Phelan took aim, odd caustic energy coating the bolt as he soared through the air to the construct. However it wasn't able to penetrate the armour and bounced off to little effect, leaving the Narayah a mix of livid and looking very concerned. He ran over toward the battle to get closer in range with his admixtures.

Standard Action: Scouring Weapon
Target; Dragon
Attack: 17 vs AC MISS

Move: E31->J31

CONTINGENCY
Free Action: Shockweave Armour
Trigger: Phelan takes lightning damage
Effect: Until end of encounter, daily power gets +1 attack and +1d10 lightning damage.


Amare's replica appeared closer to the battle, before unleashing a bolt of psionic energy toward the creature.

Minor Action: Psychomorphic Manifestation
Target: N32

Minor Action: Command Manifestation to Move: N32-T32

Standard Action: Invasive Thoughts: Augment 2
Target: Mecha Dragon
Attack: 18 vs Will
Hit: 16 Psychic damage and target gets -2 to all defences until EONT
This message was last edited by the player at 09:36, Thu 24 May 2018.

    Cebakaala, carefully aims his shot with his lance and his two bolts of lighting connects squarely with the dragon's chest.  Cebakaal, certain his blows should have been lethal decided he might need to switch out his weapon for a more conventional one as the dragon's armour barely showed spots were the beams had hit.

[Then I roll crits for a PC.  :(  Oh well, though now ya know the dragon is resistant to at least 15 points of Lighting damage.  Cebakaala swaps out his Lance of his Bow.]

Round 2 - Enemy Turn

  Despite the vicious attacks leveled against it the dragon rears back batting its wings to stay off the ground, before breating out the another bolt of lighting from its maw at Jubei and his companions.

Blue Dragon Effigy attacks Iron Jubei, Drex and Amare's Psychomorphic Manifestation with Breath Weapon and hits all three, dealing 16 Lightning Damage (+1 Acid Damage for Drex) triggering Drex's Contingency.

Round 3 - Player's Turn

  Elsewhere...

  Amare ran after Willa.

[Craig, feel free to write your way towards your goal.  The university was Willa's home for some time so rather than I describing everything it looks like, how about you make it your own and make it come alive?  I'll provide the obstacles and troubles as your set the stage.]

The Dragons barrage of attacks is starting to take a toll on Drex. But this will not be the end of him. "Aurilians give me strength!" He glanses at his axe for a moment and seems to have regained some of his lost vigor.

With the Dragon dazed from Jubei's last attack, Drex moves in behind his enemy and bringing his gods' fury down on the dragon.

Standard action: Second Wind
Spend a Healing Surge: Spend a healing surge to regain hit points. +2 bonus to ALL def until the SONT.

Move action: Y31 to AC29


Minor action: Fury's Advance
Target: BND
Attack: 24 vs. AC. (-1  Skinrot, +2 Advantage)
Hit: 7 (1d12 + 1 enh). You push the target 1 square (AA-AB29-30 to Z-AA29-30), and it takes 3 damage for each allies adjacent to it after the push. You then shift 1 square to a square adjacent to the target (AB29).
Total damage: 10 if BDE can be pushed.

Contingency: Vital Surge
[Immediate Reaction Personal] Trigger: Your hitpoints are reduced to equal or lower then your bloodied value.
Effect: You immediate spend a healing surge and instead of hitpoints you gain regeneration 5 until the end of the encounter or you recover hitpoints equal to or higher then your bloodied value.  You also gain a +1 bonus to all attack and damage rolls you make until the EONT

Opportunity Attack: Overwhelming Strike (Basic Attack)
Target: BDE
Attack: 21 vs. AC. (-1  Skinrot, +2 Advantage [if flanking is possible] but it will miss except if we can lower BDE's AC or increases Drex's attack)

Avenger’s Censure (Censure of Pursuit) +5 damage if BDE moves away from Drex lasts until EONT
This message was lightly edited by the player at 08:24, Mon 28 May 2018.

  Elsewhere...

Willa's memory of the building was somewhat more...fanciful than the real thing.  As Amare was led through what would in reality be small enclosed tunnels, he found them to be very comfortably sized, for an umbrean at least.  Nooks that should be dusty and full of cobwebs were clean, tidy and void of any sort of insect or arachnid life.  Cold stone felt warm and welcoming, whilst the slime that both he and Willa left behind drained away into non-existence.  Meanwhile the walls, which Amare could only guess would normally have been crudely decorated by Willa's etchings, were covered in fanciful reliefs and arcane scripture.   In other parts, more easily accessed by larger beings, what was likely student vandalism and graffiti, had been transformed into beautiful works of art.  Mostly involving grand, poetic proclamations of love, or defamation of another's character.

In the brief moments they spent outside of tunnels - moving from one to the next - Amare found himself feeling tiny and insignificant as roofs and bookcases towered overhead, raised to impossible heights.  In fact the whole building felt much larger than it should.  The distance he was being made to travel gave the distinct impression that its scope rivalled that of a village or small town.

Despite this it still felt real.  Perhaps due because of his new lower point of view?
 But there were somethings that acted as a constant reminder that this was all in Willa's mind.  Oversized paintings, resplendent in huge gold gilt frames hung on the walls, whilst massive statues of incredible detail graced the halls.  Presumably once meant to feature prominent characters from the academy's history, mythical creatures, or significant historical events, they had all been replaced with incredible depictions of Willa's companions:

Phelan was featured in the largest paintings.   Complete with official looking scrolls and fanciful robes, Amare could not shake the feeling of Awe for this apparent headmaster.

In contrast, Iron Jubei was given pride of place in the centre of rooms and corridors.  The guardian recreated in three-dimensions.  Even as huge as he was in real life, the Kaetyma would still be dwarfed by these representations of him.  His legs as tall as huge redwood trees.  Passing behind one of these towering pillars left Amare feeling safe and full of confidence.  He noted how Willa would go out of her way, just to walk behind them.

There were fewer, smaller sculptures of Ceba too, standing on the sides of rooms. Amare got little impression from them, but did notice that the plinth upon which they stood was far larger than the statue, as though permitted room to grow.  Getting too close to one, made his goo buzz with static electricity and allowed him to read the names on the plaques:  Zebra-Koala is. Looking at them made Amare feel like giggling cheekily.

Some other paintings may have depicted Drex, but it wasn't entirely clear, as they appeared to have been defaced at some point.  Amare could also see a discolouration on the walls around their frames as though bigger pictures once hung there.  Despite this, it looked like recent and ongoing efforts were being made to restore them.  Looking at them made Amare feel hopeful.

Amare also found artworks dedicated to him.  Though so strange were they that it was impossible to tell whether they were actually paintings or sculptures inset into alcoves.  They made him feel a flood of different emotions.  Their many-armed forms - an unsettling mixture of both angelic and monstrous - inspired everything from fearful to confused, whilst carrying a deep underlying sensation of gratitude.  This was perhaps emphasised when they seemed to shift out of the corner of his eyes, only to be still when looked at directly.

Other people were depicted in smaller paintings here and there.  Some Amare recognised as people Willa had met on her journey and some he didn't.  A man with a gruesome apendage for an arm, a druid of some sort, a giant, a secretive shadowy creature, some strange stones and a friendly but injured blue Musadi, to name a few.

In one dusty storeroom Amare also spotted other pictures, that had apparently been put away for safe-keeping.  He caught the names of 'Daryl' and 'Keela' amongst others.

Willa entered another room and stopped.  So used to running at this point was Amare that he had almost forgotten any other state of being and barely had time to stop himself from crashing into her.  He saw the little umbrean's eyes shimmering wet.  He followed her gaze.

In front of him was a towering painting - far larger than any he'd seen so far - with an equally massive tear in it.  The canvas was entirely black apart from two small, red marks.  He felt a sinister, vengeful presence lingering within them, staring hungrily back at his companion.  At first he feared for Willa, but then realised that she was completely ignoring the painting - her attention directed lower.

He followed her eyes down, past the picture frame and an overly lengthy plague, to what first appeared to be a mountain of flowers unti he caught sight of something else within.  Nestled there, crafted from opalescent crystal, was the tiniest of sculptures.  So fragile it might break from a light breeze.  It showed a little girl laying, perhaps sleeping, possibly dead, upon a large stone slab.

The pair stood there in silence for a few moments.  Just as Amare was about to nudge Willa, fearing she may have forgotten herself, the oozeling took off again.  He thought he heard a small whimper of I'm Sorry as she did so, but it could just as easily have been the wind.

Willa climbed the tower of flowers, that supported her weight well and showed no sign of age, blemish or decay.  She kept clear of the small statue, so as not to disturb it, ascending towards the giant picture and the tear in it.  From here Amare realised the gash was wide enough to accommodate even Iron Jubei and so was not surprised to see Willa jump through it.  Following, Amare's world went black for a few moments.  Then, with them closed despite not remembering that he'd shut them in the first place, opened his eyes and found himself standing inside a lecture hall.

The room was absurdly normal.  Nothing about it was overly large or influenced by Willa's experiences in any way.  He went to ask her why this was, but she was not there.  He quickly located her on the stage, already far away, struggling to drag a stool over to the podium.  From here, he could see a thick leather bound book on top it.  Its stiff yellow pages brittle with age.  As if in explanation to his unanswered question Willa called out to him:

"Oracle's is!"

Growling, Phelan backed away again as lightning chained around once more, not wanting to act as a link to the rest of the party. He set his crossbow, and fired at the dragon.

Move: J31->E31

Standard: Magic Weapon
Target: Mecha Dragon
Attack: 30 vs AC
Hit: 10 damage. Willa, Amare, Ceba get +1 attack, +3 damage until EONT.

Minor: Reload crossbow

Amare directed his phantom closer once again to take one of the flanks of the dragon, before unleashing another painful telepathic strike.

Minor: Direct manifestation: T32->Y32->Z31

Minor: Knack for Success
Effect: +2 on next attack roll to Amare

Standard: Invasive Thoughts: Augment 2
Target: Mecha Dragon
Attack: 28 vs Will
Hit: 27 Psychic damage and the mecha dragon gets -2 to all defences until EONT

Jubei let out a roar against the damnable machine and struck it with righteous fury!
Promptly feeling emboldened by such a mighty strike.

Standard Action: Righteous Smite
Target: Effigy
Attack: 29 vs AC
Damage: 22
Hit: You and each ally (Drex) within 5 squares of you gain 7 temporary hit points.


And still, having been toasted so often, Jubei reached into the depth of his power to draw forth some healing.

Minor Action: Lay on tail
Target: Jubei
Heal 19 HP for a healing surge \o/

Ceba gives a gracious nod to Phelan and fires off two arrows, aiming as carefully as possible. One still flies wide, but the second hits its mark.

Free action: switch to shortbow (making it official)
Minor action: designate Effigy as Hunter's Quarry
Standard action: Twin Strike on Effigy
Attack 1: 19 vs AC
Damage 1: 7 damage
Attack 2: 27 vs AC
Damage 2: 8 damage + 7 Hunter's Mark damage (15 total)

OOC: I forgot to add the modifiers from Phelan's attack to my rolls, so I added them afterward. Sorry!

    Wondering at how exactly this musty old tome Willa had memorialized would aid against the presence which was closing in upon them.  Amare noticed the first real signs of its manifestation here in this place of dreams.

  Cracks snaked their way across every surface, tearing and bubbling away at fabric and paint.  Everything it touched aged, and decayed away into silvery dust, and then nothing.  It caught Willa like a deep pain in her bones.

[Willa takes 5 psychic damage from the first stage of the psychic assault she is under.]

  A door to the room flung back, tore itself off its hinges and fell into a black, boundless pit beyond to the sound of twisted, distorted chortling.  ”Oh?  You think your god can stop me?” the voice growled from that dark space.  ”Please, waste what little time you have left attempting to summon false idols!  I enjoy the joke so very much.”

  Amare attempted to buy Willa some time by confronting that void.  ”Tell me creature!  If you are what you claim, who am I?” he pointed his staff at the empty, crumbling doorway.  ”Answer me!  Or is jeering and insults the heights of your capacities oh self-proclaimed deity?” he roared with a venom Willa had not seen the man employ before.  ”I don’t think you can.”

Elsewhere…

Round 3 – Enemy Turn

  Regaining some of its former speed the dragon drew itself up and roared, casting out magical terror as its flesh and blood kindred had in ages past.  Seizing upon the fear within those around it though only Drex could bulwark himself against it so as not to be frozen by it.  Something the dragon noticed as it tried to fly away and attempted to deal with Drex with tooth and claw.  Only for Drex to escape the vicious, crackling bite but not the claws the dragon relented its assault on the holy bounty hunter and took more to the air.  Gaining some distance for itself from the party which had gathered around it.

Blue Dragon Effigy attacks Iron Jubei, Drex and Amare’s Psychomorphic Construct with Frightful Presence.  Effecting Iron Jubei and Amare’s Psychomorphic Construct.  Both are stunned until the end of the effigy’s next turn and after that suffer and aftereffect of -2 to attack rolls (save ends).  Blue Dragon Effigy spends an Action Point to attack Drex with Draconic Fury (which attacks Drex with one gore and two claw attacks).  Gore misses, the first Claw attack hits and deals 8 (+1 acid) damage and the second Claw attack hits and deals 7 (+1 acid) damage.  Blue Dragon Effigy flies to 27/28-Z/AA>>22/23-S/T and climbing two squares into the air triggering an opportunity action from Drex.

End of Round 3, Round 4 Begins – Players Turn

This message was last edited by the GM at 15:32, Wed 30 May 2018.

Willa recoiled from the pain with a wince, before looking around the room in anger as it started to degrade.  How dare it do this to this place?

She climbed up onto the stool and looked down at the book, still open on the page it had been so long (comparatively at least) ago.  She was met by a stylistic depiction of the heavens, bordered by images of creatures both mysterious and otherwordly.  Below was the illuminated text of arcane knowledge.  Text that Willa had seen the students of the academy try and fail at time and again to bargain for greater power with.  Text that had led the Oracle to her.

She didn't know what she was doing.  How she could combat the darkness, or if the Oracle would be here to help.  After all it was not the academy, just her misinterpretation of it, even if this room was as accurate a copy as she could make.  But there was another reason for her to be here.  This room had significance.  It changed her life.  It made her what she is today.  She entered as a vermin-like, scavenging sewer-umbrean and left a warlock.  It made her who she was and, as such, here was where she felt the most identity.  The most Willa.

She looked up at the Encroaching void with grim determination.  As she did so, her somewhat sloppy body began to harden.  Not to the point of toughening, but gaining definition - certainty.  Her face too.  Until she looked more like a sap statue of a twelve year old girl, than an umbrean.

"This Oracle's sanctum." She glared. "Is where Willa became Willa.  Perhaps not where spawned, but where was born.  Where I was born.  You may not enter.  You cannot enter.  The Oracle is not my God.  Gods are beyond my understanding.  But I have friends.  The Oracle is my friend.  And I will not let anyone hurt my friends!"

Despite her brazen attitude, Willa was scared.  She had no idea how she was meant to defeat this thing, so she closed her eyes and whispered a few words to the Oracle:

"Thank you for being my first friend."

She then focused her mind on the aberration in front of her,  Tried to sense it out, find the claws inside her head and latch onto them.  Eyes open, she sneered at it:

"Stare into the Abyss and the Abyss stares back!"

OOC:
I don't know what I am supposed to be doing :P

But I would really like to use Willa's 'Noetic Flexibility' here.  Feels like a perfect opportunity, RP-wise at least, to try and turn the tables on Nemesis.  I just don't know how.

EDIT: Forgot it needs a saving throw, sorry:
15:31, Today: Willa rolled 12 using 1d20.  Saving Throw - Noetic Flexibility.

This message was last edited by the player at 14:32, Wed 30 May 2018.

    "You are dust destined for oblivion." the Nemesis sneered at Amare.  To which the redish umbrean smiled.

  The grimoire, more properly known as the Librio dyl Mondeo Estyrnio - or the "Book of the Outer World" - turned its pages as though blown by a breeze.  Turning its pages until it came to a page illuminating an image of a crystalline rod.  It was only recognizable as a crystal due to the pointed shape of it else it would seem to be a perfectly black rod.  The diagram beneath it named it "A Tear of the Blacksun."  A whirlwind of pages blew past Willa from a nearby desk and whispered by her ear "Take it, take it in you hand."

  Looking at the rod Willa noticed it wasn't flat, but that was not unusual for magical texts.  The image was as real as anything in the world and she could see pinpricks of light shine from within the stone as she changed the angle of her view.

[Not a bad idea, you can use Willa's Noetic Flexibility to flip the damage the Nemesis does to Willa back towards it.  So scratch the earlier 5 psychic damage as successfully reflected.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:01, Wed 30 May 2018.

Without hesitating, Willa reached out and firmly took the rod.  After all, it wasn't like she had a better plan.  She just hoped it was not some trick of Nemesis'.

Vital Surge triggers

OA:Hit: 15 damage. Don't Shift.

Start of turn
Vital Surge regeneration: 5

Drex coughs blood after that attack from the dragon. Drex feels the spirit of the Deseekay start to rush through him, all the orbs on his body glows with a light yellow hue. At that moment he sees the dragon moving and Drex swings his axe in the hope that it lands a hit. And thanks to his allies, he did just that.

With a nod of thank to Jubei for the aid Drex launches him self at the dragon.

Move action: AE29 -> V23

Standard action: Angelic Alacrity
Effect: Before the attack, you shift 4 (Jumps into the air, axe above his head with fury in his eyes).
Target: BDE.
Attack: 22 vs. AC.
Hit: 17.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:48, Wed 30 May 2018.

Ceba watched as the Dragon effigy took to the air. He aimed his shots at the creature's wings, hoping to snipe it from the sky.

"Soar high as you will,
I've faced far worse foes than you!
This strike brings you down!"

Standard action: Twin Strike on Effigy
Attack 1: 12 vs AC
Damage: Irrelevant
Attack 2: 25 vs AC
Damage 2: 8 damage + 3 Hunter's quarry damage (11 total)

"Got to keep this up." Phelan growled, more arcane energy flowing about him as he unleashed another crossbow bolt. He snarled in fury as the bolt glanced off the armour.

Minor: Reload

Standard Action: Magic Weapon
Target: Mecha Dragon
Attack: 18 vs AC
Hit: 16 damage. Ceba, Amare, Willa get +1 attack, +3 damage until EONT.

Minor: Reload

As the arcane energy fizzled out, Amare did his best to channel through his stunned manifestation.

Standard Action: Invasive Thoughts
Target: Mecha Dragon
Attack: 22 vs Will
Hit: 15 Psychic damage.

  "Away from me wretch!" the mechanical dragon roared as lighting shot from its maw towards Drex and the fear-stilled adventurers nearby.  The numinous being Amare had summoned returned whence it came as a result.  Claws, lightning flashed teeth snapped at Drex and the godly bounty hunter evaded each or blocked them with his armour.  "Would you just die already!" the machine screamed, its body groaning as it flapped its wings harder to raise itself higher without becoming an easy target for Drex to counterattack.  Furthermore it reared and let out a ball of lighting from its mouth which exploded over the rest of the party which had until then had been largely unaffected by the battle on the front-lines.  The burst of lighting caught them all though some more than others.

Blue Dragon Effigy uses Bloodied Breath regaining his Breath Weapon and attacks Drex, Iron Jubei and Amare's Psychomorphic Manifestation with it.  The attack hits all three and deals 11 (+1 Acid damage to Drex) lightning damage to those three.  Blue Dragon Effigy then attacks Drex with Draconic Fury and misses.  Blue Dragon Effigy spends an action point and attacks Cebakaala, Phelan Drixos and Amare with Lightning Burst.  The attack hits Cebakaala and Amare, but misses Phelan Drixos, those hit take 8 lightning damage and those missed take 4.  Blue Dragon Effigy shifts 1 square into the air.

[Note Iron Jubei is no longer stunned but suffers from the aftereffect of Frightful Prescence, meaning he will take a -2 penalty to attack rolls until he saves against the effect.]

Elsewhere...

  It was as if the thing was floating in space Willa noticed.  As she wrapped her fingers around the smooth, crystalline surface.  No it wasn't just smooth it was like touching the skin of water.  The rod felt like it flowed against her skin yet remained in place she pulled it back almost certain it would slide from her grasp but it did not.  Gazing at it was like looking out a window at the night sky.  There was no shimmer whatsoever to betray its edges and as she turned it this way and that the rod's starry night didn't change as you'd expect if it was an image caught inside the rod.  It was truly akin to a window.  The same stars, the same constellations remained when she returned her view to the same place she had held the rod previously.  All this Willa observed in the moment she had with her new magical tool before someone began to climb up onto the floor of the room from the doorway into the abyss.

  "Hello Willa." came a familiar woman's voice.  As Aviana, dressed in a resplendent white gown clambered into the room.  She smiled at Willa as she rose up and settled her dress.  She was crying oily black tears from the black pools of her eyes.  "I think its time we talked."

Willa looked at her rod-window to the heavens with a small smile on her face.  "Pretty," she said softly smiling.  However, her joy was short-lived when her gaze moved to an entirely different void: Aviana's inky black eyes.

A period of silence followed, as she closed her eyes and turned away.  As she stood there shaking, her body began reverting to its usual sloppy self.  After a few moments, Willa frowned, part in pain and part in anger, then with tearful eyes, she exploded with a fury rarely seen from her:

"Twelve!  Uh, mean, enough is!  You no Aviana - no fool Willa.  You...you eat Aviana soul!  Akysa say it so!  Get out!  You no allowed to look like her.  Also not welcome here!  Get out, or Willa make you leave."  She thrust her new rod out towards Nemesis and tried to fling a bolt of radiant energy at it.  "No talk!  Go, so Willa also go.  Must to help friends.  Now!"

Standard Action: Dire Radiance vs Nemesis
To Hit: 19 vs Fortitude
1d20+Cha:4,+Expertise: 1,+Proficiency:1,+Disquiet:2
Damage: 7 Radiant
1d6+Cha: 4
Secondary Damage (If Nemesis moves closer to Willa): 9 Radiant
1d6+Cha 4

His fur bristling from the shock that momentarily courses through his body, Ceba decided on a new ploy to bring down their flying opponent.

Standard action: Tie rope to arrow

*ACTION POINT*
Standard action: Fire newly constructed "rope arrow" into the annoying Dragon effigy
Ranged grapple: 25 vs Reflex (CRIT!!! Does that mean I can maybe do damage to him?)

"Jubei, grab the rope!
Let us bring this creature down
To where we can strike!"

OOC: Rope is 50m long. Also, does a grapple count as an attack? Because then I could technically apply my Hunter's Quarry damage to it and give the bugger a bit of a sting to go with the critical grapple.

Start of turn
Vital Surge regeneration: 5

Vitality of the spirits heals some of the scorch marks of the lightning...

Now out of Drex's direct reach, Drex brings forth the flat of his axe. The holy symbol glows as Drex starts wispering a prayer. His eyes a flame like the symbol. "By the Aurelian! Be bound and shackled, beast!"

Red-hot ethric chains shoot out of Drex's axe, burnig the dragon as they bind around it.

Standard action: Avenging Shackles
Ranged 5.
Target: BDE.
Attack: Crit vs. Will.
Hit: 8+4+5+2= 19 radiant damage (1d8+Wis mod+Avenger’s Censure+Gauntlets of Blood) and target is slowed until the EoNT.

Move action:  U2 -> W21

    Willa's spell caused the Aviana apparition to falter as she moaned in pain.  In a strained voice she said "I was in possession of her body for longer than she had ever been, this form was mine far longer, you should know a little about stealing the form of something that isn't yours Willa.  Afterall, umbreans only exist because they take discarded things and build a person out of them."

  She stepped forward and in the process grinned and bore it as the star light burned her "Ahhh! she yelled as she pressed forward, leaning against a chair for support, smoke rising from her.  "And that is why you die, after having barely lived at all.  You can not survive on the refuse other beings leave behind.  But there is another way.  I can extend your life indefinitely.  We can help each other!"

  Across the room Amare was standing by the door they had entered from, he was keeping it closed with telekinetic force.  Something monstrous roared and shrieked from behind that door, beating repeatedly against it.  He shouted over the noise behind him at both Willa and Avianna "Eternity is meaningless if all you are is a circle!"

  He turned his gaze up towards Willa "Don't let it touch you Willa!  The...then Nemesis, I understand now why I can't touch its mind!" Aviana shot Amare a baleful glare "Quiet fool!" she hissed and hurled a bolt of black lightning at Amare.  Which struck true.  The umbrean Amare rapidly began to fade in a whirl of red light behind his head.  "Willa!" he shouted his last, pained words "You have to overwhelm it!" and in a howling red starburst Amare and his staff were gone.

  The door Amare had kept shut suddenly exploded open spilling, tumbling nightmarish shapes into the hall.  "Join me Willa.  Or fight me, either way you will be mine, though you can decide if it'll be a pleasant experience for you or not."  Aviana crooned, all weakness now forgotten.

Willa scoffed.

"All so-fonts exist from discarded stuffs.  Dead plants.  Dead bodies.  Dead thoughts.  All same is.  But not souls." She scowls.  "Soul someone's all is.  Soul never discarded.  Nemesis destroy someone's all is.  Just for ownself.  Destroy many just for one.  Is so so wrong!  Destroyed Aviana's all is.  So no, Aviana form not Nemesis.  Nemesis just poor imitation.  Never Aviana be.

"Also, Willa lives a lot!  Willa have friends.  Short life also.  So Willa understand life-value.  Every day Willa run-sleep, laugh-cry, play-work.  Willa experience life of many things.  Nemesis do none of.  So Willa think to live more in single day than Nemesis in entire existence!

"Nemesis say Willa understand Nemesis cause makes body from discarded things?  So Willa thinks, Nemesis must mean Nemesis makes self from others souls.  Has no own soul.  Well sorry to say, this only Nemesis is!  Only Nemesis so terrible.

"Makes Willa pity Nemesis.  Nemesis only Nemesis there is.  Nemesis alone.  All by self.  Eats others all is to feel.  But no friends.  No Family.  No others.  So Nemesis always only alone, empty, envious.  Makes to be hateful and angry.  No joy.  No life.  Live yes, life no.

"So no, Willa no join.  Happy as is thank you very much."

Not understanding Amare's last words, Willa looks around for any sign of escape but finds nothing.  Moving away from the encroaching entity, she holds her rod out defensively, at a loss as to what to do.  On the one hand, she could fight back - she did seem capable of injuring this thing if only momentarily.  On the other, what if she didn't win?  Everything about Nemesis was an atrocity to her.  She wanted no part of it, but was sure that its threats were true - it would claim her if she lost.

Ultimately, she couldn't decide for herself and felt she had to put her trust in the tool that she had been given.  If not for this very purpose, why be presented with it now at all?

OOC:
I've spent over 3 hours thinking about what to do and am no further along than I was when I started.  So yeah, fuck it. Kill Willa off already @Author.

In case people were wondering - I think Willa's daily is going to be pointless here, since it targets Will and this thing is all about that.  And I have no action points.

Minor action: Curse Nemesis
Standard Action: Dire Radiance vs Nemesis
To Hit:21 vs Fortitude
1d20+Cha:4,+Expertise: 1,+Proficiency:1,+Disquiet:2,+Prime Shot: 1
Damage: 12 (6 Radiant, 6 Untyped)
1d6+Cha: 4 Radiant, 1d6 Curse
Secondary Damage (If Nemesis moves closer to Willa): 6 Radiant
1d6+Cha 4

Jubei shook his head with a snarl as he recovered enough to act. The mockery of a dragon had gotten awfully far away and he had to catch up!

Movement Action: X-Y 29-30 to X-Y 24-25

Standard Action transforms to Movement Action

2nd Movement Action: X-Y 24-25 to U-V 22-23

It was a bit of a sprint! But once there, gave Drex a little slap with the tail, imbuing some regenerative energies to the deseekay.

Minor Action: Lay on Hands
Target: Drex
Effect: Jubei spends a healing surge, Drex gets the benefits of having spend a healing surge.

Action Point to regain Standard Action

Standard Action to 2 Minor Actions

Minor Action: Grab and yank the rope!
'Attack': 13 vs Fort using 1d20+4
Minor Action: GRAB IT AGAIN AAAH
'Attack': 9 vs Fort using 1d20+disappointment


This message was last edited by the player at 15:23, Wed 13 June 2018.

    Despite his best efforts Jubei could not force the dragon down for the moments and his companions didn't fair much better.  Phelan's bolt flew astray and Amare could not penetrate the machines mind.

Phelan Drixos uses Magic Weapon against Blue Dragon Effigy and misses.
Amare uses Invasive Thoughts against Blue Dragon Effigy and misses.

[One rolled just shy and the other totally failed.  Damn.]



    "Curse your foul alliance, release me!" the dragon roared as it pressed with its wings against the air, furiously stirring up dust beneath it and around Jubei.  While it struggled it let out a blast of lighting from its mouth and caught both the paladin and avenger with its blast.  Before it managed to yank the rope free from Jubei's hands and draw itself higher into the air roaring victoriously as it did so.  Though the rope still dangled from the arrow and was free to be caught again.

Blue Dragon Effigy attacks Iron Jubei and Drex with Breath Weapon and hits both dealing 12 lighting damage to Iron Jubei and 12 lighting damage and 1 acid damage to Drex.  Blue Dragon Effigy attempts to escape the grab (rope tied to an arrow) and yanks free and shifts 1 square straight up.


Elsewhere...

    Avianna stopped then fell back as if she had been struck.  A silver flame sprouted from her hands and rapidly consumed her as she screamed in a mixture of pain and anger  "No. NO!  How could you?! I-" and in a roar of flame she was gone without so much as a trace of smoke.  The other creatures that had crashed into the room had combusted in the same fashion and the tremors that had shaken the room had stopped.

  The air before Willa's rod drew aside as though someone was pulling away a curtain all around her revealing a starry void within which Willa now floated.  "That was not an easy thing you did." a chorus of voices sounded from all around her.  Willa tried to pick out distinct sources for it could whirring she couldn't find one.  After the voices has spoken they started singing.  It sounded vaguely familiar if not the song only the way in which they were singing.  She had heard something like this before.  When Midagarra had left them and Amare had appeared from the massive glowing vortex in the sky over Kyssea.  Where that music had been a great symphony of many instruments and tones this one was more muted, subtle, and felt melancholic but rising tones of joy.

  Straining to find something of interest to make sense of this void Willa tried to strain her eyes to make out something about one of the brighter stars in the void around her.  She thought she could see a vaguely humanoid shape within the glow, it appeared to have...wings?  It was hard to make out.

  A luminous whirl of stars came to meet Willa from above, at least she thought it was above there was no ground here so she assumed up was any direction above her head.  "We are pleased you have passed this trial Willa." it spoke with warm but sad tone of voice, it was louder than the music and clearer but she could not place it into as any sort of voice she had ever heard.  It was unlike man, woman or animal in sound.  Like the crackle and pop of flame, the boom of thunder or the grinding of great stones.  "Your sun feared you would not survive, though We knew you would find a way.  You have defeated a great Evil in battle here, not through strength of arms, as you could have done with the rod the stars had given you.  But instead with heart and mind.  For to defeat evil is not to simply strike it down, that is easy.  It is much harder to choose to save evil from itself.  You have begun that path here today." the cluster of stars kept coming closer and as it did ever more stars appeared within it.  Though Willa could not see anything peculiar about these.  It kept approaching and growing larger until it was almost half the sky and still more stars appeared and flew around within it.

  "We are the Oracle Willa."

Start of turn
Vital Surge regeneration: 5
Avenger’s Censure triggers as BDE moves away from Drex: +5 to damage

Vitality of the spirits heals some of the scorch marks of the lightning...

The dragons attacks have taken his toll on Drex's body. But he will not let this stop him, and thanks to Jubei's aid Drex feels confidant to continue his onslaught.

Move Action: Distracting Flare
Effect: You become invisible and move your speed. You are invisible until the end of the movement. W21 -> R21 Stealth check: 23

Standard action: Avenging Shackles
Target: BDE
Attack: Crit vs. Will.
Hit: Hit: 8+4+5+2= 19 radiant damage (1d8+Wis mod+Avenger’s Censure+Gauntlets of Blood) and target is slowed until the EoNT.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:05, Thu 21 June 2018.

Willa was, at first, thoroughly confused, but after a moment her dumbfounded look changed to one of wonder and excitement.  "Oracle is?  Uh, are?  So many!  Willa not know so many is.  Not know so many friends is!  And all so pretty is!"  A broad grin crossed her face.

Though Willa's happiness persisted, her smile faded fast.  Realising the special treatment she was getting, though not its significance, the sincerest apologetic look anyone had ever given crossed her face.  "But Willa sorry.  Want stay-talk.  But more friend has.  Maybe are in trouble bad, Willa thinks.  Must get back to help!"  Looking about the void for some indication of a path or exit or something and not seeing anything she asks: "How to get back?"

Elsewhere...

    The stars of the Oracle twinkled as the Far God chuckled.  "Very well Willa, We shall not keep long then.  We shall give you our three gifts before you return to the waking world."  Several stars spun off from the sphere of the Oracle and circled around Willa.  One drew towards her new rod and vanished with a flash within it.  "To make real that which the Celestials loaned you." the Oracle remarked.

  Three stars gathered and flew into Willa's head vanishing in faint flashes as they touched her skin.  "What council We would have afforded you here shall be granted to you in three dreams."  The remaining three stars orbited around Willa's head.  "We gift you three truths, to be revealed at your choosing.  Upon waking you shall find these three truths present as they are now.  They are yours alone.  Ask of each whatever you wish to know truly and such insights shall be granted to you unless you choose to give it to another.  Each truth shall only be revealed once then return whence it came."

  Willa grew aware of a sensation of weight growing upon her.  "Farewell Willa."

Back with the party...

  The blazing pyre that had been Willa vanished and the umbrean swayed, unsteady.  She appeared largely unchanged save for the curious black crystal she now carried and three brilliant sparks of white light which circled about hear head.

[Congratulations Willa, you have returned, however you have the status Dazed (Save Ends) due to returning from your ordeal.  Your old rod has been destroyed but you gained a new one in its stead. A Vicious Accurate Rod (Level 8) though naturally its appearance differs.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:21, Mon 25 June 2018.