Standing his ground, Raznik watches the giant rise from the dead. With a swing of his arm, he lets forth a bullet from his sling, and reloads. Meanwhile the elemental watches the enormous creature rise before it, impassively. It swings its great fists, aiming to take out the legs of the great beast, before taking a step backwards.

Raznik fires a sling bullet at the Blue Eyed Devil and reloads.

16:58, Today: Raznik Tayn rolled 20,5 using d20+6,d4+2. Sling vs BED.

Elemental attempts to trip Blaith, provoking an AoO, then 5' steps to H7.

17:00, Today: Raznik Tayn rolled 12 using 1d20+9. Trip vs Blaith.

Shambling to its feet, the skeleton that had its eye on Renard moves in to threaten the oracle, attempting to get itself back together before attacking. The other on has no such reservations. With a battle boar in front of him seeming a little threat, the fire of the kobold burning his back and his master seemed to be more of the real problem. Turning his back on Kilgur, he takes both his swords and thrusts them at Skraag's back. Having decent reflexes though, the sorcerer notices the movement behind him and is able to twist out of the way of one of them though the second makes contact and enters his side! The final archer still standing once again makes his way up the incline and fires off a quick arrow that takes Solomon unaware and embeds itself shallowly in his leg though the paladin rips it out easily enough.

Skraag, doing his best to shake off the hit, mutters the line in Draconic again and manages to release another wave of superheated flames at the enemies before him. The unlucky archer who had just moved up to take advantage of Solomon is instantly fried along with the remains of the two cultists. The Blue Eyes Devil takes the blast head on once again but the flames seem to bend around Blaith's form for the most part, only slightly charring the giant skeletal frame. Luckily, he doesn't incur the wrath of the enemies who surround him as he does so even though his aura of flames continues to lick at their bones. To make matters even worse for his enemies, his fiery sphere rolls back underneath the nobleman at his command to continue it's damage.

Renard takes a step back from his aggressor towards Kuldar and lays a hand on the dwarf's shoulder, his hand emenating a soft green light. "Keep up the good fight, we would not have made it this far without you." "I appreciate it lad, but save yer magic for the others- now's not the time for me to be a Dwarf, right now I gotta be a Bard." In the meantime, Kilgur takes the time to try and skewer the skeleton again but comes up with nothing as it blocks his tusks with his own swords. He moves to try and flank him but misjudges the range of Skraag's aura and accidentally burns himself and Kilgur who had gotten back on his back in the process.

Out of the attacks delt him thus far, it seems Blaith takes offense to the fire the most and lashes out with both of his claws at the small kobold, each ripping large gashes out of him, leaving Skraag a bloody mess; still alive, but barely standing. To add to the effect, it seems that Blaith has kept his ability to suck the vitality out of his victims upon drawing blood.

"Why don't you and yer bird show this Undead scum what Righteous Fury really feels like?" Kuldar shouts out from the other side of the battlefield, spying the paladin suddenly free of targets. Bringing his hands fown from shielding his eyes from the heat of the flames as they just miss him and his mount, he sees Blaith is still mostly unharmed and nods. "So you still exist Blaith.  You trickster!  I will wipe you from this plain you black-snotty retch!  And your master is next! Pelor guide my hand," he finishes off in a mutter as he kicks Cho'kobo into movement and swings the giant tetsubo around twice. The first attack seems to go right through the legbone of the giant and as the second comes around, he is relieved to feel the weighty resistance as the club cracks hard into Blaith. Cho'kobo seems to have Solomon's luck rub off on him and is able to connect as well, chipping away at the place where the paladin's blow had struck with his beak.

Temnir feels like the last of his scorching rays would be well served here and now and wastes no time loosing both rays at Blaith's new host. One sears the giant's face but the other passes through it harmlessly, much to the displeasure of its caster. The earth elemental gets in on some of the action as well, using it's giant stone fists to pummel Blaith's legs, trying to trip him and make him more managable but he finds nothing but a solid resistance and his attempt is a failure. In addition, it seems the giant doesn't take too kindly to the attempt and swings a giant claw backwards, catching the elemental and gouging him badly. Meanwhile, Raznik sees the situation unfolding and quickly decides to fire off a sling bullet towards the nobleman, his guard currently down after Skraag's last attack. The attack doesn't hit but it does cause the man to backpedal clumsily and lose his footing, falling to the ground where the flaming sphere is more than happy to keep him warm.

With that last attack, the visage of the Blue Eyed Devil begins to...distort is the best word to describe it. His face turns from the contortion of pain to one of amusement, pleasure even. Then the cackling laughter begins; the laughter that drows out all the other noise in the room. "GOOD! EXCELLENT! You have exceeded all expectations and passed all bars set for you! I very much look forward to meeting you in person! I expect that day will be entertaining indeed! But for now, show the rest of my minions that you are worthy to do so!" As what apparently has been revealed as a mirror image of the nobleman begins to fade from view into wispy nothingness, bony hands shoot from the ground all around as a new host of skeletons leave their resting places and set their eyes on the group.


Initiative Order
25 Skeletons
22 Skraag
20 Cultists
20 Solomon & Cho'kobo
19 Raznik
15 Renard
13 Giant Skeleton / Blaith's Allip
11 Kuldar
10 The Blue Eyed Devil
  6 Temnir
  2 Kilgur

Overall Party Status (Cumulative)
Cho'kobo: Full HP
Kilgur: -6 HP
Kuldar: -6 HP + -5 STR
Raznik: Full HP
- Medium Earth Elemental: -14 HP
Renard: Full HP + -3 STR
Skraag: -48 HP + -3 STR + -6 WIS
Solomon: -8 HP + -4 STR
Temnir: Full HP

This message was last edited by the GM at 12:11, Sun 04 Nov 2012.

Almost out on his feet Skraag tries to get away from the big skeleton, trusting his fire aura to protect him from the smaller ones as he heads towards the cavern wall. He draws his wand as he moves, then braces against the wall. If anything dangerous approaches him, he will breath fire on it, otherwise he will try to heal himself with his wand.

OOC:
Initiative: 22

Current/Max HP: 2/50
Current AC: 21
 - Touch: 16
 - Flat-Footed: 17
CMD: 17

Target: Any undead trying to attack him.

Rolls:
09:09, Today: Skraag rolled 3 using 1d8+1. Wand-Cure Light.
or
09:08, Today: Skraag rolled 9 using 2d6+3. Fire Breath.


Buffs: (Bonuses from spells, abilities, etc.)
        3/7 Rnds, 2d6+3 Fire damage to anyone adjacent
        4/7 Rnds, 3d6+3 Flaming Sphere
Debuffs: (Ailments from spells, abilities, etc.)

Actions:
 - Full-Round:
 - Standard:
 - Move: to G-8
 - Free:
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:27, Fri 09 Nov 2012.

No prayers were whispered by Solomon this time.  No, instead he let out a battle cry as he was over come with a magical barbarian-like rage.  His swings were more wild.   His only intent seemed to be on smashing the giant Blaith animated skeleton to dust.  For the moment he seemed oblivious to the rising dead around him.  One of his swings was aimed high, for the skeleton's jaw.  He felt if he had to hear the screeching voice of Blaith once more he was going to snap.

Even Cho'kobo let out a mighting honk that reverberated around the cold stone cave walls.  His head thrashed about as if annoyed by the fact that Solomon rode atop him.  Luckily, Solomon still held the reins with one hand and jerked the bird into action.  Once more the bird took out its frustration on the skeletal form in front of it.

Once again forgot to add in my smite bonuses.  So figures below are correct after modifing the die rolls.
11:00, Today: Solomon rolled 4 using 1d6. fire damage 2.
11:00, Today: Solomon rolled 19 using 1d10+14. damage 2.
10:59, Today: Solomon rolled 18 using 1d20+9. attack 2.

10:59, Today: Solomon rolled 4 using 1d6. fire damage.
10:59, Today: Solomon rolled 17 using 1d10+14. damage 1.
10:58, Today: Solomon rolled 27 using 1d20+14. solomon attack 1.

10:58, Today: Solomon rolled 16 using 2d6+9. cho'kobo damage.
10:57, Today: Solomon rolled 22 using 1d20+11. cho'kobo attack.

Frustrated by his inability to get close to Skraag to properly heal the little devil Renard opts to channel healing energy again, all the while looking for an opening to move in and take away some of the fatigue sapping he and his allies, "I can only provide this sort of healing twice more," here he is obviously referring to the soft golden light that is stitching together his allies' wounds, "I must save it for a dire situation, but I can still heal you if you can get near me!"

AC 20 (22 vs. Evil)
Touch 15 (17)
FF 17 (19)

Free Action: Speak
Move Action: Ready to move if approached by enemy.  If so will attempt to move away to stay within 30 feet of most allies.
Standard Action: Channel healing (Roll:
02:11, Today: Renard Waywynd rolled 15 using 4d6. Channel Energy - healing. )

Spells Per Day:
1: 7/7
2: 4/7
3: 0/5

Channel Energy:
2/4

Energy Body/Rounds:
4/7

Protection from Evil:
66/70
(+2 AC, +2 on saves, Will negates DC 16)

With the Blue Eyed Devil now gone, the remaining skeletons close in, unrestrained. Arrows fly, swords bounce off steel and bite into flesh as one of the ones attacking Solomon gets a lucky strike in on the paladin, and the two remaining black skeletons redouble their assaults on their imprinted targets. The one fighting Kuldar lands what would have been a devastating blow if it were not for the foresight of protecting himself against the evil that permeated these creatures' existence. Nevertheless, the blade bites into his leg and the accompanying draining of power is fully felt. Renard finds himself in exactly the same situation; a deadly blow blocked partially by the protective magics at play.

After the massive claw attacks Skraag took from Blaith, the kobold slowly limps away from the hulking skeleton, removing a wand from his pack and activating it. The meager healing it provides doesn't do much to stop the bleeding but it's a start. Solomon and Cho'Kobo, the induced rage still overtaking them, both let out roaring battle cries and throw out a flurry of powered attacks. Solomon's tetsubo flails wildly at Blaith's jaw, and Cho'Kobo uses its powerful beak as a spear but all of the attacks seem to pass through the skeletal monstrosity, rather than connect with him. The attacks do have on positive outcome though, at least for Skraag, as Blaith turns to the holy warrior instead, seeing the threat he posed.

Before the giant could get his attack in though, Raznik's elemental threw forth a flurry of blows of his own, landing a hit this time with a loud cracking sound. Raznik chimed in with a bullet from his sling but it ended up being a bit off target and again clattered quietly off of the back wall. Renard also quickly moved away from his aggressor while trying to keep his allies within range as he once again channels his holy light to heal those who have been injured, namely Skraag. "I can only provide this sort of healing twice more, I must save it for a dire situation, but I can still heal you if you can get near me!" Now within range, Renard readies himself to tend to his wounds, even as the flames from the smallest party member's aura burn him slightly.

Dangerous! This one is most dangerous! Must end it! YES! Must end it quickly!" Blaith rambles as he draws back first one claw, and then the other, and delivers a devastating dual of blows that nearly knock the rider off of his mount, leaving him gasping for breath as his armor is caved in in several places, complete gashes in the metal in others.

Meanwhile, Kuldar kicks Kilgur out of the fiery aura while still keeping tabs on the skeleton nearest to him. "Do not let it best you! Ya have the power of righteousness on yer side and cannot be defeated by the likes of it!" The words, specifically meant for Solomon, inspire courage once again into everyone, Kilgur included, who deals the final blow to the annoyance that had been slowly draining his master's strength with each blow. "Back OFF!" Temnir yells as fire explodes from his outstretched hands, charring the two closest skeletal soldiers instantly. The immediate threat to his wellbeing taken care of, Temnir ignores the nearby archer and turns towards Blaith. "Focus your efforts on Blaith! He must be brought down NOW!"


Initiative Order
25 Skeletons
22 Skraag
20 Cultists
20 Solomon & Cho'kobo
19 Raznik
15 Renard
13 Giant Skeleton / Blaith's Allip
11 Kuldar
10 The Blue Eyed Devil
  6 Temnir
  2 Kilgur

Overall Party Status (Cumulative)
Cho'kobo: Full HP
Kilgur: Full HP
Kuldar: Full HP + -8 STR
Raznik: Full HP
- Medium Earth Elemental: Full HP
Renard: Full HP + -6 STR
Skraag: -30 HP + -3 STR + -6 WIS
Solomon: -34 HP + -4 STR + -5 WIS (Armor gains the broken condition)
Temnir: Full HP

Skraag takes another step back away from the large skeleton. Feeling a bit better from the healing he's received, he concentrates and rolls his flaming sphere from where the blue eyed creature was to bounce against the big skeletons
legs.



OOC:
Initiative: 22

Current/Max HP: 2/50
Current AC: 21
 - Touch: 16
 - Flat-Footed: 17
CMD: 17

Target: Any undead trying to attack him.

Rolls:

00:13, Today: Skraag rolled 16 using 3d6+3. Sphere Damage.


Buffs: (Bonuses from spells, abilities, etc.)
        2/7 Rnds, 2d6+3 Fire damage to anyone adjacent
        3/7 Rnds, 3d6+3 Flaming Sphere
Debuffs: (Ailments from spells, abilities, etc.)

Actions:
 - Full-Round:
 - Standard: Concentration to move Sphere
 - Move: to F-9
 - Free: Dismiss Flame Aura? (If free)

Finding himself briefly enveloped in fire was a bit surprising but he goes to work nonetheless, reaching out to the heavily injured dragon as he weaves the magic for a cure moderate wounds spell.  This battle was taking it's toll on his daily available spells.

AC 20 (22 vs. Evil)
Touch 15 (17)
FF 17 (19)

Free Action:
Move Action: Ready to move if enemies approach.
Standard Action: Cast cure moderate wounds on Skraag (Roll: 21:37, Today: Renard Waywynd rolled 18 using 2d8+7. Cure Moderate Wounds.)

Spells Per Day:
1: 7/7
2: 3/7
3: 0/5

Channel Energy:
2/4

Energy Body/Rounds:
4/7

Protection from Evil:
65/70
(+2 AC, +2 on saves, Will negates DC 16)
This message was last edited by the player at 18:10, Fri 09 Nov 2012.

Cho'kobo snapped once more at Blaith's legs.  He then noticed the uncomfortable closeness of the other skeletons.  Without waiting for a signal from Solomon he back peddled a few steps to the right.

The pain of the last attack was obvious.  For a moment Solomon slumped in the saddle trying to regain his composure.  He felt the sticky wetness of blood between his skin and his golden armor.  He felt the firey pain the claws left as they raked his flesh.  He was even short of breath from where the dented armor pressed painfully against his ribs.

The frustration of his attacks passing through Blaith without effects caused him to grit his teeth.  He fought to dispell the rage that clouded his mind.  His situation was dire and he indeed did need a clearer head.  With his head hung low he slowly looked around him, seeing that he was surrounded by the undead.

Solomon would need all of Pelor, not just his thumb.  Rather than raise the tetsubo, he raised his small unassuming pendant and let loose another golden blast of positive energy.

Cancels the Rage spell.  Channel Possitive Energy damage = 16, Will DC17 for half (23 damage for blaith thanks to smite).  AC vs Blaith back to an additional +4.

Cho'kobo takes 5 foot step to the right.
06:14, Today: Solomon rolled 12 using 2d6+7. cho'kobo damage.
06:13, Today: Solomon rolled 28 using 1d20+11. Cho'kobo attack.

Kuldar took a deep breath before once again attempting to dive from his saddle in a hurry- to no avail, likely for the best as he quickly realizes he'd barely be able to walk if it weren't for Kilgur right about now. "Alright lads! Press the attack!" He calls out as he guides his mount closer, hand alight with a warm soothing light that was aiming to decimate a section of this blasted monstrosity.

Free: Attempt fast dismount(fail)
Standard: Cast Cure Moderate Wounds(defensively)

Kilgur
Move: Move to H9(AoO from Blaith)
Standard: Gore Blaith

23:20, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 11 using 1d20+6. Fast Dismount(DC 20).
23:24, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 11 using 1d20+8. Defensive Casting(DC17). FFFFFFF-
23:25, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 6 using 2d4. Gallant Inspiration(?).
So...concentration used to be a skill...is that good enough? If not then I lost my spell and still provoke an AoO for moving.

23:28, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 12,13 using d20+8,2d8+8. CMW(flank/touch/Inspire +2) vs Blaith.
Will DC 14 halves, though if Gallant Inspiration doesn't apply then this technically never happened.

23:26, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 16,19 using d20+12,d8+18. Kilgur Gore(flank) vs Blaith.

Skeletons continue to swing away at Solomon and Cho'Kobo but their weak attacks do nothing but bounce off armor and are batted away by a still somewhat angry axebeak. The archers likewise let off another volley, one arrow catching Temnir once again in the shoulder. "Son of a-" he starts, turning to cast a spell only to be cut off by a roar from Blaith. Turning, a vexed look on his face, he ignores the archer to help bring Blaith down and save his comrades from another one of his impossibly strong attacks.

Meanwhile, it seems some of the nastier skeletons have taken a liking to Raznik and the final black skeleton gets both his short swords to slash the man's arms as he brings them up to defend from the attacks. Staggering back a step, his mind racing for a spell to use to counteract his predicament, he quickly dismisses the current earth elemental from it's assault on Blaith and summons a new one directly in front of him that proceeds to flatten the first skeleton with his giant stone fist and slam his other fist sideways into the black skeleton, sending it flying across the room to bounce off the wall.

His aura of flames still burning, Skraag limps back through the ranks of allies. Noticing now that his aura of flames had been burning friend and foe alike, he dismisses it with a wave of a scaly hand to keep the others from any further damage. After Renard's healing, he feels well enough to take a moment to mentally move the flaming sphere under Blaith and allow it to char the bones a bit though it sees that, at least for the moment, the spell seems to pass through the bones.

"Alright lads! Press the attack!" Kuldar calls out gallantly as he dismounts Kilgur and they both charge Blaith. Solomon, Cho'kobo, and Temnir nod and ready their attacks. Renard throws a quick healing spell on Skraag which earns him the ire of Blaith as he catches a claw in the side, an absolutely crushing blow that the oracle didn't even see coming. The force is so great, it lifts him off his feet and sends him sprawling to the ground a few feet away near Temnir's feet, his spell lost. Quickly stepping in between Renard and Blaith, Temnir looks partially over his shoulder, "Are you ok?!" as he casts his last scorching ray, both landing and charring off a handful of ribs.

As the Dwarf and war boar charge in, their fates are similar, Kuldar being knocked to the ground, the spell on his hands lost to the pain that rips across his abdomen and spiraling to the ground and Kilgur earning a giant laceration to the back which results in an ear piercing squeal of pain from the animal. Rather than run though, he becomes enraged and his tusks drive firmly into a leg bone and twist, snapping it completely in half.

Cho'Kobo snaps out at Blaith's good leg as well and lives up to his existence as an axebeak and cleanly shears the leg off at the knee, sending blaith partially to the ground, propped up by one hand while the other flails at the paladin and mount. Even though his sight was somewhat dimmed and the blood loss was significant, Solomon manages to pull himself together long enough to duck under the attack, pressing himself close to Cho'Kobo's neck, before raising up and locking eyes with the monstrosity who seemed to know what was coming next.

In an unexpected moment of clarity, Blaith speaks without babbling, "You can't win." Grabbing his pendant, Solomon raises a bloodied hand in the air towards Pelor and intones in a deadly calm voice, "We shall see," before the holy light rockets through the mine ceiling with the full blessing of the sun god, an actual hole to the surface melting away reveling the noon sun above them hundreds of feet up. The channeling is much more powerful that ever before, filling the entire room with a blinding white light. The last thing the group sees of the monstrosity is his form superheating to a golden color and exploding into ash.

As the light fades and the dust settles, in the back of the room where the dead robed man's body lies, there hangs a glowing white and gold image of a man with his head hanging down. He doesn't move for what feels like hours as the silence in the room seems to permeate everyone even as all eyes are drawn to him. Finally, as he raises his head, Blaith smiles, "Thank you." As the image begins to fade, he floats over to Solomon and reaches out one finger to touch the man's brow. The paladin's eyes roll back up in his head slightly and he slumps forward into Cho'kobo's saddle. and Blaith disappears, allowed to rest in peace.

---

Somewhere in the far distance, a man cloaked in torn clothing slowly comes out of his concentration, eyes still closed, and lets out an icy sigh as the downpour of rain bounces off his head. He stands, grabbing his staff from the ground beside him, using it to bring him to his feet. Turning north, he mumbles something under his breath, "Soon," he says, a wicked smile on his voice as he opens his eyes, the cold blue pupils gleaming as lightning strikes above the city below.

(OOC: Story points all around gentlemen! Amazing final push there, I'm really pleased with how that whole battle went down and that means that you are officially done with the Heldenburg Coal Mine! XP will be up shortly as soon as I figure out how many of those skeletons you killed (hint, there were a lot!) and I know most of you will be leveling from it so plan accordingly and we'll get the group on their way to their next adventure!)


Initiative Order
25 Skeletons
22 Skraag
20 Cultists
20 Solomon & Cho'kobo
19 Raznik
15 Renard
13 Giant Skeleton / Blaith's Allip
11 Kuldar
10 The Blue Eyed Devil
  6 Temnir
  2 Kilgur

Overall Party Status (Cumulative)
Cho'kobo: Full HP
Kilgur: -16 HP + -2 WIS
Kuldar: -19 HP + -8 STR + -2 WIS
Raznik: -7 HP + -6 STR
- Medium Earth Elemental: Full HP
Renard: -36 HP + -6 STR + -4 WIS
Skraag: -30 HP + -3 STR + -6 WIS
Solomon: -34 HP + -4 STR + -5 WIS (Armor gains the broken condition)
Temnir: -6 HP

Solomon clasped his head with one hands as he looked around trying to regather his thoughts.  Had the undead truly been defeated?  Or was this some trick of the mind?  He looked towards his companions to see who was still standing and who wasn't.

He slowly lowered himself from the back of Cho'kobo and let out a gasp.  The dented armor pressed painfully on, what he believed to be, a cracked rib.  He passed a hand over a bird-shaped marking on the armor and it magically folded back up into a pendant, only this time, with a crunching snapping sound.  He winced, knowing that wasn't good.  He would have to get that repaired as soon as possible.

He then looked over Cho'kobo, but his feathered companion seemed to have escaped any serious harm.

Unconcerned with the deep gashes in his back he looked to see if anyone was in more dire healing than himself.  Most of his power was exhausted in the last channeling, but he believed he had just enough of Pelor's light for one more healing touch.

"How do you fair, lads?"

Solomon suddenly felt exhausted.  The touch of the undead weakened him beyond simple fatigue.  Still, he pushed on...

"Why has the world gone sideways?" says Renard as he stares up at the ceiling, dazed from the massive blow he received from the monstrous Blaith.  It takes a few moments before he sits up, "Oh... Everyone alive?  I'd ask who needs healing but.."  He groans a bit as he gets to his feet, one hand pressed against the gashes on his side.  He shuffles towards the center of the group and channels more healing energy to close the worst of their wounds.


11:07, Today: Renard Waywynd rolled 18 using 4d6. Channel Energy - healing.

Dismissing his elemental and plopping to the ground, clutching his head, Raznik shoots Renard a thumbs up to let him know he's alive and well. The channel certainly helped. "A bit weak on my feet but I'll live," he says through a groan as he flops backward onto his back and let's out a relieved sigh.

While others of the group may look relieved or feel victorious, the same cannot be said for Temnir. Since te end of the battle, he's since wandered over to Blaith's body which is still unceremoniously strewn on the ground. Quietly he rights te man, closes his eyes, and gives him more of a dignified pose. "He was a good man. I can't attest to being someone who makes friends well but I like to think he was one of the few. At least we were able to help him find peace." Silence overtakes the sorcerer once again for a few minutes as if stealing words he wished to say until he let out a weary sigh and turned to the others, "What now then? I suppose we gained some fragmented intel but it's not much to go by and I still don't know where my other companions are r if they could even be one of these abominations," his voice begins to get sharper with every word, a smoldering anger surfacing again as he kicks away one of the piles of bones left behind from the skeletons.

Solomon was about to use his last healing touch on Renard, but got distracted by Temnir.  Solomon walked over and placed a hand on Temnir's shoulder.  "Worry not for your other companions. Blaith's spirit has assured me that they yet live.  Through his sacrifice, he was able to ensure their safety. They escaped and are almost back to Caris in Tycosia to convene with the Grand Basílica. He warns that our path lies down a different road, however.  We have been charged by the Sun Father himself to bring an end to these dark rituals and the evil behind them, lest our world and all those we hold dear suffer the same fate as those we witnessed here today."

"Let us search this room for anything that may point us in the direction of our destinies.  I know we must all rest soon, but I would rather not do it here.  I would rather our plans not be divined by our enemies should they be using magics to spy upon us."

By the time Solomon finished speaking he had decided to use his healing upon himself first.  Afterall, his armor was now severly damaged, and he was not sure if it would even magically unfold again.  If he was to survive long enough to get to the nearest armorer he would need to heal.  After a full nights rest he could use Pelor's gifts to help heal the others.

Back to full HP.  When we have a chance to heal I'll prepare "lesser restoration" in all available slots to start fixing some of our ability damage.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:28, Wed 14 Nov 2012.

Kuldar dragged himself back toward the others using Kilgur as support as he could barely support his armor alone. "Oh lads...I know I may have been a bit enthusiastic when I first joined ya- but you've done a lot to test this Dwarf's mettle. I agree that leaving this cursed place should be a priority, I take it we could all go the rest of our days without havin' to come back here..." He shrugs and gestures over his shoulder toward Skraag. "Other then the Dragon, but he owns the place."

At Solomon's revelation, a visible weight is lifted from Temnir's shoulders, one that those who hadn't known him before he lost his companions may not have even known he carried. Closing his eyes, he lets his head tilt back and he chuckles softly, "Who'd have thought Blaith of all people," he says to himself more than anyone. Looking to Solomon now, he reaches a hand out to the palladin, "You have my thanks. All of you do for that matter. I suppose the mission laid on us now is a bit of a thankless job as it has been so far so I feel you should at least hear it from me." His moment of sentimentality passed, his eyes turn back into a visage of their former self and his sarcastic and rough atitude returns with nostalgic force, "But you don't want to sleep in here another night Solomon? I've found it to be rather cozy. And what's better than knowing someone's watching out for you while you have your eyes closed?"

Skraag looks to the others and comments to them, "For some reason I seem to have developed a real dislike of the undead. The mine is not going anywhere. I will stay with you lot if you will have me, at least until the threat to all our safety is resolved."

Beaten, bruised, and drained of their strength but victorious nevertheless, the group slowly combs the room for any clues, the obvious place to start being the table that had been blown away by Skraag's initial fireball. While the map that had been on the table was almost singed beyond recognition, there were still parts that showed that Burova was northeast on the map along the coast as well as another city to the far northwest called Delgall. It doesn't take much handling before the map crumbles apart though and becomes close to useless. Luckily, Temnir reassures the group that he knows this country, as it is indeed his place of birth, and can direct them where they need to go with little difficulty. Also on the table was a leather-bound tome that seems to be relatively in tact though a wee bit scorched along the edges. It bears a series of arcane symbols on the front of it in a circle which both Temnir and Skraag are quick to pour over and try to decipher. Upon trying to open it though, they find that in addition to there being a key required to open the tome which doesn't seem to be present in the room, any attempt they make at prying it open causes the runes to glow faintly so that method is quickly given up for fear of the repercussions.

Among the rest of the foes, various reagents are found on the cultists as well as a pair of wands that are identified as being imbued with the Animate Dead spell. They both seem to be heavily used and probably only have a handful of uses left on them. Also on the cultists are two hearty coin pouches filled with gold and platinum alike. The rest of the enemies had either broken or rusted armor and equipment or none at all with the exception of the black skeletons. Solomon took it upon himself to pile all of the black bladed weapons into a pile in one corner of the room and stood over them contemplating what to do with them. Deciding he would bring it up to the group later, he carefully wrapped them up in some cloth and brought them with him to where the group had remade their camp close to the outside of the mouth of the cave.

The next few days were largely spent licking wounds, both Solomon and Renard busy healing not only the physical, but mental damage caused by the fighting in the previous days. Temnir held a quiet and private ceremony for Blaith, burying him next to Felicia in the secluded copse of trees. The rest of the group gave their respects both to him and their fallen companion now that they had the time and spent the rest of the days planning their next move and contemplating what awaited them. The only thing they were sure about was that the rain would accompany them the whole way. Not for more than an hour in the three days did it stop raining and during that time, a massive windstorm swept through bringing with it roaring thunder and streaks of lightning ripping across the sky. It seemed that this country was in stark contrast to Tycosia, land of the sun.

On the dawn of the fourth day of rest, everybody seemed to be healed as much as they were going to be and the desire to move tugged at everyone. Those who did not expressly voice their opinion on the matter spent much of the time fidgeting, none more than Temnir who spent most of the morning pacing back and forth past his packed gear. "We've healed every scratch, cut, and bruise, every atrophied muscle, dimmed wit, and lost intellect. When will we set off? I am not anxious to allow our enemy any more time to recoup and bolster his defenses."

Kuldar had already set down his weapons and removed most of the auxiliary pieces of his armor so he didn't have to strain to raise his arms before he started talking again. "Alright lads...we know where their forces lay, anyone think we might be able to get a bit more help before we go jumping headlong into more undead?"

"Temnir, lead us to the nearest city.  My armor need repair, and we may do well to better equip ourselves for the next battle with the cursed undead.  Since we don't have a destination, perhaps we will hear news of the shadows as they spread across this land."  Solomon mounted Cho'kobo and waited for a direction.

Renard nods along as Solomon speaks, "I agree.  The more information we have the more informed of a decision we can make."  The chains around his neck rattle Jeeves' agreement.  The poltergeist has been relatively calm the last few days, but there is an air of smugness about the rattling, as if he is happy to be the only living-dead thing around.

"A city would be a good place to look for help. We would stands a much better chance than out here in the wilds certainly.", Skraag comments to the others. He is ready to leave when they are.

Asked to take them to the nearest city, the eager and impatient Temnir suddenly seem to lose his overbearing drive to get moving now that he knows where the destination is. "Oh...yes. Burova then I suppose. Capital of Derevaan." After a moment of inner dialogue, he raises his head and grabs his things from the ground, "Well it's a hell of a trek by foot but it's the closest city to us. Everything else in the area is just farms and such. Assuming we don't have to deal with an army of undead between us and the capital, it should take us roughly two weeks to arrive." With that, he turns on a heel and begins walking north and towards the coast.