pads her way over towards one of the many tunnels that snake off from this central nexus, peering down it a ways without venturing away from the group. "We should all keep an eye on a direction, try to find a spot where you can see down a couple of the tunnels." she suggests to the others. She looks to have picked her own spot already, as she moves towards a shadowy area to lay in wait and watch.
GAME: Culix rolls stealth: (20)+13: 33 GAME: Rumbo rolls Spellcraft: (9)+12: 21 GAME: Rumbo rolls Knowledge/Arcana: (16)+12: 28
After giving the area a serious going over with his eye sighted along the dragonspitter's barrel Rumbo, our dashing Gobber hero, holsters the pistol with a twirl and nods to Griva. "We'll make sure nothing interrupts your analysis!" He then proceeds to take out his Goblin Army Knife, select a blade for whittling and looks for a likely place where he can scratch 'Rumbo Was Here' before stamping the area with his Ring of Arcane Signets!
"Good idea," Lilli replies to Culix, as the sneaky gobber melts out of sight. Turning to one of the empty tunnels, she takes a long, slow breath, lips moving in silent prayer. Then, she drops into a ready stance, starknife held loosely at the ends of her fingers. "Seeress light a gentle path for us, and confound those who would block it..."
"...did you really just leave an arcane signet mark upon a magus point?" says Griva to Rumbo.
"...Good goblin," she pats him on the head, clearly giving him a hard time.
"Right, then. Everyone, please gather around me protectively. I am going to be distracted for a considerable length of time, and obvioiusly, that will be when grave danger comes to face you all. No, I'm just kidding. It's very unlikely anything goes wrong." Beat.
"Probably."
Rumbo grins cheerfully as he says, "The whole point of an apprentice coming to a Magus Point is to leave their sigil, right?!" He draws his dragonspitter with a flourish and pokes himself in the chest as he says, "Now others who come to this Magus Point will know that Cogz Rumbo is the real deal!"
Stumbling into the area a throughly water logged Disaster sputters. "The water was cold! The underground river lead to midden. This was unpleasent. That however fed to a river, which was cold, but clean." His goggles click open and closed independantly of each other. "I caught a fish. It peed in my pack." He looks from person to person, and then raises his death-ray as well. "We are fighting?" There's a low hum as the soaked weapon begins to channel energy. As the electrical core comes to life arcs begin to branch off from device to owner making his hair stand on end. "Did I mention the bear? It wanted the fish."
"....You did not mention the bear," Lilli says, mildly amused as she moves closer to Griva... then pauses, considering something. "...Out of curiosity, would it disrupt anything to set a ward on you?"
Culix peers over towards Griva from her hiding spot, and wrinkles her nose. She looks back down the tunnel again, and seems to weigh her options for a few moments. And then Disaster arrives. She elects to pull her dagger out of its sheath, making sure she has it at the ready, while she sidles her way a bit closer as directed- though still keeping to the shadows out of sight, and keeping her eyes on the various as yet unexplored caves. She keeps her own council on how she feels about Disaster's story.
So there's Griva, busy with her work. She's attuned to the rod, at this point, and honestly it seems to be going well. "Ahhh," she says, "Hmm..."
The entire world is blotted out.
Rumbo has his dragonspitter loaded in one hand and brings the other up to cover his eyes! Peeking through slitted fingers he calls out "Did we just blow up the Magus Point? I didn't hear a Kaboom! But it looks like the kind of bright light an extreme blast I imagine would make."
As the light flares out, Lilli ducks her head, allowing her veil to obscure her vision less permanently than that intolerably bright light. "Then it probably wasn't an explosion!" she calls out. "But it's likely that an attack will follow!"
Culix curses under her breath at the bright light- sneaking is much more difficult in the light of day, after all. She moves to try and use one of the pillars of ice as some degree of cover from whatever is happening, "Is this supposed to happen?" she murmurs, mostly to herself. She shoots Disaster a glance, thinking it's probably his fault somehow.
GAME: Disaster rolls Spellcraft: (2)+7: 9 GAME: Disaster rolls knowledge/arcana: (6)+9: 15
The little Gnomish artificer shifts his weapon to his left hand as his right starts to wave around in the air. "Interesting." Disaster murmurs. "Most interesting." As the device continues to ground out electrical arcs into the Gnome's armor something, something salmon shaped, begins to twitch. "I wonder if I can make a measure of the thaumic energies at play here. We should record this for posterity! It could be a very unique break through. Just imagine if we could bottle this and figure out what to do with it? Perhaps muffins, or bear repelant."
Very interesting indeed, so far as Griva is concerned. She seems totally involved in waht she's doing.
... which is why she does not notice the pulsing, flashing lights as a ripple of mana begins to form in the area, disgorging a sudden series of small, humanoid ... things made of ice.
Elementals.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ATTENTION -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Whirlpool has dropped a TIMESTOP!
Please +init, then cease all roleplay and actions immediately and wait for Whirlpool to instruct you further. You may earn RPP by logging a scene for a GM.
For in-combat commands, type: +thelp.
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===================== Current Initiative Order - Round 1 =====================
---Init--Name------------AOO-Notes--------------------------------------------
>> 6 Rumbo 1 <<
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6 Culix 1 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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6 Lillianath 1 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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6 Disaster 1 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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3 Ice Elementals
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<OOC> Lillianath says, "How in the *hell* did all four of us roll 6 for Initiative?"
<OOC> Whirlpool .gawks.
<OOC> Whirlpool says, "I have been here for so many years."
<OOC> Whirlpool says, "And that is literally the first time I have ever seen that."
<OOC> Disaster says, "The Magnificent Six!.... or Underwhemling Six...."
<OOC> Lillianath says, "Extremely underwhelming. o.o"
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round One - Init 6. It is now Rumbo's turn! Culix is next! GAME: Rumbo casts Snapdragon Fireworks. Caster Level: 2 DC: 16 GAME: Rumbo rolls 1d4: (1): 1 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (2)+2: 4 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (5)+2: 7 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (3)+2: 5 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (9)+2: 11 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (5)+2: 7 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (4)+2: 6
Rumbo aims along his dragonspitter as the small ice elementals emerge and, after murmuring in Eldritch, he squeezes the trigger. Instead of a blast of smoke and a ball of lead shooting out there is a shower of sparks as a bright orange and red dragon zips from the barrel and whirls around Rumbo, Culix, Lillianath, Disaster and Griva in a seemingly chaotic route before it zooms to explode in the middle of the cluster of ice elementals in a brilliant display of firework sparks!
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round One - Init 6. It is now Culix's turn! Lillianath is next! GAME: Culix rolls stealth: (7)+13: 20 GAME: Culix rolls weapon3: (14)+6: 20 GAME: Culix rolls damage3: aliased to 1d4+0: (2)+0: 2
Culix pads along the ice towards the threats as they appear, creeping ever closer until she is upon them. She twirls the dagger in her hand before catching it and thrusting the point of the weapon into the unfamiliar creature. She yanks it back out, surprised to discover that as it turns out, Ice elementals don't have kidneys to shank and the creature is rather less wounded than she expected.
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round One - Init 6. It is now Lillianath's turn! Disaster is next! GAME: Lillianath casts Bless. Caster Level: 3 DC: 14
A horde of elementals is, if not *the* most terrifying opposition, it's still a cause for concern. Thus does Lilli raise her free hand, palm cupped and fingers crooked such that her hand forms a crescent moon. "Eluna, we beseech your guidance! Shine Your gentle light upon us, that we may learn the truths hidden here!"
In answer to the Seer's prayer, a burst of pale, silvery light washes out from her, touching her assembled allies with the Moon's quiet encouragement.
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round One - Init 6. It is now Disaster's turn! Ice Elementals is next! GAME: Disaster casts Burning Hands. Caster Level: 3 DC: 14 GAME: Disaster rolls 3d4: (10): 10
"Oh dear." Disaster states as he watches the onrush of Ice Elementals. As Rumbo's fireworks blare off leading smoke trails, Disaster seems to get an idea! "Wait, I will provide a protective cloud of smoke to shield us!" He fumbles with his right hand, producing a vaguely can like object. Thumbing out a pin and depressing a lever there is a sudden 'PING' as a spring fires and a smoke begins to arc from the top of the device. "We will soon be.." That is when an arc of electrical energy from his death ray dances across the top of the can.
"Oh no.." The little gnome manages to get out before the explosion. The starting to form cloud of smoke bursting into a fountain of flame and hurling Disaster onto his back as the sudden roaring inferno cones outwards across the oncoming enemies. "Only a minor problem!" He shrieks, terrified of letting go of the can as it spills forth more and more fire. Watching the enemy wither under the blast the little gnome murmurs. "Oh dear, Oh dear!
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round One - Init 3. It is now Ice Elementals' turn! Rumbo is next! GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (16)+2: 18 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (1)+2: 3 (EPIC FAIL) GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (6)+2: 8 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (1)+2: 3 (EPIC FAIL) GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (18)+2: 20 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (5)+2: 7 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+4: (15)+4: 19 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+4: (4)+4: 8 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d4+1+1d3: (1)+1+(3): 5 GAME: Rumbo rolls Fort: (4)+3: 7
Griva seems busy. She did say she would be. Her eyes have alit with azure fire and she's definitely out of the picture.
Seemingly uncaring that so many of them have just suddenly been melted, the remaining elementals make their approach, attacking. Rumbo and Culix each have one of them on them now, given that's all that's left, and the numbing cold seems to've staggered the goblin briefly.
GAME: NEW ROUND! Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Two - Init 6. It is now Rumbo's turn! Culix is next! GAME: Rumbo rolls 1d4: (2): 2 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+2: (18)+2: 20
Rumbo grumbles as he is struck by one of the small ice elementals and begins to shiver, his teeth clacking together as he aims the dragonspitter and fires another sparkling and shimmering dragon firework at the thing that bit him. It zips around swiftly before exploding in it's face in a showering of sparks!
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Two - Init 6. It is now Culix's turn! Lillianath is next! GAME: Culix rolls acrobatics: (16)+9: 25 GAME: Culix rolls weapon3: (1)+6: 7 (EPIC FAIL)
Culix flinches as the gout of flame washes over the elementals right infront of her, "I'm becoming more and more convinced you Artificers don't actually know what you're doing." she calls over. She flips the dagger in her hand into a reverse grip, and then hops back forwards, ducking deftly beneath the elementals strike and sliding along the ice a few feet. She plunges her blade into the ground to arrest her motion and then flips the dagger around once again to try an upwards slash at the back of the elemental facing Rumbo.
All her showmanship comes back to bite her backside, though, as she almost fumbles the blade in the upswing, and connects only with frigid air.
Round Two - Init 6. It is now Lillianath's turn! Disaster is next! GAME: Lillianath rolls melee: (16)+5: 21 GAME: Lillianath rolls 1d4+3: (4)+3: 7
While defending Griva is the mission, defending one another is, to the Cleric, the best road to that mission's success. Sliding to one side, the Seer takes a firmer grip on her weapon's handle, swinging it upward in a wide arc that causes the elemental menacing Rumbo to explode into slivers of unmoving ice. "We've nearly got this for the moment, I think!"
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Two - Init 6. It is now Disaster's turn! Ice Elementals is next! GAME: Disaster rolls 1d20+5: (8)+5: 13 GAME: Disaster rolls 2d6+3: (6)+3: 9
Getting to his feet and shaking his right hand as he drops the still smoking can. "Hot, hot!" The little Gnome peers around and sees the last remaininig threat. Raising up his deathray he sights down the barrel and depresses the trigger. A bolt of lightning fires outwards, the thunderous blast shattering the enemy and hurling Disaster back onto his rear end. The rifle in his arms making slowly whiring noises as it tries to recover it's charge. "Ow." Murmurs the little Gnome as he finds himself on his tailbone for the second time. "Did we win?"
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Two - Init 3. It is now Ice Elementals' turn! Rumbo is next!
WEll, that's the last one, right?
...not so fast. Unfortunately, the same pulsing light near the central crystal structure produces several more of the elementals, a few more smaller, humanoid ones rupting from the ground followed by some lawrger ones, closer to the size of a human, as they follow.
There's a distinct crackling sound as they do.
GAME: NEW ROUND! Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Three - Init 6. It is now Rumbo's turn! Culix is next! GAME: Rumbo rolls ranged+1: (18)+7+1: 26 GAME: Rumbo rolls 1d6: (1): 1
Rumbo frowns as more elementals begin to form, larger than before, and he does what any self-respecting gun-toting Gobber would do: shoot! There is a loud kaboom that echoes around the icy grotto, a shower of sparks and smoke and a lead projectile that flies across to embed itself into one of the ice elementals.
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Three - Init 6. It is now Culix's turn! Lillianath is next! GAME: Culix rolls ranged+1: (14)+6+1: 21 GAME: Culix rolls 1d4: (4): 4
Culix shields her face from the shower of ice crystals that used to be an elemental in front of her, and then turns towards the crackling sound of more elementals emerging. She tosses her dagger up into the air, catching it by the tip of the blade and whipping it at the new arrivals, where it lodges itself. She ducks low as she strides towards it, her hand going to her belt to draw a fresh dagger with another flourish, rolling the blade over her fingers before gripping it ready to strike.
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Three - Init 6. It is now Lillianath's turn! Disaster is next! GAME: Lillianath casts Returning Weapon. Caster Level: 3 DC: 15
With Rumbo out of immediate danger, Lilli blinks, head snapping toward the new conglomeration of mana, and frowns. Her weapon is brought to her chest, the cleric whispering a prayer under her breath. When she finishes speaking, the blades seem to glimmer with a faint, pale-blue radiance. "Steady, friends. We'll break this wave as we did the last."
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Three - Init 6. It is now Disaster's turn! Ice Elementals is next! GAME: Disaster rolls 1d20+6: (4)+6: 10
Getting back to his feet Disaster rolls back towards Griva to put himself between the caster and the oncomming elementals. He raises his deathray once more and fires, this time the bolt going wide as the electrical energy arcs off to the side and grounds out into the floor. The sharp snap of thunder leaving a smoking black mark on the ground. Quickly the little Gnome sets about retuning the weapon and cranking the charge lever to bring it back to a ready state.
GAME: Whirlpool advances the initiative order. Round Three - Init 3. It is now Ice Elementals' turn! Rumbo is next! GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+7: (15)+7: 22 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+7: (6)+7: 13 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+4: (17)+4: 21 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+4: (17)+4: 21 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d6+4+1d4: (2)+4+(4): 10 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d6+4+1d4: (6)+4+(1): 11 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d4+1+1d4: (3)+1+(1): 5 GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d4+1+1d4: (1)+1+(4): 6 GAME: Lillianath rolls fort: (13)+3: 16 GAME: Culix rolls fort: (18)+2: 20 GAME: Disaster rolls fortitude: (14)+6: 20 GAME: Rumbo rolls Fort: (12)+3: 15
There's now a lot more of them. A lot.
Well, bigger ones, anyway. The two of them move out towards you, splitting off to punch at Lillianath and Rumbo, both of them getting left for the worst of it, skin blistering from the cold almost immediately.
The two smaller ones head for Culix and Disaster, leaping onto their legs and smashing their tiny, icy-spiky fists into them.
IT doesn't feel good, to say the least, as they cling. Cling, cling, the frost biting them.