Chapter 27: The Tower of the Ancients

[Inferno]

The Ancient Marble Tower, The Ruins of Thracia, Pictland, the World of Hyboria
Day Twenty-five. Late Morning. 3rd day of the month of Ublex, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







Sightless, Cruloc's companions suddenly hear the Cimmerian's bellow erupt from somewhere ahead of them in their shrouded surroundings!

"Here!" the barbarian's voice roars from out of the unknown void. "The whore just gave me a kiss!"


Actions, Amethu, Kiri and Torix?!




PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 14/17, Spells: 6/8 1st lvl, 4/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 37/54
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 16/25, Spells: 2/3 1st lvl, 1/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 37/38

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 83 rounds, Torch

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[ravenn4544]

Amethu hears the voice ahead of him and thrusts out forward with his staff while extolling the virtures of Verulian majesty so others are aware of his presence!

"Lo! Let all be reminded and be moved, then, to extol the legacy and history of mighty Verulia! All acclaim and admiration must, of course, be met with the realization of a civilization that has prospered and developed into the pinnacle of human and societal evolution! Let all cast away doubt at what has risen as they marvel upon the results that have been demonstrated time and time again....."

He continues on and on with more words and emotion than it was thought possible for him to express.

[jemmus]

Torix goes to Cruloc's voice and past it, then turns left to face the area in front of it. Talk Cimmerian! Keep talking! He thrust the Atlantean spear into what he believes to be the area in front of Cruloc.

Atlantean Spear [1d20+3]=17+3=20 S-M [1d6+3]=4+3=7 L [1d8+3]=7+3=10 -4 for darkness

[ChubbyPixie]

Kiri will move up to the space between the voices of Cruloc and Torix and thrust forward from there with his magical trident.

Blind attack with Trident +1, Claw of Chobek (THAC0:17): To Hit: [1d20]=16 Damage vs. s/m: [1d6+8]=3+8=11, vs. Lg: [3d4+7]=9+7=16

He wonders where Grandfather has gotten off to. Probably goofing around, in spite of Kiri's previous admonitions...

"Grandfather! We need you!" he shouts.

[Inferno]

The Ancient Marble Tower, The Ruins of Thracia, Pictland, the World of Hyboria
Day Twenty-five. Late Morning. 3rd day of the month of Ublex, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







Blindfolded, the adventurers' vision is as black as an honest Zamoran's prospects.

Somewhere in the fathomless darkness, death stalks them unseen! An ageless horror of the ancient world - that distant epoch of strange magic, creatures and wonders, the likes of which are not to be found in the Hyborian Age!

Amethu holds forth his staff and extolls the virtues of Ancient Verulia, that his companions at the threshold of the eastern chamber know his location.

There, Cruloc stabs blindly at the empty darkness, slicing only air!

Sightless, Torix heeds the Cimmerian's call. Trying to move past the barbaric Northman, the Pict slams into a wall! (1hp damage) He tastes blood. He may have broken his nose.

Standing shoulder to shoulder with Cruloc, Torix drives his Atlantean spear diagonally, in front of Cruloc! The savage feels his spear sink deep into something lurking in the darkness!



It recoils without a sound and his spearhead is free!

Then mountainous Kiri, with enough good intentions to pave the road to Hell, tries to move between Cruloc and Torix while they are shoulder to shoulder and he can see neither of them. All three blind adventurers collide and they try to keep their balance without tripping over the petrified corpse of Asterion that lies splayed underfoot! (All three, please roll your DEX or lower on 1d20 to act next round)

Having misjudged his friends' positions, the Eastern warrior dares not attack for fear of striking them! (I assume?)


Actions?!


Estimated positions only. The PCs are blind.


Behind the DM Screen:

Initiative: Party: [1d6]=4, Monsters: [1d6]=4 Tied!
Monster attacks Cruloc: [1d20]=3, damage: [1d4]=3 Misses AC 10, which is bad enough that the monster doesn't touch Cruloc or his armor. So Cruloc is unaware he was attacked.

PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 14/17, Spells: 6/8 1st lvl, 4/5 2nd lvl
Asterion: Argosian Atlantean Ranger 4: Move: 6", AC: 4, HP: 34/34, Petrified
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 37/54
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 16/25, Spells: 2/3 1st lvl, 1/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 36/38

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 82 rounds, Torch

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[ChubbyPixie]

Kiri stops short and hold his strike, in the confusion having misjudged the space.

I thought they were in the room already.

He stumbles on the statue that was Asterion, but somehow manages not to face plant.
DEX Check (12): [1d20]=8 Reaching down, he feels for his short-lived companion and attempts to slide him back and out of the way. STR Check (18/00): [1d20]=15

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

DEX Check (13): [1d20]=12

"Torix! Stumbling about in the darkness is a fool's game. Let us fight shoulder to shoulder while blocking the doorway!" Cruloc shifts to his left slightly to touch shoulders with the Pict, all the while keeping his shield high and his sword pointed straight out in front of him.

"Kiri! Make sure the other two doors hold fast!"

[jemmus]

Torix grunts to signify his agreement, and to signal his position to the others. He stands shoulder to shoulder (or rather arm to arm) with the bigger and taller Cimmerian, spear tip held ahead into the black void, ready to thrust at the first contact with anything solid.

[Inferno]

The Ancient Marble Tower, The Ruins of Thracia, Pictland, the World of Hyboria
Day Twenty-five. Late Morning. 3rd day of the month of Ublex, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







Pandemonium reigns as the blindfolded, disoriented warriors collide in confusion! Somehow, all three manage to keep their feet.

Probing blindly, Kiri finds the ossified cadaver of Asterion underfoot and drags it away from the eastern doorway where Cruloc and Torix stand shoulder to shoulder and blindfolded against some unseen, ageless entity of the ancient world!

Amethu and Cruloc bellow their location and coordination; the blind leading the blind.

Suddenly, and unbeknownst to his companions, blind Amethu feels a knife sink deep into the center of his chest! (3hp damage)




Actions?!


Estimated positions only. The PCs are blind.


Behind the DM Screen:

Torix DEX check: [1d20]=7 Succeeds.
Initiative: Party: [1d6]=3, Monsters: [1d6]=2 Party wins.
Monster attacks Cruloc: [1d20]=2, damage: [1d4]=3 Misses AC 10, which is bad enough that the monster doesn't touch Cruloc or his armor. So Cruloc is unaware he was attacked.
Monster attacks Amethu: [1d20]=13, damage: [1d4]=3 Hits.

PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 11/17, Spells: 6/8 1st lvl, 4/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 37/54
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 16/25, Spells: 2/3 1st lvl, 1/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 36/38

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 81 rounds, Torch

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[ravenn4544]

Amethu cries out in pain and then instinctively lashes out with sorcery! His hands erupt in fire to immolate his attacker in the darkness!

Cast burning hands

[ChubbyPixie]

Standing in place, Kiri will raise his shield and lash out with the Claw of Chobek in the direction of Amethu's cry:

Attack with Trident +1, Claw of Chobek (THAC0:17): To Hit: [1d20+4]=18+4=22 Damage vs. s/m: [1d6+8]=3+8=11, vs. Lg: [3d4+7]=11+7=18

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

The void snaps with a cry, then heat, sudden and searing, licks across Cruloc's brow. It is the white magus of lost Verulia! He snarls and twists his lean frame toward the sound, levelling his long sword in the direction of the perceived threat. His senses sift the darkness - a scuff of leather, a rasp of scale - any sign of the lurking fiend.

"Torix, close!" His voice cracks like a whip. "At my side - we are one blade!" Step by step, he stalks forward into the erupting conflagration. "Keep the rope safe! If the beast sunders it, we will be knee-deep in Set's seraglio!"

Should the opportunity arise, he strikes!
+2 Sword of Xuthalhotep (+2 to hit, +1 Cimmerian w/sword, +1 STR to hit, -4 in darkness) [1d20]=19
+2 Sword of Xuthalhotep (+2 damage, +3 STR damage) vs. S/M[1d8+5]=7+5=12 vs. L[1d12+5]=2+5=7

[jemmus]

Torix yells, Aye! and does as Cruloc says. He for once hopes the enemy will attack him, so he can at least sense its location. He thrust the spear to the Cimmerian's fore.

Atlantean Spear [1d20+3]=2+3=5 S-M [1d6+3]=5+3=8 L [1d8+3]=7+3=10

[Inferno]

The Ancient Marble Tower, The Ruins of Thracia, Pictland, the World of Hyboria
Day Twenty-five. Late Morning. 3rd day of the month of Ublex, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







From out of the fathomless emptiness all around them, the blind adventurers hear Amethu shout in pain and recite arcane syllables of sorcery through gritted teeth!

Then erupts a roar of flame, and a stranger's voice cries out in agony! A male voice! Amethu alone recognizes it as the voice he heard in his mind! The blinded slave!

The baleful cry rises to a shriek and Amethu feels the knife fall again, piercing his neck! (2hp damage)

Hearing the clamor on his left, Kiri pivots and blindly thrusts his enchanted trident with all his formidable strength, impaling something in the gulfs beyond his sight!



The stranger's shriek dies in his throat and becomes a death rattle.

The barbarians at the threshold hear this and move west, straddling Asterion's stony corpse. Torix stabs his spear ahead of Cruloc and narrowly misses Kiri!

Suddenly, the Cimmerian feels another laceration from out of the black abyss behind him! (1hp damage and please Save vs Poison to act next round!)

By instinct, the barbarian wheels and slashes at the void, cruelly ravaging flesh and bone!




Actions?!


Estimated positions only. The PCs are blind.


Behind the DM Screen:

Initiative: Party: [1d6]=4, Monsters: [1d6]=4 Tied!
Monster attacks Amethu: [1d20]=16, damage: [1d4]=2 Hits for 2hp.
Monster attacks Cruloc: [1d20]=10, damage: [1d4]=1 Hits blindfolded Cruloc for 1hp.
Cruloc: Barbarian back protection? [1d100]=16 Yes. We'll use Cruloc's attack roll from this round.

PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 12/17, Spells: 5/8 1st lvl, 4/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 36/54
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 16/25, Spells: 2/3 1st lvl, 1/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 36/38

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 80 rounds, Torch

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

Save vs. Poison (+4 bonus for barbarians: 9 required) [1d20]=6

Cruloc's veins, already flooded with the unknown venom, twist and surge like maddened serpents beneath his skin!

"GRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

[ravenn4544]

Amethu continues to extol the virtues of ancient Verulia as something dies at his feet!

[jemmus]

Torix stabs again, guided only by sound and his close proximity to battling Cruloc.

Atlantean Spear [1d20+3]=5+3=8 S-M [1d6+3]=5+3=8 L [1d8+3]=8+3=11

[ChubbyPixie]

"Checking the doors!" shouts Kiri, more to make his position known than for any other reason, though from the sound of it, Cruloc has other, more pressing concerns.

He turns and faces away from Amethu, then moves forward, groping for the rope securing the western and southern doors. If he encounters nothing, he'll move to where he believes the western door is to check if it's closed.

[Inferno]

The Ancient Marble Tower, The Ruins of Thracia, Pictland, the World of Hyboria
Day Twenty-five. Late Morning. 3rd day of the month of Ublex, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







Deep within the forlorn ruins of the dead city, in an infinitely old tower, an ancient horror from out of time beyond measuring slowly stalks the blind adventurers.

Cruloc is the next to fall. His voice cries out from the void! The barbarian's defiant roar dies in his throat and his companions hear his mighty frame crash to the floor!

As if knowing these will be his final words, Amethu continues to eulogize his beloved homeland. The quest to find its rightful pharaoh is what led him here, to this certain doom.

Kiri sightlessly feels his way westward, and finds the rope holding the two doors shut still taut, and the western door closed.

In the self-imposed darkness, Torix had felt Cruloc pivot eastward before he fell. The Pict savage blindly stabs his Atlantean spear into the black emptiness there and pierces only air.

Suddenly, from out of those obscure depths, Torix feels a sharp gash cut his chest! (1hp damage and please Save vs Poison to act next round!)

It seems Jhebbal Sag has granted Torix's wish.


Actions?!



Behind the DM Screen:

Initiative: Party: [1d6]=6, Monsters: [1d6]=5 Party wins.
Monster attacks Torix: [1d20]=7, damage: [1d4]=1 Hits blindfolded Torix for 1hp damage.

PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 12/17, Spells: 5/8 1st lvl, 4/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 36/54, Poisoned
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 16/25, Spells: 2/3 1st lvl, 1/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 35/38

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 79 rounds, Torch

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[ChubbyPixie]

Hearing Cruloc fall, Kiri knows things are going sideways and that some new innovation is required if they are to survive. “Torix, hold on!” he shouts.

Mentally, he reaches out to Grandfather. “Old man, listen to me. I want you to get between me and the nearest assailant. If it is more than striking distance away, I want you to tap me on that side repeatedly to let me know the direction. If it approaches or gets within striking distance, tap more rapidly on that side. In this way we will hunt them down. Also, remember the mirror. If there is an opportunity to reflect the gaze of whatever turned our friend to stone, please take it.”