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Vorsyin wants to head back to the surface and recover. He thinks they must have weakened the evil below enough to have bought time to rest. He would argue against the party's continuing to pursue the evil into the unknown except for the dangers behind the Wall's of Fire. Even if they tried to head back there would be no guarantee that they would survive the trip. They have no choice to push on and if they die they must destroy what evil they can first.

He speaks up, I will use magic to open the door, be ready if something comes through after he warns the fighters. He then uses the arcane magic and casts Knock on the door.

Date: Autumn, 432 ca., Campaign Day 10
Time: 12:50
Weather: 65 degrees
Location: Steading Dungeon - SE Hallway

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Magic in Effect:
PfE 10' from Arqos
Wall of Fire - Cast 12:40.
Wall of Fire (west) - Cast 12:41
Arqos - potion of super heroism - Drank 12:41
Silence on MGC ??? [12:39]
**********************************

The party gets their bearings and catches their breath. Arqos then grabs the proverbial reins and leads the party to the "Messenger Door."

On the way, Hollis rather selflessly dispenses a healing draft to Olaf and a healing spell to Lorath. Lorath wryly comments that "I have one fireball spell left. I am casting it, and then it is full-bore retreat for me. I am not helping anyone as a corpse."

Now down the hallway and in front of the Messenger Door, the party contemplates how to open it. The party contemplates a knock spell (which Vorsyin has), while or trying to blast the stone door open with a lightning bolt cast from 5' in front of the door.

A closer look reveals that the door does not seem to have hinges, but rather slides up or down.

HP:
Vorsyin: 18/49 [-1 level...let's sort out the XP afterwards]
Gaerys: 33/69 (!)
Hollis: 8/52 (!!!)
Lorath: 9/40 (!!!)
Ethan: 71/71
Olaf: 12/75 (!!)
Arqos: 107/114
Flambeau: 54/75

"If you're planning on tossing another fireball, I hope there's a damn big room on the other side of that door," Gaerys quips. If he can do so without unnecessary delay (say, 1 round, not 1 turn), he will move forward and check the door for traps and look for an opening mechanism.

"With these"the cleric indicates his gauntlets"I should be able to lift that enabling you warriors to rush in and attack". Hollis stands ready to try to lift the door.

Vorsyin laughs a small chuckle when the door is revealed to not have hinges. Heh, my nerves are shot from all this fighting.

Arqos readies himself to resume battle. If he can attack this round, he will, otherwise he concentrates on detecting the location of evil within the room through the door.

The party exchanges quips and readies themselves, just as Vorsyin's knock spell takes effect. The door rumbles and shakes, then slides downward to open amongst a small cloud of soot. The cloud clears quickly, revealing a narrow (5') hallway that extends southwest at a sharp slope downward. The slope and the inky blackness prevent the party from seeing more than 10' ahead.

Arqos uses his innate ability to detect evil, which reveals no specific location of a foe but rather an intense, brooding evil that grows only stronger down the slope.

Gaerys takes a quick look and finds no traps.

The party is left to assemble for entry into the hall or proceed otherwise.

Sorry guys, I missed the knock spell.

Also, can you please remind me of the party's light source?

Arqos doesn't need the heat from the amulet to know what he needs to do. The Sword of R'hllor strides forth, bringing the light of his god (and his sword) into the darkness.

Vorsyin starts towards the open door. Time is wasting, let us face this evil and overcome it.

Olaf, Fighter

"Thanks friend." and quaffs the healing draft.

Date: Autumn, 432 ca., Campaign Day 10
Time: 12:55
Weather: 65 degrees
Location: Weird Abandoned (?) Temple

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Magic in Effect:
PfE 10' from Arqos
Arqos - potion of super heroism - Drank 12:41
**********************************

Arqos boldly leads the party through the doorway, illuminating the way with the light of his god. His partner Flambeau follows right behind. Ethan shrugs with grim resolve, knowing his duty, and proceeds forward. Vorsyin follows further, and Gaerys, now well equipped with the magic spear, watches his back. Hollis and Olaf lag back, as they are both still badly injured.

This is my best guess as to positioning - please note expressly if you are in a different position. Otherwise, I will assume it is okay.

As the party strides through the door and into a 5'x 10' hallway, they instantly notice that the rough stone of the Hill Giant dungeon floor gives way to a harder stone polished to the smoothness of a mirror. Gaerys further notes that there is no sign of ingress or egress in or from the hallway. In contrast to the hill giant reek of grime and dung, not to mention the horrid stench of the ghasts and marsh giants, the air in the Temple smells sterile, if stale and thin. Noting the change in environment, the party makes their way down the steep slope of the hallway.

The hallway then opens into a room with a ~15' vaulted ceiling supported by four large pillars, all made from of this stone. The smooth stone faintly glows with a purplish-green light. In this Weird Temple, it is carved with disturbing shapes and signs which seem to stare out from the walls and columns, to shift position when the watcher's back is turned. Even a near touch of the walls makes one chilled. At the far west end of the temple is an altar of pale, yellowgray translucent stone. Behind this altar is a flight of low, uneven steps...

The very existence of this unhallowed cyst beneath the earth is disturbing enough to drive even a brave man insane. But what is seen next shifts the mood from foreboding to panic. Their attention drawn by the sound of a strong wind, the party looks up. A grey-black cloud whips around in a tight mini-cyclone, hugging the ceiling (i.e., it is about 15' in the air - out of most of the party's reach). Seeming to notice the party's presence, it freezes, then shakes violently, as it begins to stir again with fury.

DECLARE ACTIONS!!!

MAP *******

HP:
Vorsyin: 18/49 [-1 level...let's sort out the XP afterwards]
Gaerys: 33/69 (!)
Hollis: 8/52 (!!!)
Lorath: 9/40 (!!!)
Ethan: 71/71
Olaf: 12/75 (Includes healing potion, but still: !!)
Arqos: 107/114
Flambeau: 54/75

Flambeau backs up enough to not be directly under the thing and to where he can throw his hammer at it. He knows his blunt weapon might not affect the evil smoke but thinks perhaps the fire damage may affect it.

Hollis feeling pretty limited in what he can do, maintains watch at the rear.

"The night truly is full of horrors," says Arqos. Although his faith in his god is strong, he has no idea what to do against a quaking smoke monster. Magic seems to be called for here, not steel, but steel is what Arqos knows.

He holds up his sword-as-holy-symbol and prays for the Lord of Light to banish this...thing.

Gaerys backs up to the eastern passage. "If it bleeds, we can kill it," he says. "Let's see if it bleeds." He draws his bow and fires twice at the swirling smoke monster.

Long bow (THAC0 12): [1d20] = 16 Damage: [1d6] = 5
Long bow (THAC0 12): [1d20] = 13 Damage: [1d6] = 5

Vorsyin would like to use his strongest attacks on the swirling mass but he fears there are too many negatives in doing so. The fireball would consume the entire room and the party with it and gtting everyone out while the thing remains still seems unlikely. Using a lightning attack also seems tricky as Vorsyin fears the lightning may pass through the creature and bounce back at the party after striking the stone walls and ceiling.

He uses a more trusted, albeit weaker, attack and casts Magic Missile at the creature. Vorsyin is surrounded with balls of light which streak towards the target.

ROUND 1

The party and its mysterious, intimidating foe strike simultaneously at eachother.

Flambeau's hammer strikes true - its holy force seems to pound away some of the volume of the smoke.

Ethan springs upward and swings Frostfell at the mass of opacity. Like Flambeau's hammer, the enchanted blade seems to cleave a wound in the smoke.

Gaerys's arrows shatter with a slight echo against the ceiling of the Temple, passing through the Messenger's quasi-corporeal form with no effect. Argos's appeals to the Lord of Light are similarly ineffective.

As these attacks are made mass of smoke shakes violently, recoils, shakes again and lets out a storm of obsidian shards upon the party members who have ventured into the main chamber. The shards hail down with a cacophony or shattering glass. All of the party members in the Temple are caught in its wake. The shards slice, pound, and lacerate...and each party has a moment to try and avoid the worst of the hailstorm.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6osIg1mH3I

Arqos, Ethan, Vor, Gaerys, Flambeau - roll save v. breath weapons

The party members do their best to cover and avoid at least the worst of the shards. Vorsyin, being wounded, unarmored and in the midst of casting, seems the most exposed and, indeed, has his enchantment spoiled by the hard, dark rain.

From the back, Lorath smartly sizes up the situation and shouts "GET OUT OF THERE!!! THE TEMPLE IS GOING TO BURN!!!" Otherwise, the remaining wounded party members wisely stay out of the action - living to fight another day.

The party is left to act...

No map, but the smoke mass moved right next to the party.

Arqos shields himself from the shards.

Save vs. breath weapon (7): [1d20+5] = 8+5 = 13

Her remains in the room in combat with the smoke monster. "Blast away!" he cries in response to Lorath. "I do not fear fire!"

Sunfire vs. evil (THAC0 12): [1d20+4] = 9+4 = 13 Dmg [1d8+4] = 5+4 = 9 (S/M) [1d12+4] = 3+4 = 7 (L)
Sunfire vs. evil (THAC0 12): [1d20+4] = 10+4 = 14 Dmg [1d8+4] = 6+4 = 10 (S/M) [1d12+4] = 7+4 = 11 (L)

Gaerys follows Lorath's advice and gets out of the soon-to-be-flaming temple.

Save vs. breath weapon (9): [1d20+6] = 5+6 = 11