Logan shakes his head at Lavinia's continued inability to realize that her brother is up to anything shady.  In Logan's mind, Vanthus is already the mastermind behind everything that's been happening to Amarilde and Lavinia, and he probably arranged fro his parents' fates in order to secure their fortune before his sister could get it.  The rogue shrugged.  He was being paid, and well-paid at that, so he'd go along with whatever she wanted for enough coin.

In the vault, Logan inspects the door itself.  Assuming all is safe, he motions for the signet ring from Lavinia.

"Oh!" says Lavinia, obviously surprised by the idea of using the signet ring as a key. Once Logan is finished and has given her the go ahead, she inserts her ring into the small depression above the handle. At this point, the door flashes once with blue light, then slowly swings open on creaking hinges.

Inside the door is a domed chamber 30" high, with polished green marble on both the floor and ceiling - the ceiling emits a faint light which is just enough illumination to see the room by. On either side of the main domed chamber are 15" wide alcoves that have lower ceilings (about 10") and each features a central green marble pillar carved to resemble a coiling snake. At the far end of the domed chamber - directly opposite the party - there is a third column embedded into the wall.

On the domed ceiling is the eight pointed Vanderboren star that the party are getting used to seeing now.

The room is dusty, with lots of marks and footprints spread around the place. The green light emitting from the ceiling gives the room a creepy feeling, like the room is in the middle of a dense, dry jungle where the light filters through a thick canopy of leaves.

"Well, it's not exactly packed with treasure, is it?" mutters Lavinia. "My father mentioned that there is more than one room, so don't give up hope yet," she says half to the party and half to herself. She seems to be hesitating, not wanting to be the first to go into the room but not wanting to ask somebody else to do it either.
This message was last updated by the player at 18:20, Mon 06 July 2015.

Here it is, probably the ugliest map in the AP - how you are meant to imagine a central domed chamber and two alcoves coming off from it on this map I do not know. Europeans please take note, 1 square = 5 ft.

Logan holds up his hand, motioning for the others to remain still while he advances into the room, searching for traps.  "Hmm, there must be some sort of hidden door here, if what your father said about multiple rooms is correct."    Logan carefully walks over the two supporting columns, inspecting them, then moves on to the innermost column at the back of the room.

Logan moves to the first column - this is the one to the east - and examines it carefully, making sure that he doesn't touch any part of it. The column is an incredibly detailed carving of a snake wrapped around a jungle tree, with the head of the snake at about eye level. The rogue looks at the head, checking for some clue to a hidden lever or switch that might open a hidden door.

Then the snake's eyes open and look at him.

The creature lunges off the pillar and bites the thief on the shoulder, its long teeth easily penetrating through his armour. The creature is about three feet long and as soon as it has completed the bite, it drops off and lands on the floor. It pulls back to look for a new opening.

20:41, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 18 using 1d20+2. Snake bites Logan.
20:42, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 3 using 1d6+1. Snake damage vs Logan.
OOC: Take 3 damage and I also need a DC14 fort save versus poison thanks Logan.

The rest of the party are still in the corridor in single file marching order.

Updated map.

Logan yells and draws his weapons: "Lavinia, did your parents say anything about this?!"  He dodges to one side and tries to simultaneously stab and slice the snake with his swords.

Move: Draw Weapons
Standard: Attack

Made fort saves.  Two attacks vs snake.
14:59, Today: Logan rolled 3 using 1d6+1. Rapier Damage?
14:58, Today: Logan rolled 3 using 1d20+2. Short Sword Attack.
14:58, Today: Logan rolled 13 using 1d20+3. Rapier Attack.
14:58, Today: Logan rolled 15 using 1d20. Fort Save.

Logan misses with both attacks.

"Oh!" screams the young lady. "Um, no! But I am sure my parents would never put anything down here that is dangerous!"

Alohan watches Logan suddenly get bit by a snake. He lurches into action, maneuvering past the Shadowshore rogue. He goes into a dive, hoping to roll out of the maneuver behind the jungle creature. Hoping his position helps Logan surround the beast. Yet his hopes were different than his results.  Alohan found himself sprawled out on the floor in comical fashion, starring up at the creature. He rolled, sprang to his feet, and moved past the snake with his arms out in a defensive posture.

With his arms still spread Alohan makes a few cautious swipes at the snake hoping to draw its attention away from Logan and on to him. He hoots and hollers, batting at the creature playfully. Alohan was not surprised how ineffectual he was. It was as if the gods were telling him -'Trust in your pele.' For once, Alohan might listen to reason.

---

Dearest DM: [Private to Dungeon Master: The only thing Alohan would buy (or rather borrow off of Remmi), is a simple dagger. I want Alohan to be all fists and grapples, but this first level is going to suck without a weapon.]
Move Action:Alohan wants to Move to I3. Alohan will only actually tumble from G4->H4 since it doubles your movement (Even with a failure, I still would get mobility... right?).
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/skills/acrobatics
18:25, Today: Alohan Nuari rolled 8 using 1d20+7. Acrobatics vs CMD.
Note: Alohan has Mobility so for his failure and his next move H4->I3 he will have a +4 to his AC
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats/...ility-combat---final
FRAK
Standard Action: Aid Another for Logan- Attack vs DC10
18:46, Today: Alohan Nuari rolled 7 using 1d20+2. Aid Another for Logan vs DC10.
Double Frak
Free Action: Know(Nature) or Perception to figure out what breed the thing is?
18:39, Today: Alohan Nuari rolled 10 using 1d20. Identifying Snake.
TRIPLE FRAK!!!!
Should only be Three AoOs but probably only one since the snake probably doesnt have that feat.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:53, Mon 06 July 2015.

"Frak!" Kassius swears as the snake bites Logan, and hurries into the room, drawing his bow. The tight quarters will render the weapon less effective than it might be, but at least it would allow him to avoid the snake's fangs.

Kufu He calls to Kibeti, who follows him agreeably. The cat peers at the snake with his alien blue eyes. The cat seems to be waiting for the precise right moment to strike. Until then Kibeti seems content to watch, an almost human-like curiosity expressed on his face.

---

Kassius
22:17, Today: Kassius rolled 24 using 1d20+5. initiative?
22:18, Today: Kassius rolled 9 using 1d20+3. knowledge (nature) identify snake.
Move Action: Move to E2
Standard Action: Draw Bow
Free/Swift Action:  Set Kibeti's Animal Focus to Tiger

---

HP: 9/9  AC 18, Saves+3/+7/+3
Spells Slots: 1st: 2/2

---

Kibeti
Move Action: Move to F2
Standard Action: Ready Action to attack the snake if it moves within reach

---

HP: 14/14 AC 15, Saves+4/+7/+2
Current Animal Focus: Tiger (+2 dex)

Angati moved into the fray like someone who did not have a care, getting between Alohan and Logan, and hoping to keep close to Logan should that snake be poisonous. It was not the time for healing yet though, and she swung her morning-star mightily. Had it touched the snake it would have probably made a pulp of it, but as it was, it was a clumsy tool to use with such a fast animal, and the ball just hit the floor with a mighty CLANK.

---

Free : Step towards grate | Swft : | Move : to G4 | Stnd : Attack
07:53, Today: Angati rolled 6,9 using 1d20+1,1d8+1. Attack Snake & Dmg.

---

HP: 11 |  AC: 17 | CMD : 11 | Saves: 2/1/2

Special Notes:

  (De)Buffs :
 Conditions :
  L0 Spells : 4/4
  L1 Spells : 1/3 Cure Light Wounds, Protect from evil, Fear
  Abilities : Misfortune, Temporal Celerity

The snakes snaps out at the native, but despite Alohan's precarious upside down position, he is able to avoid the bite and get to his feet.

09:14, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 7 using 1d20+2. Snake AoO on Alohan.





OOC: Yes, hello dearest player.



Umm, no. You lose the rest of your move and get stuck in the square. Mobility gives you an AC bonus but doesn't help you move further. Alohan gets pinned down in H4 (he lands in that square but can't go any further)





Alohan tries to herd the snake towards Logan like he used to play with the peacocks back in the royal palace's grounds - he learns that snakes are not as easy to puasuade as peacocks. Logan does not feel assisted at all.



Ha! Alohan has no idea what it snake is.



Agreed, the snake only gets one AoO each round.

OOC: Oh, actually we're using modified initiative rules for most of the battles to help the posting rate. The party all take a turn at once, and then the enemy all take a turn. Normally the party goes first, since they are the heroes, unless the bad guys get surprise and then they go first.

I promose to mix things up a bit so that high dexterity is not a total was of time.



Kassius has never seen anything like it before.

You know, I would let you draw your bow as a swift action. In fact, I would have assumed that Kassius had it in his hand before the door was opened...

Angati's blow is strong, but wild.

OOC: Celene left to play in this round.

As the way ahead of her clears, and the sounds of pain and battle erupts, Celene shuffles forward as the rest of the team. She urges along Lavinia, saying, almost shouting, "Come along, maybe the presence of your signet ring will suppress whatever damnation is down here."

Getting into the vault chamber, she stares at the treacherous snake, and sees Logan clutching his shoulder. Guessing it must be poisonous, she realises she must help avert more attacks, if possible. She focuses on the hidden, fiery part of her mind, and lets flames gush forth. In her effort to avoid hurting her friends, though, all it amounts to is singed eyebrows - on everyone except the damned snake!

---

Free : talk to L | Swft :  | Move : to E4 | Stnd : flame lance | Full :

---

HP: 7/7 |  AC: 11/10/11  | CMD : 9 | Saves: 0/0/+4

Special Notes:

  (De)Buffs :
 Conditions :
  L0 Spells (DC14):
   - Unlim. : Detect poison, Daze (+1 DC), Flame Burst, Mage Hand,
   - Bonus  : 1/1 Detect Magic, 1/1 Light , 1/1 Prestidigitation
  L1 Spells (DC15):
   - 4/4    : Charm person (+1 DC), Sleep (+1 DC)
  Abilities :
   - 6/7    : Flame lance

Yes, Celene misses by miles! But she does one thing right - thanks to her encouragement Lavinia enters the room. The noble woman gasps at her first sight of a combat - Logan bleeding from the shoulder, Kassius unslinging his bow, Kibeti growling and Alohan sitting on his ass - all while the snake hisses and makes small darting attacks.

"Um, my goodness, stop?" says Lavinia. The creature takes no notice. "I said stop!" says Lavinia, holding up her hand to emphasise the command and by chance also revealing the signet ring on her finger.

At the sight of a Vanderboren wearing a Vanderboren signet ring, the creature instantly calms down and adopts an unaggressive posture. It slides back to the pillar and climbs back up to its position amount the stone leaves. Now that it's  moving slower, the party sees that it is not a natural snake. And although it's skin is the same emerald green as the marble everything in this room is made out of, it isn't rock either. It's skin is some sort of flexible but tough looking metal - it would have been a tough adversary indeed! It slots back into a specially carved groove in the pillar - this is why Logan didn't spot it earlier, it seemed too low profile to be anything substantial.

OOC: Yes, DR 5/adamantine and pretty good spell resistance to boot - figuring out this puzzle was a much better option, well done Johannes! (Although I think John was on the right track as well)

Now that the danger is pass, Logan returns to his original task while holding his shoulder to keep the bleeding under control - it isn't too bad, just two thin puncture wounds.



When Logan searches the northern pillar, he notices that the snake patterns are different from the other two pillars. He finds a hidden switch set into one of the eyes of the many snakes carved into this pillar. He also searches for traps but finds none.

19:23, Today: Secret Roll: Dungeon Master rolled 13 using 1d20+8. Logan searches for secret door in north pillar.
Revealed (for fun) since you passed. Find traps roll remains secret.

Logan grimaces.  "We'll have to remember that little trick for the future.  I suppose your parents wouldn't have needed to mention that to you.  The snake would have seen you and your signet and let you pass."

The rogue motions to the northern pillar.  "Speaking of which, I found a hidden switch here.  My guess is it leads to more treasure.  But you should be up in front, Lavinia, in case there's any more surprises that might get us killed."

"Certainly, if you think it best Logan. A hidden switch?" The young lady looks at the pillar next to where Logan is standing. "Oh! Yes, I see. So it should be used like this..."

Lavinia pushes the button before Logan can intervene, and the green marble snake designs begin to animate. They writhe aside like living creatures, forming a coiling archway that allows access into the next room.

And the next room is a very strange one. It is roughly octagonal and supported by a single large pillar of peculiar design - it has dozen's of deep grooves running vertically along its sides. This pillar is also made of some type of bright metal, unlike the rest of the room which is the familiar green marble.

On the ceiling is the now familiar eight pointed star of the Vanderborens, except the southern most point is bright red, whereas the rest of the arms of the star are black.

On the seven walls of the rooms are fantastically detailed bas-relief carvings of exotic monsters in threatening poses - all carved in green marble.


Honestly, what a dismal attempt at a map. Does that room look octagonal to you? They should have gotten Ron to make this battlemap instead.

"Oh, my goodness, how wonderful!" says Lavinia clapping her hands and running into the room before anyone can stop her. "Look at these carvings, all my favourites are here!" She starts circling the room from the wall immediately to the west of the entrance, and then moving clockwise, giving a running commentary as see moves on the name and qualities of each of the monsters carved into the walls.

"Well, okay, it isn't though THIS is one of my favourites. I think this is called a 'floating eye', although for the life of me I cannot image how it can be threatening. <giggle> Well, I guess it could glare menacingly!" She moves on.


"Oh, my goodness. Kora used to tell me bedtimes stories about these guys - it gave me such nightmares but I always asked her for more the next night. This is a 'choker', a nasty type of predator that normally lives in the darkest and deepest parts of caves and then waits for something to walk past and then they lash out and gobble them up whole. Kora said that had started moving into the slums of big towns, but what a lot of rubbish, honestly, she is such an old housewife sometimes..."


"And THIS is my favourite! These evil mastermind fish are called 'aboleth', no-one knows if that is a singular or plural term. They are so old they existed before the gods and are inter-dimensional or some sort of thing like that. Watch out, they can enslave you with their minds."


"A confused monster that fights with itself sometimes.  Two heads, always squabbling, this is the brutish 'ettin'."


"Oh, oh, oh! THIS is my favourite! Everyone loves a beholder, although..." she tilts her head sideways. "This looks like a baby. I think it is called a 'spectator beholderkin', see, it is the funny jaw that gives it away as not being a real beholder. Oh! Wouldn't it be lovely to see a REAL behold one day! And not just a paper napkin version..." Lavinia finally drags herself onto the next carving.


"These immense brutes live in the swamp, I've read they are quite rare, they go by the name of 'gray render'. I don't know much else about them, hmm, I should go back to the house and read up."


"Sneaky, crafty, scuttling in the dark, it is a 'monstrous spider' <shivers> imagine meeting one of them in a dark corner of a dark wood... wonderful!"


Lavinia looks around and finally realises that something is missing. "But, where is the treasure?" she asks with a despairing wail.


The room again, this time with the position of each monster bas-relief marked.

Logan looks around at the monsters, shivering a little at the (all too recent) memory of the snakebite.  "Hmm, okay, maybe there's some kind of hidden switch here again.  Lavinia, your parents' obsession with teaching you about monsters seems to have had a purpose - teaching you how to get through this vault.  Tell me, did they give Vanthus the same instruction?  The clerk said he got in here, but maybe he couldn't figure out his way through to the actual treasure."

Logan claps a hand over his wounded shoulder, and walks around the room, inspecting the carvings for traps and secret switches, wary for any sudden movement from the carvings.

The rogue stops and looks around.  "Wait a minute.  The floating eye has...one eye.  The choker, two.  All the way up to the monstrous spider at eight.  And they're arranged in order.  That must mean something."  Logan taps his chin.  "Eyes...Celene, wasn't that scrap of paper inside the ring, with the monsters and different number of eyes?  Maybe there's something here.  What was the first one?  Chimera looks to sunrise?  Well, that would be the gray render, right?"

Logan walks over to re-inspect the gray render sculpture.  "But what are we supposed to do now?  Looks to sunrise?"

Kassius enters slowly, bow drawn and arrow knocked, Kibeti prowling warily besides him. More riddles apparently before they had accomplished their task, it seemed.

"Sun rises in the East, and sets in the West. Seems like directions to me. Logan, did ya see any way to turn the carvings?" Kassius asks.

Pondering the code that's obviously hidden within this room, Celene puts a hand on her chin, the index finger tapping her temple. She stands well away from the statues near the entrance. "Well, one detail is that there isn't any monster here with seven eyes, but that may not be important. Other than that, you're absolutely right; the statues show them to have increasing numbers of eyes. So yes, the chimera with six eyes would correspond to the gray render, also with six eyes... then what?"

"Kassius has a point in that the note implies directions, east and west. Perhaps we should walk from one statue to the other, touching them in the order of the note? Meaning gray render for chimera, floating eye for cyclops... but how many eyes does a medusa have? With her snake hair, it would be quite a lot, I guess? And the basilisk? Does it simply have two eyes - I really don't know?"

"But if not walking or touching them, then perhaps something else? Can that pillar in the center be turned, or is it completely solid? Or what about the star in the ceiling, can anyone tall enough turn that?" Celene is obviously very reluctant to get near anything, hoping to coax the others to touch or manipulate the content of the room.

OOC: sorry if that suggestion is odd, but looking at the map it just made me think of one of these numbered dials on a safety deposit box (before the age of key cards, of course :-) ) Where is the Vanderboren star situated relative to the pillar? Does the 'red south' point toward the pillar?

OOC: you've named the choker as 'gasper' on the map. Is that important?
This message was last edited by the player at 23:22, Tue 07 July 2015.

When combat finished, she moved in to check Logan, "How bad are you hurt ? do you need a bit of a heal now or shall we wait a bit just in case ?... do you feel any poison ?"

As they moved into the room Angati walked from one image to the next. She had not noticed the eye ordering and that made her feel stupid and old... "I'd say that its the pillar that must turn.... all the monsters look at the center now, lets see if we can align the pillar so it shows a sunrise or sunset according to each of the sides of the room".

Angati moved then to investigate the pillar without touching anything until Logan or someone that knows what he is doing gives an ok.

"Pffft! Oh please! My parents tried, but the only thing my little brother was interested in was smoking zzonga and trying to look up cousin Amarilde's skirt! Well, I suppose that my mother did manage to teach him Sylvan, but I learnt it better."

"So you think there might still be some treasure left?" she says, looking around. "I mean, not that I think Vanthus took it but..."



Logan searches the whole room and finds no traps or secret devices of any kind.



OOC: Getting warm!



Logan tries one bas-relief and then the next. They don't have much profile, so there isn't much to turn, but the thief gives it a try anyway - no success!

"Oh my goodness!" says Lavinia. "Do you think the carvings are the key to something? I guess if we try and open them the wrong way they will animate and all attack us?!" she says half fearfully and half eagerly while looking at the beholderkin.



OOC: Huh? No, the spider has seven eyes, I photoshoped it to make sure it had seven, but the lower left-hand eye is small and dark so hard to see.



Lavinia speaks up. "Actually, medusa only have two eyes - the snakes on their head are blind."

OOC: At least in this game...



OOC: Meaning that you want Logan to take the hit if there is a trap ;D Fine, that is what he is there for I guess. :P


Logan inspects the shiny metal pillar in the middle of the room. After checking for traps and hidden devices, he grabs a longitudinal groove in each hand and then gently twists. To his surprise the column rotates easily - but not smoothly. It moves in little increments and makes a soft *click* *click* *click* noise and rotates each step.

Furthermore, the entire ceiling rotates with the pillar! There must be some sort of magic involved because there is no way that Logan should be able to move the entire green marble ceiling with such ease otherwise. The arms of the star rotate, including the red arm which moves off its starting position in the south.



OOC: The suggestion is not odd at all, it is in fact spot on! Yeah, I should have described the star better. The center of the star is the center of the pillar, so the arms spread out from this central point. The 'red south' therefore points directly AWAY from the pillar, to its starting position which is above the door they came in from.



OOC: That is an error, it should read 'choker'



OOC: The pillar has now been touched and it is confirmed that it can turn. What do you mean by 'align the pillar so it shows a sunrise or sunset'? The metal pillar has the groves, but otherwise nothing that looks like the sun...

Logan shook his head in response to Angati's question.  "No, I don't feel any poison now.  I think whatever that snake had, I managed to fight off.  As for being hurt..."  Logan lifted off his hand and inspected the wound.  "The snake bit deep, but I'm in mortal danger right now.  Why don't you keep the healing in case we meet some other guardian down here."

Logan's at 6/9 hp.  Not bloodied yet, but he's feeling the damage.

The rogue considers the central pillar, then nods to Kassius. "Hmm, sunrise and sunset corresponding to east and west..."

Logan looks at the room.  "That doesn't quite make sense.  It might make sense as thinking about it how the earth spins..."

Or, for a Ptolemaic Model, how everything spins around the earth.  How does the cosmology of Mystara work, anyway?  Does Logan even know?

"But if you assume you'd be looking at things like a map, and north was up, turning east would be spinning counterclockwise, and west would be clockwise.  So, by that logic..."

Logan starts to spin the central pillar counterclockwise, ending when the red arrow points at the Gray Render.  "Chimera looks to sunrise..."  He reverses the pillar, turning it clockwise back to the carving of the floating eye.  And that's Cyclops at sunset..."  After a brief pause, Logan pushes the pillar widdershins one carving, stopping at the choker.  "Medusa looks to sunrise," Logan's pauses grow briefer as the rogue's excitement builds, and he pushes it back around to the Ettin.  "Umber hulk looks to sunset, and..." the rogue is almost jogging now as he pushes the pillar, eager to get the next door open, and pushes the pillar back the other way, stopping at the choker again.  "And basilisk looks to sunrise, I guess?  Do basilisks have two eyes?"