Steamknuckle shrugs and gives Zhaquadan a nervous look. "Don't look at me. I have no idea what that thing is." The gnome seems agitated, and a bit confused.

He leans close to Zhaquadan. "All I know is it can read our minds," he whispers. "I don't know about you, but that really spooks me out. But...if it can read our minds, then it can also read the Redbrands' too. Maybe it can tell us something about Glasstaff, or this place."

"Yes..." the disembodied voice whispers within the party's minds. "No need for blood. Share with us...yes...and we will share with you."

Rudo steps forward, gripping his axe. "Don't fall for this demon's trickery. We need nothing from it, except that eye in two bloody pieces on the ground."

Hearing the whispered discussion around her, Willow seems to have regained some composure. Her face is still pale with tension, though.

"The things it said to me were not friendly," she whispers in a shaky voice. "I don't trust it one bit. But, on the other hand, I don't want to fight it either.

"It said...the 'dark one' gives it food. That must be how they keep it from trying to eat them. If we give it what it wants, then maybe it will let us pass in peace."

"Don't go soft on me now, Kitten," Rudo mutters. His face is grim as he turns to Zhaquadan. "What do you say, priest? Surely you won't stand for parley with a devil like this?"

After a long pause Zhaquadan says "If you think it is possible I think this thing is an abomination and should be cleansed.  If we can injure and capture it perhaps it can be questioned but I say we throw everything we have at it."

"Injure and capture it?" Steamknuckle whispers incredulously. "It's been trying to talk to us since we got here. I mean, you're hearing the same voice in your head that I'm hearing, right? It's trying to avoid a fight. We don't need to beat it into submission to get information out of it! It just said that's what it wants to do!

"If questioning this thing is what you want, then do that. Why risk our lives and its willingness to talk by attacking it? I'm starting to wonder whether you might have caught something from Rudo here."

Rudo grins. "You heard the dwarf. It's an abomination, and needs to die." He abruptly turns on his heel, charging into the darkness toward the stone pillar with his axe raised.

"Foolsssss..." the voice spits. As Rudo begins his charge, the creature leans more fully out from behind the pillar, revealing its hideous form. Its skeletal mouth snarls and slavers.



OOC: Combat ensues. Initiative order:

Initiative Roll	Character
22	Willow
19	Steamknuckle
19	Peas
18	Creature
17	Zhaquadan
7	Burgess
4	Rudo

This message was last edited by the GM at 16:21, Tue 01 Aug 2017.

"I can't see anything!" Willow cries frantically. "Steamknuckle, someone...please give me some light!" She pulls out the large claw dangling from the leather cord around her neck, holding it up for someone to imbue with magical radiance, while she blindly backs up against the cavern wall behind her.

OOC: Taking the Ready action (PHB p.193) to attack the creature as soon as the cavern is sufficiently illuminated.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:40, Fri 29 Sept 2017.

"I'm sorry, I don't know that spell!" Steamknuckle replies. "Only Zhaquadan can do that!"

Frustrated by Rudo's sudden charge, Steamknuckle edges up along the right-hand wall of the tunnel, toward the lip of the crevasse, to get a better view of the monster. As soon as he has a clear shot, he thrusts his hand forward and blasts it with a ray of freezing magical energy.

The ray strikes the creature firmly along the spiny crest of its hunched-over back, just above its eye, leaving a steaming trail of white crusted ice along its pitted leathery skin. The creature lets out a low, clicking growl.

OOC: Ranged attack with Ray of Frost cantrip.
16:14, Today: Steamknuckle rolled 20 using 1d20+5 with rolls of 15.  Ray of Frost cantrip attack.
16:14, Today: Steamknuckle rolled 2 using 1d8 with rolls of 2.  Ray of Frost cantrip damage (cold).
This message was last edited by the player at 13:33, Sat 08 July 2017.

As Steamknuckle moves forward, Peas leaps off his shoulder, swooping into the darkness toward the monster. She glides over Rudo's charging head and directly into the monster's huge single eye, blotting out its pale green luminescence for a moment with the fluttering of her small dark wings.

The creature screeches in frustration as it swipes at the tiny owl with its claws, but by the time they pass through the air in front of it she is gone. She sails off into the darkness of the cavern behind. The creature turns slightly to reach after her with another swipe of its claws, before stopping as it realizes its back is now exposed to Rudo's charging greataxe.

OOC: Flying to the creature, performing the Help action, then flying away.
The Help action (PHB p.192) is targeted at assisting Rudo's next attack.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:34, Sat 08 July 2017.

The creature skitters away, retreating from Rudo. As it does so, it turns its eye toward Steamknuckle, and the horrible wheezing voice fills the party's minds. "I see now why you hesitated, little one. But do your friends? No...they cannot trust you. Such treasures you keep buried for yourself within the darkness. You've kept them hidden so long, how can you even trust yourself?"

As the creature stares toward Steamknuckle, its gaze intensifies. The gnome suddenly shrieks, doubling over as he clutches at his face and chest. The reaction only lasts a moment, though, as Steamknuckle rears back, breathing hard, and returns the monster's gaze with a hard glare of his own.

"You are a strong one...gnome," the voice rattles. "Strong, yes...but not strong enough to protect her."

OOC: Targeting Steamknuckle with a mysterious gaze.
21:34, Today: Steamknuckle rolled 19 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 17.  Constitution saving throw to resist the creature's gaze attack.

Steamknuckle bellows with shocking fury after the retreating monster. "Don't you dare talk about her! You'll die for that!"

OOC: Zhaquadan casts light on Willow's claw.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:07, Sun 09 July 2017.

Zhaquadan speaks a single resonant word, turning his shield to point the symbol on its surface toward the claw held up by Willow. In an instant the claw is bathed in a bright white light.

Willow immediately drops the claw to dangle from its leather cord across her chest. "Thanks," she mutters. The light illuminates the cavern brightly across her field of vision, revealing the hideous crouched form of the retreating creature, now near the far end of the chamber.

She moves a few feet forward to get a clear view of her quarry. Then she quickly draws her shortbow, readies an arrow, and mutters a single indistinct word under her breath before releasing the bowstring.

The arrow streaks through the gloom to sink deeply into the meat of the monster's turned hip. It lets out a terse, almost coughing screech at the impact. Then it suddenly begins clawing madly at the wound, as tough, thorny vines magically sprout from it, growing impossibly fast to thicken and spread across the monster's struggling body.

Soon the creature is fully entangled by the vines, thrashing madly to escape from their grasp as thorns sink and tear into its writhing flesh.

OOC: Triggering Ready action from earlier in the round: using bonus action to cast Ensnaring Strike before making a ranged attack with shortbow.
23:08, Today: Willow rolled 16 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 9.  Shortbow attack.
23:10, Today: Willow rolled 7 using 1d6+3 with rolls of 4.  Shortbow damage (piercing).
23:14, Today: Wizzrobe, for the NPC Creature, rolled 3 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 1.  Strength saving throw to resist Willow's Ensnaring Strike spell.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:29, Sun 09 July 2017.

Seeing Willow move up into the cavern, Burgess bounds forward protectively, rushing past her and Rudo toward the creature. He deftly skirts the edge of the chasm to reach the monster just as Willow's magical vines begin to entangle it.

The huge mastiff pounces into the strange creature, snapping at its leg with his massive jaws. However, by the time he arrives the spell has already taken hold, and his teeth sink harmlessly into a fibrous stalk of vine snaking across the monster's limbs. He angrily shakes his maw, tearing the vine into shreds.

OOC: Melee bite attack by Burgess.
07:35, Today: Wizzrobe, for the NPC Burgess, rolled 10 using 2d20+3, dropping the lowest dice only with rolls of 7,5.  Bite attack, with advantage due to the creature being restrained.

Rudo huffs in frustration as multiple fleeting beasts and flung projectiles fly past him, while his own short legs fail to close the distance between himself and the monster. He manages to run about two-thirds of the way before he stops to angrily rip a javelin from his belt, flinging it at the creature with one hand while gripping his greataxe in the other in a counterbalancing backward swing.

The javelin sails through the air to neatly skewer the creature through its left arm.

OOC: Ranged attack with javelin.
08:01, Today: Rudo rolled 16 using 2d20+5, dropping the lowest dice only with rolls of 2,11.  Javelin attack, with advantage due to the creature being restrained.
08:02, Today: Rudo rolled 8 using 1d6+3 with rolls of 5.  Javelin damage (piercing).
This message was last edited by the player at 15:36, Sun 09 July 2017.

Willow rapidly nocks another arrow and lets fly. The arrow strikes true, driving through the thick vines to sink into the creature's chest. It screeches desperately and thrashes even more wildly against its entangling prison.

OOC: Ranged attack with shortbow.
08:38, Today: Willow rolled 21 using 2d20+7, dropping the lowest dice only with rolls of 4,14.  Shortbow attack, with advantage due to the creature being restrained.
08:38, Today: Willow rolled 9 using 1d6+3 with rolls of 6.  Shortbow damage (piercing).

Steamknuckle grimaces with cruel resolve as he blasts the creature with another ray of frost. The beam strikes dead center, leaving the monster gasping and clutching at the patch of frost spreading across its abdomen.

The gnome approaches steadily with his palm held out, ready to fire again. Peas flutters out of the darkness to land deftly on his shoulder as he walks.

OOC: Ranged attack with Ray of Frost cantrip.
11:56, Today: Steamknuckle rolled 23 using 2d20+5, dropping the lowest dice only with rolls of 8,18.  Ray of Frost cantrip attack, with advantage due to the creature being restrained.
11:56, Today: Steamknuckle rolled 8 using 1d8 with rolls of 8.  Ray of Frost cantrip damage (cold).
This message was last edited by the player at 03:52, Mon 10 July 2017.

A howling desperation fills the voice that invades the party's minds. "Pleeease..." it begs. "We do not mean any harm. Please do not hurt us. We have treasures...many secrets. Shining things. We will give them to you. Please..."

The creature sees Steamknuckle approaching with fury on his face, and it tenses, flexing its wiry muscles in a final jerking gasp at freedom. The vines around its arms and legs suddenly give way and tear into fibrous splinters. The monster thrashes more and more urgently as it feels its freedom approaching, until the last vine shrivels and falls away into dust as formless as the magic from which it came.

The creature crouches, shaking and bloody, staring at Steamknuckle. "Please...take pity on us..." the broken voice wheezes. "We meant no harm. We will not run...we will share our treasures with you. Please forgive us, and spare us..."

OOC: Attempting to break out of the entangling vines.
12:56, Today: Willow rolled 1 using 1d6 with rolls of 1.  Ongoing thorn damage from Ensnaring Strike (piercing).
12:59, Today: Wizzrobe, for the NPC Creature, rolled 12 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 10.  Strength saving throw to break free from Willow's Ensnaring Strike spell.

Zhaquadan runs to attempt to put himself between the creature and Rudo with his warhammer at the ready.   When he is close enough to not have to yell for the creature to hear he asks "How do we know we can trust you?"

"You have us at your mercy..." the voice replies. "We cannot eat you...we cannot run. We are to be trusted because...there is no other choice."

Zhaquadan moves to the far side of the creature so as to prevent its escape and says "Surround it but keep your distance, it may actually have information that could help" while making a circular gesture with his hands to reinforce the request to his comrades.  He turns his attention to the creature and asks menacingly "Who is your master? Who is this 'dark one'?  What are you hiding down here?"
This message was last edited by the player at 02:20, Mon 10 July 2017.