IC I

[thirdkingdom]

Fourthday, Sixmonth, Forty-thirdyear of the 16th Cycle
12:50 pm
Twenty-nine turns elapsed
The Redoubt of the Crocodile Kings
Hex 13.42

The door opens, revealing a strange sight; a circular room, 20' across, lavishly decorated in the fashion of a waiting room or foyer, lit by a magical light bright enough to cause the adventurers to blink in surprise. Or perhaps, it once was lavish, for everything in the chamber is old and mildewed; the tapestries on the wall mere shreds of fabric, a lush, thick carpet on the floor threadbare and covered in dust, a divan that looks like it was perhaps once exquisitely carved but is now so beetle-bored that it looks like a hunk of Kesigian cheese. Opposite the door the adventurers entered is a flight of stairs, leading downwards.

[sulldawga]

Themon steps back. Probably safe but any of our trap sniffers, feel free to investigate.

[VonAlric]

Beykoyun

"I think those stairs may lead us down to the same level that we felt we could reach from that well."

[sulldawga]

Beykoyun

"I think those stairs may lead us down to the same level that we felt we could reach from that well."

Themon

That's probably true but it looks like this Hirti character has a laboratory separate from the rest of the level and we might be able to safely check that out. If it's locked on the other side downstairs, and we have the only key to the doors, we might have a safe place to rest while exploring.

[shaidar]

Atticus spends some time checking the room is safe.

[thirdkingdom]

Atticus spends some time checking the room is safe.

Fourthday, Sixmonth, Forty-thirdyear of the 16th Cycle
1:00 pm
Thirty turns elapsed
The Redoubt of the Crocodile Kings
Hex 13.4

A careful examination of the room reveals no traps, but Atticus does discover something of interest. A metal plate, still shiny after all these years, about 12" tall and 20" wide, and but the thickness of a needle, has fallen off the wall and is lying face down on the floor. There is an inscription upon it, in the same language that was on the door. Beykoyun reads it out loud:

"Notice! All leaving the lab must remain here for at least thirty minutes for decontamination. Remember! You can prevent the spreading of spores through care and attention!"

[Dicey]

“‘Decontamination?’ That sounds like some type of magic word. Perhaps it confers magical protection against spores?” said Dirk.

[shaidar]

Atticus

"We can only hope the spores are dead after such a long time."

[BaltoBruiser]

Brooku

Should we head down the stairs? It doesn't seem like there is anything of value here.

[sulldawga]

Themon says, I think it's worth checking out. I can only assume this decontam-whatever process is magical and there's no reason to believe it doesn't still work.

[thirdkingdom]

Themon says, I think it's worth checking out. I can only assume this decontam-whatever process is magical and there's no reason to believe it doesn't still work.

Only one way to find out!

[sulldawga]

Only one way to find out!

Can Themon make a Magical Engineering roll to see if he can learn anything about the decontamination process in the room?

[thirdkingdom]

Only one way to find out!

Can Themon make a Magical Engineering roll to see if he can learn anything about the decontamination process in the room?

Themon strokes his chin, examining the chamber. He has no idea what it would involve.

: 1d20 1

[shaidar]

Atticus

"I agree, let's go take a look."

[thirdkingdom]

Fourthday, Sixmonth, Forty-thirdyear of the 16th Cycle
1:00 pm
Thirty-one turns elapsed
The Redoubt of the Crocodile Kings
Hex 13.42

The stairs descend for twenty feet; the light behind them in the circular room dimming as the party ascends deeper. As the adventurers descend the stairs a smell of damp and mold assails their nostrils. At the bottom of the stairs, they behold a chamber thirty feet east to west and forty feet north to south. The stairs enter in the center of the north wall. On the opposite wall is an opening; once a doorway, the door hangs in pieces from the hinges, as if wrenched open by a great force. It looks as if shelves once lined either wall, but they have been forcibly torn down, and the floor is littered with debris, as well as covered in patches by a thick growth of what looks to be moss: pale green stalks a foot long wave listlessly in the air.

It is now time for me to provide some levels to keep these maps straight. You have been exploring level 4. This is sublevel 4b.

[shaidar]

Atticus

"I'm not sure I like the look of that moss stuff."

[sulldawga]

Themon steps into the room. If possible, he avoids stepping in the moss patches. He is not touching anything, just looking. He looks through the doorway (is the door smashed back into the room where he is, or smashed outward?) and then, if he doesn't see any immediate dangers, he looks at the wreckage of the shelves.

[Dicey]

Dirk watches from the doorway. The homemade mouth turban he made in case of a chest gas trap he keeps about his mouth, hoping not to breath in spores.

If anyone has infravision, do the plants radiate unusual amounts of heat that would indicate they are more than simple moss plants?

[thirdkingdom]

Themon steps into the room. If possible, he avoids stepping in the moss patches. He is not touching anything, just looking. He looks through the doorway (is the door smashed back into the room where he is, or smashed outward?) and then, if he doesn't see any immediate dangers, he looks at the wreckage of the shelves.

The door is smashed *towards* the adventurers, as if there had been something on the other side of it that smashed it open. As Themon steps down into the chamber, there is movement on the floor, and four figures -- shambling, vegetative, moss-covered corpses, rise slowly off the floor. Each corresponds to where a patch of moss had been. It looks as if, at one point, they had been human, but now seem to be some sort of unholy, animated plant-creatures!

No need to roll for surprise, as Themon was being careful, but you will need to roll for initiative! I got a : 1d6 1

[shaidar]

Atticus gets ready to back pedal up the stairs

"What are they! Maybe the magic in the room upstairs will kill them."

Initiative: [1d6]=3