IC. Broken Valley Chapter 1: It's all there for the taking

[tibbius]

Egbald heaves all his weight against the motion of the cover. With his free hand he yanks out his short sword and tries to wedge it into the gap between the cover and the lip of the well. "Maybe we can wedge this," he says.

I'll adjudicate the round in a bit but I thought I'd point out that if you want to try to pin the cover shut, then it probably needs to be done on two sides. It seems like it can pivot both ways around the axle.

Good point ... but here's where the 7 INT comes out to play!

[sirravd]

Mirwydd hurls two enchanted darts into the gap.
[1d20+2] = 4+2 = 6[1d3+1] = 1+1 = 2
[1d20+2] = 10+2 = 12[1d3+1] = 3+1 = 4

Are they actually magical in some way? I don't see that anywhere on your sheet unless you are thinking your fighting style. That does not infer a magic weapon, just that you are really good at throwing darts.
Also, would you like Dying Rabbit to do anything?

Oh, sorry; somehow I remembered I had started with magical darts.

I summon Dying Rabbit to try to force the cover shut.

[The_Wanderer]

Top of Round 2

It occurs to me that I didn't roll initiative for this round...No big deal...I'll also adjudicate your actions in the order that is best for you guys

The cover begins turning slowly out of the way. Mirwydd takes the time to throw a pair of darts at the thing climbing up. Both narrowly miss.
In the meantime, Mai tosses a flask of oil at the form she sees inside.

Throwing oil is a ranged attack roll - for Mai that looks like +3
[1d20+3] = 17+3 = 20[1d4] = 2 = Hit
Also - thirdkingdom - Mai's attack rolls look messed up on her sheet. She gets +1 from high strength on all to hit rolls in S+W complete and +1 to hit on ranged rolls from high dex and +1 to hit from attack bonus

The flask shatters on impact and Mai orders Luthwick to light the thing.

Ordering a hireling into combat requires a morale roll. I'll say you need a to roll under 7 on 2d6.
[2d6] = 7= Unfortunate

Luthwick is frozen in place. He just shakes his head and holds out the torch for somebody...anybody to light the thing.
Egbald and Dying Rabbit get in position to hold the cover closed.

Just need a post from Nymandus and Magrin

[MonsterMash]

Magrin, cleric

Magrin grabs the torch from Luthwick and throws it into the pit calling on the gods of law to guide his arm.

[tibbius]

"Damn it," says Egbald as the brightest light in the room goes into the well, "Luthwick, get out the stairs."

[The_Wanderer]

Top of Round 2 (Cont.)

Perhaps somewhat hastily, Magrin chucks the party's only light source (and not a demihuman around) into the charnel well.

Let's see, I'll call that a ranged weapon attack against AC10 since you don't really have to penetrate anything, just hit it with a big stick.
[1d20+2] = 20+2 = 22...that deserves a special reward.

The torch hits the barely seen form squarely, lighting it on fire in a swirl of flame and knocking it off the iron rungs and leaving Nymandus without a target. Egbald and Dying Rabbit get the cover in place and the room is covered in darkness, except for a shaft of light from the stairwell. Egbald is able to tell by feel that his sword is wedged into position but it is unclear how well it will hold by itself.

Bottom of Round 2
A moment passes and Egbald and Dying Rabbit again feel the cover trying to be opened from the inside. Fortunately, besides the fact that there are two heroes (at least) holding it shut, you have much more leverage on it than whatever is inside. Holding it is not particularly difficult.

As the adventurer's try to figure out what to do, a shadow drifts across the stairwell above.

That's your new party member, nothing sinister this time! Don't kill him please.

[StevetheNPC]

Aerik Winterbrow
The shadow takes the form of a tall figure, slowly descending part way down the staircase before moving any further. In the common tongue, it says, "Hail. Friends or foes? Anyone about down there?"

Aerik has his long sword in his right hand, and is using his left hand to steady himself on the staircase.

[MonsterMash]

Magrin, Cleric

"Friends to law and enemies to chaos here, can you get a torch lit to aid us in seeing."

Magrin fumbles in his pack for his lantern to light the chamber while calling out.

[tibbius]

"Does anyone have a sturdy spare dagger?" asks Egbald. "We might be able to pin this thing closed. I don't think just one of the creatures can get enough leverage to get it open if it's pinned." He feels a flush of pride at his sudden insight. At the monastery the seniors made fun of him for being slow ... just because he couldn't memorize the ancient texts of Law.

[thirdkingdom]

"Does anyone have a sturdy spare dagger?" asks Egbald. "We might be able to pin this thing closed. I don't think just one of the creatures can get enough leverage to get it open if it's pinned." He feels a flush of pride at his sudden insight. At the monastery the seniors made fun of him for being slow ... just because he couldn't memorize the ancient texts of Law.

Brignum Mai

"I don't have a dagger," she says, cursing her foolishness, "or a hammer and spikes. I've got some arrows we could use? I've also got a magical rope that can entangle targets. I don't know if it would work here; I've never tried it on an inanimate object."

[StevetheNPC]

Aerik Winterbrow, Human Ranger of Law

Unsure of why a dagger is being requested to pin something closed, Aerik sheathes his long sword and begins to search through his pack to retrieve the requested torch and a flint and steel to ignite it. Once the torch is alight, or if Magrim's lantern illuminates the chamber first, Aerik sees the adventurers who are attempting to hold the top of the "well" secure, and rushes over to lend his help.

A human of tall and slender build, Aerik is dressed in exotic looking leather armor and wears brown trousers and a dark green cloak. In addition to the long sword and dagger on his belt, a long bow and a quiver of arrows are slung across his shoulders. He drops the torch on the floor and looks to take up a position holding the top of the well where he can be the most effective.

Aerik calmly says, "There's a dagger on my belt, please grab it if you think it will help. I'm called Aerik. What exactly are we trying to keep in there?"

[ybn1197]

Aerik calmly says, "There's a dagger on my belt, please grab it if you think it will help. I'm called Aerik. What exactly are we trying to keep in there?"

"Some pug uglies that didn't have the common decency to stay in the grave where they belong." Nymandus grunts.

[The_Wanderer]

Apologies in advance to Mirwydd but...

At this point, Mirwydd raises his hand. "Wait wait wait. I have iron spikes. I knew they would come in handy."

With the shifting lid of the well, it actually isn't too difficult to wedge the spikes in place. The...thing...inside keeps banging on it, causing enough vibration that it probably is not a permanent solution. For now though, you are seemingly secure.

[StevetheNPC]

Aerik dusts off his hands by clapping them together, and while nervously eyeing the lid of the well says, "Stay in the grave..? Yes, well, we seem to be safe for now." With a short bow and a slight flourish of the arm, he continues, "I am Aerik Winterbrow, friend of law. I was dispatched by the Duke to aid your group in your expedition. I'd been following your trail for the last several days when I found tracks that led me off of the Cheese Trail to this," he pauses, glancing around the room, unable to find the right words. "What exactly is this place?" Aerik kneels down and retrieves the torch that he dropped on the floor mere moments ago.

[thirdkingdom]

Brignum Mai

Mai introduces herself, clearly distracted. She takes out her rope of entanglement and commands it to encircle the well-head, unsure if it will work on non-living targets.

[tibbius]

"It might be a temple of Araskawhat, or a testing chamber for his faithful," Egbald replies. He reaches out a hand and slides the new guy's dagger from its sheath. "If this works, we'll need to permanently leave the dagger here," he says. "If it doesn't work ... either the dagger breaks, or you get it back after we finish these things. They're some kind of undead. The undeparted faithful I guess."

He jams the dagger under the edge of the cover, trying to wedge it like the one on the other side. "Shove the other one in further," he says to whoever's over there - Dying Rabbit? Hopefully Mirwydd translates.

Oh wait. What's Mirwydd doing? Right ... that. Egbald embarrassedly hands the dagger back to ... Aerik. "Sorry. The wizard's got us covered," he says.

[The_Wanderer]

Brignum Mai

Mai introduces herself, clearly distracted. She takes out her rope of entanglement and commands it to encircle the well-head, unsure if it will work on non-living targets.

The rope begins turning and snaking of its own accord but toward the heroes and not really around the covered opening. It is just an expensive rope for these purposes.

Up to you guys on how you want to proceed here. You could further secure the covered opening, you also have the uncovered opening which has really only been described, and of course anything else you want to do here. At this point it seems like you could leave whenever you want.

[MonsterMash]

Magrin, Cleric

Magrin uses the light from Aerik's torch to get his lamp lit too.

"I am Magrin a priest of the law. Thanks for aiding us with your torch. There are foul creatures of chaos under there which I we had thrown oil and our torch onto but it seems not to have stopped them moving."

[tibbius]

Now that Mirwydd has pounded in the spikes to at least temporarily seal the Pit of Undeath, Egbald retrieves his short sword and uses it to poke around in the treasure well.

"Well met, Aerik. Tell me - do you see your name etched at the end of the list on the side of the pit that our wizard Mirwydd just spiked shut?"

[The_Wanderer]

Now that Mirwydd has pounded in the spikes to at least temporarily seal the Pit of Undeath, Egbald retrieves his short sword and uses it to poke around in the treasure well.

"Well met, Aerik. Tell me - do you see your name etched at the end of the list on the side of the pit that our wizard Mirwydd just spiked shut?"

Egbald pokes around amongst the small horde and notices that there are clearly some valuable pieces inside. There's no obvious illusion nor is any trap triggered.

Link to the description:
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Egbald points out the engraing on the sealed well. Looking at it, the party sees that it now reads:
Nymandus 821 - Mirwydd 821 - Brignum 821 - Magrin 821 - Egbald 821 - Quellax 821 - Luthwick 821 - Dying Rabbit 821 - Bostrum 821 - Alcott 821 - Aerik 821