Findarion ducks before the blast hits him full force, but is still singed by the flames. Seeing his party members run southwards, he looks behind them to one unexplored corridoor.

"You go, I'll check out the other passage."

08:11, Today: Secret Roll: Findarion rolled 17 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 11.  Dex save.

DM, did the razerblast explosion make a big mess on the floor?

I will have Findarion hug the wall and cast Minor Illusion/Silent Image to cover himself with a wall's illusion. If I could reliably cover up the body as well, I will do that.

The remains of the razerblast and her armor lie scattered about the corridor, and a scorch mark mars the floor and wall near where she died. Despite the loud explosion however, no Temple denizens appear to investigate. The loud clanging to the south continues.

Findarion's spell bends the light around him strangely, and his form merges into the wall behind him. He is effectively invisible, as long as he stands near the wall. Picking his way north, Findarion makes his way around the corner to a corridor heading east. The hallway is dark, with niches lining both sides of the hall. Within each niche stands a shadowy figure, perhaps intended to be a dwarf, carved from stone.

Looking down, Findarion catches a slight reflection of light near the ground. A taut wire stretches across the hallway between the two western-most niches, about five feet from where he stands.

While Findarion heads north back up the corridor, the rest of the group moves on south. As they approach the stairs, the room below comes into view.

Noise, light, and heat issue from the massive chamber. Runnels of lava flow from holes in the west wall into bronze troughs. Heat shimmers; smoke and steam rise toward the domed ceiling, escaping through vents. Another staircase rises on the far end of the room, leading to a crossing corridor.

Inside the room, a massive red-skinned form stands near four large forges, towering over the other occupants of the room and seemingly unaffected by the heat radiating from the nearby lava. Several fire-bearded and bronze-skinned dwarfs work the forges, hammering molten iron and steel. They are clearly of the same race as Greaek. At the far end of the chamber a massive flame-colored snake also works a forge, its huge body coiled so its limbs can reach high enough to work the metal. The towering red-skinned form and several other human-sized figures watch over the workers, and do not look up at the group near the top of the stairs.

Looking right, the group sees another set of stairs extends west and a corridor beyond bends to the north. In the other direction, a long passage to the east is broken at regular intervals by doors spaced about fifteen feet apart along the north and south walls. Many of the doors are secured from the outside with hasp-and-pin mechanisms.

---

Map updated!

Anyone can make an arcana check to see if you know what the large red-skinned figure or the snake are.

Findarion is concentrating on Silent Image - you should make a stealth check with advantage. There's not much hope of hiding the explosion of the razerblast, but you all think maybe the din coming from the room to the south covered up the noise?
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:42, Fri 14 June 2019.

Morg looks downstairs, and then moves into the eastern corridor where Greaek said the jail is, looking for cells.

---

Move: 10' to AO27.

13:42, Today: Morg Danforge rolled 10 using 1d20+1 with rolls of 9.  Insight check to see if the working Azer look like they're prisoners.
13:43, Today: Morg Danforge rolled 4 using 1d20+3 with rolls of 1.  Perception check to see if anyone's in the prison cells, and how easy it would be to open the doors.

As they were moving down the hallway, Jak, still feeling much the worse for wear and maybe half the man he used to be, cast a quick spell on himself, "Heal." Some more of his wounds closed over, and while he clearly still wounded, he was doing much better than he was a few moments ago.

He stepped up to peer in to the new room...a massive room with forges and strange creatures, and more of the fiery dwarves. He looked over his shoulder at the rest and asked, "Think those are the prisoners we're s'posed t'rescue, currently outta their cells t'work?" His vision swept over the giant figure and the large snake, eyes going wide.

09:17, Today: Jakrynn Redgate rolled 7 using 1d4+4 with rolls of 3.  Healing Word.
09:16, Today: Jakrynn Redgate rolled 18 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 16.  Arcana check.

Findarion sneaks back under the cover of the illusion and looks behind him first, to see if the hobgoblins and other razerblast noticed anything. Afterwards, he studies the taut wire and its surroundings before proceeding, careful not to touch anything.

23:33, Today: Secret Roll: Findarion rolled 22 using 2d20+8, dropping the lowest dice only with rolls of 14,11.  Stealth with advantage.

23:32, Today: Secret Roll: Findarion rolled 22 using 1d20+5 with rolls of 17.  Investigation.

Findarion looks behind him, back towards where the guards at the entrance to the temple. His keen elven eyes see no movement, other than a few shifting shadows between the columns before the stairs.

The rest of the group cautiously approaches the long corridor leading east, turning left just before the stairs down to the foundry.

---

Map updated!

Jak: You're able to identify the large red figure & the coiled snake as an Efreeti and a Salamander respectively. This also triggers a memory of Azers, the name for the fire-bearded dwarfs, and how Salamanders, Azers, and Efreeti all hail from the Elemental Plane of Fire. There's something about Efreeti enslaving both Azers and Salamanders, and Azers & Salamanders disliking each other, but you forget the details. I'm assuming the party all learns this one way or another - folks can make their own Arcana checks to see if they know more info than Jak shares.

You also know Salamanders are very dangerous, and Efreeti are incredibly powerful beings. But that's likely apparent to all at a glance ;)

Morg: You think the Azers and Salamanders definitely look like prisoners.

All of the doors on the cells are closed and don't have windows. The 4 western-most doors (2 on the north wall and 2 on the south) are not locked from the outside, but the rest of the doors down the corridor to the east have hasp-and-pin mechanisms on the outside & look easy to undo.

Nothing comes from the west towards Findarion. Other than the taut wire, nothing else seems amiss, and proceeding east seems safe. Make perception check(s) if you wish to look for anything else if you proceed down the eastern corridor.


This message was last edited by the GM at 22:19, Fri 14 June 2019.

Magdrak silently follows behind Morg, eventually passing him.  He listens at one of the doors, shrugging his shoulders and frowning.

---

OOC:
Move to AQ29 (25 ft)
Listen to Door at AP29
Hold Concentration on Hunter's Mark

02:52, Today: Magdrak rolled 20 using 2d20+1, dropping the highest dice only with rolls of 19,20.  Stealth Check (Disadvantage).
02:59, Today: Magdrak rolled 1 using 1d20 with rolls of 1.  Perception Roll.

Current HP: 28/40
Lay on Hands: 20/20
Current Spells:
1st: 2/3

Morg starts opening the closed doors, and stage whispers "Greaek" as he does so, gesturing any fire dwarves and elves inside to come out.

---

If the prisoners seem non-hostile to the party, Morg will hand out some of his weapons, but keeping his greatsword for himself tho.

Magdrak listens at one of the western-most doors, but can hear nothing above the din from the forge to the south.

Morg opens the first of the cells and finds a giant salamander, hissing as the door swings open.

Opening the door across the hall, he finds two azers, calmly sitting in the center of the small room. They look at each other, then one says something to Morg in a harsh language he doesn't understand, presumably Ignan. The azer's voice has a questioning tone.

Moving on to the other cells, two more salamanders hiss and spit at Morg's appearance, though none of them actively attack. He finds four more azers in the next two cells, both looking eager to leave.

Behind the final cell door, Morg finds a bedraggled high elf, clad in rags but otherwise looking in fair health. "Are you one of those fire cult bastards?" he asks in a raspy voice.

As Morg opens the rest of the doors, the first two azers and the first salamander exit their cells, then immediately start barking at each other in Ignan.

---

Map updated!

Morg, if you decide to hand out any weapons just post who gets what. Anyone else can of course hand out weapons also.

Morg smiles and motions for the prisoners to exit the cells, saying "Greaek" to the fire dwarves.

Offering his trophy dagger's hilt to the high elf, Morg says "I am a bastard, but not with the cultists - we're here to rescue the slaves. Are you Fin's brother?"

As he hears the barking prisoners, he walks out into the hallway standing between the snake people and the fire beards, handing out weapons: his war pick, warhammer, one spear, one handaxe, and a mining pick to azer; and a handaxe and a normal hammer to the salamanders.

The elf accepts the weapon from Morg, holding it awkwardly with three fingers, point down.

"Fin? Findarion? Did that lout send you?" The elf pauses, perhaps realizing how ungrateful that sounded. "Yes, I am Merellien Aur'aver," the elf says in a slightly less condescending tone. He gathers himself and stands up slightly taller and straighter than before. "Will you all be escorting me out of here then?"

The salamanders and azers continue to eye each other askance as they start gathering in the now cramped corridor, but they all accept the weapons proffered from the dwarf readily.

When the weapons were all handed out, the whole group looks at each other awkwardly for a beat, and looks to Morg and the others to see what they will do next.

Jak watched the two dwarves opening cell doors, sometimes repeating the Azer's name to the entities inside. Then some of them started to leave their cells. More Azers. More Salamanders. Lots of talking in a hissing tongue he didn't understand. He raised an eyebrow. "Any of ya speak Common?"

He expected not, but it didn't hurt to ask. Once Findarion's brother had been found and released, Jak gave a nod. "Alright then. Off we all go I guess." He turned and headed back the way they'd come, shaking his head a bit.

Magdrak walks along with Morg as he begins to free the prisoners.  He looks around at the ragtag group gathered, and frowns.  He hisses a question.  "Where IS Fin?  I thought he was right behind us!"  He eyes the salamanders and azers with equal hesitance, then sighs.  "Those Fire Dwarves and those ... whatever they are... do not seem to be particularly friendly.  I hope we are not in over our heads releasing them all."

---

Movement to BG29

Current HP: 28/40
Lay on Hands: 20/20
Current Spells:
1st: 2/3
This message was last edited by the player at 05:02, Tue 18 June 2019.

"Aye, we'll try to help get you out of here." Morg says to Merellien.

To Magdrak he says "Here's hoping they're angrier at their enslavers than each other. I don't know if they want to get to ground level - in which case we could try to organize for them to attack the hobgoblins and the other exploding thing from this side after we've passed; or if they want to find some portal to the plane of fire by going down."

---

Waiting to hear if any of the prisoners speak Common.

Taking cover in his illusion, Findarion grabs a mundane dagger and flings it at the rope in hopes that whatever trap it springs would prove a good distraction for the guards.

13:59, Today: Secret Roll: Findarion rolled 9 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 3.  Attack with dagger.

Jak makes his way out of the crowded prison corridor, and begins retracing their steps back north.

Merellien nods wearily, half in relief, half expecting the answer. "Lead on then," he says, waving the dagger loosely in the direction of opposite end of the corridor.

The salamanders and azers both look dumbfounded at the group speaking Common to each other, though several of the azers look up at Morg each time he speaks Greaek's name. As the party seems to be ready to move out, they quiet down and look hesitantly towards the sounds of the forge.

Findarion's dagger sticks upright in between two ancient flagstones. The quivering handle vibrates the translucent wire strung across the corridor. Out of the corner of his eye, Findarion sees a flicker of movement. Did the greataxe held by the nearby stone dwarf statue twitch?

---

Map updated!

"Shall we go back up, and have them follow us at a distance?" Morg asks Magdrak, Asano, and Wiglaf.

"We could try to act like we belong here, and take Fin's brother with us as if he's a prisoner - past the hobgoblins. Once past, the fire dwarves and salamanders could attack from the east side while we attack from the west. The forge noise probably won't alert the big efreeti, tho if it shows up we could just make a run for it."

Jak kept a weather eye out for Findarion, since the jerk elf had left them to go do....something....while the rest of the group went and rescued HIS BROTHER!! The whole reason they even ENTERED the tower. Well...that wasn't entirely true. Jak would have wanted to enter the tower anyway but could have persuaded otherwise by the group if not for the imprisoned brother of Findarion.

He smirked and shook his head. Sounded like something he would do. He moved northward more to see if he could find the missing elf.

The group starts to move cautiously back the way they came, up the north facing corridor. No movement stirs as they round the corner to the right - no temple-dwellers, yet also no sign of Findarion.

Behind them both the azers and salamanders follow until they reach the top of the stairs. As they gaze down upon the foundry, suddenly both groups erupt into shouts in the harsh Ignan tongue. Answering shouts erupt from below, and suddenly the clamor of metal on metal is replaced by steel on steel as the group of freed prisoners attack their slavers. The noise to the south is deafening as fiery blazes detonate and echo off stone walls.

"This isn't much of a rescue," Merellien declaims pompously as he glances dubiously around at the remaining group.

---

Map updated!

How many people could fit behind my silent image?

Morg starts running north. "We could tell the hobgoblins and the other Razerblast that some prisoners escaped, and point them to the forge while we go up!?"

"Pst!" The elf's head suddenly sticks out of the wall, revealing his illusion to people present. "Get in here, Mer! Jak, try to see if you can draw out the guards, tell them there's an uprising!"

Magdrak watches the battle below and nods.  "I would rather not get in the middle of that battle, and I would rather not go up against another giant fire creature right now.  We did not fare well against the last one, or at least I did not.  We should go see if we can distract the other razerblast with a report.  Claim that the first was killed in the uprising.  Hopefully that should allow us to sneak by."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:50, Mon 01 July 2019.

"I think our best bet is to remove the guards behind us and free as many azer are in these cells," Asano says, his voice dazed and his gaze still fixed on the approximate location of the ferretti. "That overseer in there is far beyond us. So far beyond, Jak couldn't even make this farce amusing. Once they're free, they can take any tack they choose, but we cannot take that ifrit. And if that's not the master of this cult...I, it does not bear contemplating. Master Findarion," he pauses looking for the elf before settling on speaking in the direction of the silent image. "Do you think you can open the cells? Does your brother share your particular skillset?"

"Actually, I think we already freed all the prisoners.  Unless there is another set of cells elsewhere."