"It's possible your fellow paladin did not mean it like that Dido."  Well, that's nice of you to sa- "Perhaps he is referring to the mere existence of our recent acquaintances, as opposed to any deeds of larceny against demon worshiping gnolls."

  "Tweet, is it worse if he hates them because they're Tieflings, or because he thinks stealing is always wrong even if it's from slavers?"

  "You'll have to forgive my little friend.  The last Spirit of a Paladin we met was just as judgmental towards us, and they had murdered a keep full of innocents safeguarding it from the shadowfell.  The opinions of the departed are, as such, rather suspect of late.  They seem to have a habit of desiring to bar our progress even if it means more innocents will die simply because we are not to their taste."

  "What about arcane trivia? Chirp.  I mean even I know Minotaur's like mazes, I'll bet there's a maze and these ghosts have some vague clue where the hidden exit is they are withholding."  "No, I don't think that counts.  It does not take any great intellect to expect that sort of thing."  "What about 'Beholder Tyrants have eleven different Eye rays'."  "Do you remember what they all are?""  "Tweet, sure.  There's a petrify ray, a disintegrate ray, uh,... Mean looks?... Look there's Squawking eleven of them okay!  The book I read said that knowing Minotaurs like Baphomet is obscure, and that God's plastered all over this place NAMED AFTER IT!"

Nevermind that it considers 'Minotaurs like mazes' to be the hardest lore check.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:59, Mon 04 Nov 2013.

"Oooh, real impressive," the human cleric says sarcastically fo Kitau's small display of violence, "But doors don't hit back."

"Gateways to the Shadowfell will drag you and and tear you apart, though," Mittens points out, "So some doors are quite dangerous indeed."

Kitau grunts her irritation with the ghost and throws her javelin at his face.  The javelin lodges deep into the wall with a loud clink.  The paladin ghost takes notice of Terdisas at the mention of dealing with a murder zombie paladin then looks back to Dido.

"Impressive deeds if what you say is true, but even a devil would be shrewd enough to prevent Orcus from gaining a foothold in the mortal realm.  It is not race or the taint of undeath that I spoke of.  Rather, it is a matter of purity of heart and veracity of faith.  Namely, the lack thereof.  Mocking, insincere, destructive, flippant, ineffective...  These are the kinds of hearts that surround you after how long you've had to guid them into the light of any of your faiths?

"I would be quick to help a real paladin with a real team of heroes, but pretenders not so much.  Only one of you even mentioned defending innocents, and even then only in passing to excuse an accusation.  I have my doubts that any of you are who you claim, much less have pure intentions."

"Same could be said of you," Mits counters, "As Terdisas pointed out, just 'cause you appear to be a ghost of a paladin doesn't mean you're a goodguy.  Why should we trust you?"

"The aid we will offer once you show yourselves worthy will be yours to accept or reject as you'll see fit."

"Oh this is rich," the female ghost mage says, "Looks like the bird is the master and the human is the familiar.  But I'll bet none of you beat a beholder like we have!  Woulda done it in record time too if the stupid warlock hadn't gone for the obviously trapped gem.  That's the kind of senseless I'm talkin about, blondie.  Your silly friends are going to end up getting you killed."

Dido says, "And you ally yourself with someone who is condescending. Rather than play games, how about you tell us what we're supposed to do to prove our worth. After all; to believe our credentials, you have to take our word for it. And even if you believe our credentials, apparently saving the world is something 'even devils would do'. It wouldn't matter what we say or do, if you had it in your head to condemn us, you would find a way. So. Tell me what you expect besides us wasting time?"

Callie says, "No hero is perfect, but we *are* heroes. Our adventures started out by ridding a town of a dragon and her kobold servants because they were raiding the king's road. We did so at risk to our lives. We got paid, but the gold was not our reason for doing this. I've tried time and again to spare our enemies, but most times they would sooner die than surrender. Or they are so evil, they just would sooner die than not be cruel to people. On one hand, my mercy could be seen as allowing evil to go unpunished. On the other hand, it could be seen as having more compassion than normal. My friend Kitau is of the first opinion; that evil should not live to have a second chance. But not once has she called me weak for showing compassion. So far, the only ones to see mercy as weak have been evil. Do you still see me as weak? But Dido has a point. If we are good at heart, the only way to prove it is for you to go and hear what we've done, how we've treated people, or for you to watch us for a while. Only time ever tells anyone what people are made of."

  Terdisas makes his will save vs facepalm at Kitau doing what most of them are likely tempted to do.

  "Chirp, I never knew saving lives only counted if you bragged about it. I could totally go for Bossman being the familiar though."  The sorcerer ignores this, in favor of saying "I assure you, any doubts and suspicions I have put forth are quite sincere.  I have sadly found in my travels that honesty is not valued over simply telling people what they wish to hear, a virtue wasted and a lesson I repeatedly seem to forget."  That or just not being bothered to flex his CHA score after fighting their way through repeat demons to the checkpoint ghosts who think they are worse than said demons.

  Superbird sporting the Sehanine familiar of choice look probably didn't count for much to these spirits anyway, not their God after all.

"Not to mention the fact that we're here to try and rescue some slaves," Mits points out, "So the longer you impede us, the greater the chance they'll end up the lunch of some jackal demon named Yeenoghu."

At first the ghost Kitau attacked looks furious.  But after remembering he's already dead, he chuckles.

"Looks like they have the muscle."

"And the courage," the paladin adds.

"But only half the brains," the wizard says.

The paladin warns, "Beware, for the trials ahead are likely tougher than any you have faced so far....

Conclusion
The PCs receive information based on the total number
of successes achieved. Whether the PCs succeed or fail,
the slain adventurers can finally rest in peace. They have
attempted to help a group avenge their loss. Once the chal-
lenge ends, the NPCs say farewell (or mock the PCs and
warn of impending death if the encounter went poorly)
and fade from view.
Rewards: If the PCs attain twelve successes, the
adventurers hail them as allies. The group provides all the
information below.
Failure: If the PCs earn six failures, determine their
total number of successes up to that point. The spirits pro-
vide information based on the PCs’ number of successes,
as shown below.

0–1 Successes: This place is the Proving Grounds, a test-
ing place for worshipers of the demon lord Baphomet. You must
find four items: a knife, a mask, a bell, and a book. You must
place each of these items on one of four circles of runes found in
this complex. The items must be placed on the runes at the exact
same time.
2–3 Successes: Three of the items are held within chambers
built to test Baphomet’s worshipers. You can find these chambers
to the north, west, and south of where we now stand, through
these eastern double doors and then through another set of
double doors that leads to the west.
4–5 Successes: The fourth item, the book, is on an altar in
a small shrine to the east.
6–7 Successes: To the east of the Proving Grounds is the
inner sanctum. Its door opens only when the proper ceremony is
completed. The items used for the ceremony disappear if you try
to remove them from the Well of Demons, and upon completion
of the ceremony, they return to their former locations.
8–9 Successes: Completing this ceremony summons the
terrible Guardian and activates several traps in the area. The
Guardian is a green dragon imprisoned here. It can swoop past
its prey and attack. It emerges from a great pit in the center of
the complex.
10–11 Successes: Each of the chambers in this complex
has a magical trap designed to harass intruders. The central
corridor is the fastest way to move around, but it also has its
own trap: a crushing sphere of magical force that rolls along its
length.
12 Successes: There is a treasure hidden in the complex. It
is hidden beneath the altar in the chamber south of here.

This message was last edited by the GM at 03:56, Wed 20 Nov 2013.

Callie is unsure why the wizard insulting the team's intelligence bothers her so much. But far be it from her to interrupt the ones who are being useful.

Dido patiently waits for all the information, thanks the spirits and proceeds.

Some time after Callie sees the spirits leave and is in another room, Callie says, "Was it just me, or were those bunch a bit egotistical?"

"Tweet, they made me look subtle by comparison."  Terdisas sighs once the ghosts are gone "We will have some difficulty if the four circles are not all within yelling distance of eachother.  A shame we do not have time to simply brick over the dragon pit.  I somehow doubt offering to help the dragon escape imprisonment will work either."

  Being kind to dragons? YOU BASTARD.  Well, ones that aren't metallic themed at least.

  Elsewhere, Matt is having one of his moments of 'protection vs ongoing poison totally justified' senses going off.

Mits is pretty sure why she's offended, but she shrugs it off with a bit of mockery.

"I figure they need to grasp at anything to make themselves feel better for winding up dead.  'You aren't as smart or strong or righteous as I was when I was alive!'  Ye olde, 'Tear others down to make yourself feel bigger.'"

She nods to Terdisas.  "I was thinking the same thing.  What else I was thinking is that there may be some truth to what the dwarf was saying when he asserted this'll be the toughest challenge ever.  We've dealt with dragon, death traps, and rolling boulders before way back in the kobold lair, but we did so together.  This whole 'must be separated to activate it' business is what's got me most concerned.  Me be thinking we use ropes to drop all the artifacts into their circles from a distance.  Together."

Kitau nods her assent to this plan and scouts around.

Dido nods. "Let's do that. We'll stick together. Fight together... and live together. If we can't do it with ropes, we leave and come back with some hired help."

Callie follows a distance behind Kitau, munching on a ration.

  Superbird flaps,  "Tweet, if we had the time I'd say set up a sweet dominos array for knocking the artifacts into the circles."

  "Is everything trying to kill us getting boring for you?"   "Well nothing is trying to kill us yet, chirp."

Mits grins and thumbs-ups.

"Mittens is grateful to be in a brave and heroic team with enough sense to work together as a team."

She lowers her voice. "From the sounds of things, lack of teamwork was a contributing factor in getting the last group through here killed."

Kitau nods and begins to scout ahead out of habit but stops herself and indicates for Dido to take point.

Dido smiles at Kitau and goes to take point.

At the mention of the dead heroes, Callie looks annoyed for a moment, but then sighs as she calms herself and says, "Let's survive this, set the captives free, and call it a day."

Dido heads for the first spot (Player doesn't know where that is).

  Considering the idea is to make a setup where they can trigger things without splitting up, Terdisas sticks with the Mittens for now in case something from beyond takes offense to her being clever.  Like a demon showing up for a third time.

When the group is ready, Mittens opens the double doors to the northwest area with Mage Hand.

The door opens to reveal a 10-foot-wide room. Jet-black curtains
hang from hooks set into the ceiling, forming a wall ahead
of you.

Mittens prestidigitates a sign that reads, "Well this is new,"

Her mage hand grabs hold of the curtains to open them for the group, but she waits for the go-ahead.

Dido takes point with Kitau and whispers, "If we get bombarded... we shut the doors."

Callie nods and braces herself, readying a heal for if one of her allies drops to 0. It's happened before and she's not gonna let it happen again.

  Terdisas nods.  Pesky giant walking crossbows.  That other team of adventurers with a Mittens had it easy.  As he prepares for inevitable combat, he tries to remember how many daily attacks he has used by now.

Initiative 26

When the curtain is pulled open, the group can see into the next room.  It is bare except for some columns with mirrors on them.

The Mirrors
A set of mirrors hangs on each of the room’s square pillars.
The mirrors are reactive; when a character looks into one,
its effect activates.
Trigger: On each character’s turn, before he or she
takes any actions, locate the nearest pillar within 5
squares and have one mirror on that pillar attack the
character.
After the first round a character can close his or her
eyes to avoid the attack.
The character is considered blinded while doing so.
Appearance: The mirrors are framed in brass, with
leering, demonic faces carved along the top of each frame.
The draining mirrors cause the image of any living
creature within it to become skeletal and sickly.
The teleportation mirrors shimmer with magical
energy. They reveal the image reflected in their
counterparts.
The trapping mirrors show only darkness.

Dido looks into the room and... Voop! He vanishes.
When he spots the gnoll, he says, "What happened? Where am I?"
Shield and sword up, he's ready for the gnoll.

---

Standard: Full Defense

Callie gasps, "Dido!" and rushes to behind where he was, swiping a hand at where he was to see if he's still there if invisible. The mirror attacks her and she understands. So she puts a hand on Kitau's eyes and pulls on Mittens' robe to make her look down at her. "Don't look into the room!" she warns quickly

---

Move: Up to behind Kitau
Free: Warn friends
Standard: Full Defense.

  Terdsas's being a complete coward compared to the short people (well okay, the Tieflings are even farther back) comes in handy for him once more.

  "I will take your word for it, but what happened to Dido?"  Meanwhile Superbird says "Chirp, screw that, I'm totally looking."

 The familair for once, leaves the Sorcerer's side and flaps into the room.  And gets mirror zapped near Didi.  "Hah! This totally won't hold me-oh hi Didi and insane Gnoll."

  Outside, Terdisas facepalms.  "Oh, it teleports you to a featurless stone prison.  With an angry gnoll."

Minor: Active familiar.
Move: Bird flap.

Mits closes the curtains again.  Kitau hears Terdisas' revelation and charges through the curtains.  Poof!  She's teleported next to Dido.  When she sees Dido bracing behind his shield she remembers to not charge ahead of him.  So she readies her axes instead, eyeing the gnoll.

"FOOD!" the gnoll howls, charging Dido!

Kitau retaliates but the gnoll manages to dodge her attacks!

Callie facepalms. "...why didn't they listen?" she then closes her eyes and yells in the direction of the room. "Dido! Kitau! Superbird! If you can hear me, lemme know!"

She then turns away and opens her eyes to look at the others. "Mittens? Terdisas? This is your field of expertise. Ideas?"

---

Still full defense. She doesn't want to risk destroying a mirror and potentially trapping her allies forever.

Dido smashes the gnoll a good one and looks tougher for it! "My RATIONS won't fight back! If you yield, you may live long enough to eat!"

---

Minor: Divine Challenge
Standard: Strength from Valor v Gnoll. Hit(25)!
 dmg: 10

Gnoll HP: 84 - 10 = 74

  Terdisas sighs,  "From what I can tell so far, there is no reverse setting on the mirrors.  What is worse, the mirrors attack will happen if you even try to hit it despite blocking it from view.  Fortunately, Dido has convinced the starving Gnoll that rations are better for it's hunger than getting it's teeth removed with a hammer.  So for the moment, he is going to be okay if bored."

  Terdisas rolls a 19 trillion on common sense.  "Unless you want to valiantly dive face first at the mirror so you can keep Dido and Kitau Company, we should go back, loot as many clothes and curtains an assorted objects as possible.  Drape them over ourselves like spooky ghosts, and take our time covering up the pillars in a way they can't do anything about."
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:41, Fri 07 Feb 2014.

"The place was made by Minotaurs," Damakos puts forward, "Likely smashing things is the only solution."

"Perhaps," Mittens answers, "But it wouldn't be much of a challenge for Minotaurs if that's the solution.  I noticed Callie wasn't attacked until she got closer.  And the mirrors further in the room look different from the one that attacked me.  I'm guessing this is a puzzle meant to test the minds of the disciples of Baphomet.  Ter's on the right track.  These curtains should do nicely for covering up mirrors.  But I want to test a theory.  Step back, please, Callie."

She stands where Callie was originally.  When Callie gets back she uses mage hand to budge the curtain open just enough that she can see the mirror.

"Theory confirmed.  They have an effective range of 25 feet."