Hester tries to read the runes, then asks whether anyone else can read them.
OOC: how does linguistics work?

OOC: You can roll Linguistics if you want, but it's a hard DC to decipher a completely foreign language.

Bristle felt a bit of pride for her burning skeletons and their aid in the quick dispatchal of the undead werewolf. If they had the capacity for thought or emotion, she would have told them as much out loud. But instead she ordered them to back off once the werewolf was thoroughly crispy and proceeded to the next area with everyone else. Which is where they found the altar.

"It is Abyssal," Bristle replied to Hester. "Prayers to the demon lord Jezelda - the lord of evil werewolves. Apparently this is a sacrificial altar to her." Bristle looked carefully at the altar to see if she could determine anything more about it's presence here. Especially in relation to the undead werewolf they had just slain, or the haunt. She bestowed a bit of Divine Guidance on herself to try and help jog her memory.

---

Religion roll, with Guidance:
18:41, Today: Bristle Chonk rolled 24 using 1d20+12.  Knowledge: Religion - altar's relevance/connection to events.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:42, Fri 03 Apr 2020.

"Abyssal huh, makes sense. Looked Fiendish to me anyway." Caleb says as he looks around, distinctly uncomfortable with what he's stumbled into.
"So, what do you all think of this? I'm thinking now that maybe we've got a necromancer who moved in recently, and she's been bringing people in to be sacrifices. She might not be here though, this blood isn't fresh, a couple weeks old at least. Then again, that might be because she hasn't had anything worth sacrificing for a while, so let's keep moving slowly." Caleb waits for the others to finish looking around if they want before heading out and down the other passage, eyes peeled for anything that even resembles a trap.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
19:33, Today: Caleb Miller rolled 40 using 1d20+20.  stealth roll.

19:34, Today: Caleb Miller rolled 22 using 1d20+12.  perception.

19:35, Today: Caleb Miller rolled 25 using 1d20+17.  Preemptive disable device.

---

"Abyssal", muses Jester as she squints at the runes. "Don't think I've seen that before... evil werewolves".

OOC can't copy and paste but she tries to take in the script for future reference. Rolls 15

Having failed to respond to the werewolves attack, Hannah follows the others, not especially sure how helpful she can be.

Bristle feels confident that the altar is related. This demon is mostly worshiped by evil werewolves, so perhaps the undead werewolf was one of her followers, if she had a cult here. It looks like a sacrificial altar used for blood sacrifice, and such actions certainly have a tendency to leave metaphysical stains on the world.

Meanwhile, those continuing down the passageway find that there are numerous cracks in the stone floor. Far below, in the dark, you can hear...rushing water. An underground river, it would appear, some sixty feet down. Crossing over the water are multiple arches of stone, natural bridges of some sort, criss-crossing the river. The water looks dark, and fast, and cold.

Bristle's claws flexed for a moment before she forcefully willed them back into a more relaxed state. She mumbled some self-encouragement to herself in Necril, took a deep breath, and looked to her companions. In the Common tongue, she said, "Steel your minds, friends. That girl spoke to me again. Annabelle, was it? Along with something... else. I felt one or both attempt to influence me for their own purposes..." The look on Bristle's made it clear that she took grave offence to someone trying to control her in such a way.

Hester nods and her expression turns all fierce while the muscles in her shoulders tense.

"Well there is just no end to how much worse this job can get, is there?" Caleb said in response to Bristle's news before returning his focus to the river and its bridges.
"I can't see so well in the dark, but I can tell enough to know that falling in that water is probably a death sentence. Can any of you see a relatively safe way through, because the best I can figure, we'd have to make a jump at some point, and I do not envy any of our chances of reliably making it across without going for a swim."

"I am also leery of the water," Bristle added. "Especially since my personal version of the dream we were all gifted involved me drowning. But I do have rope, so we can tie it around peoples' waists as they attempt crossings. If they fall, the rest of us can catch them." Bristle didn't mention that she would likely be someone who needed catching. Especially if she left on her fullplate armor.

Arell follows along with the group, quietly mulling over the alter.  Abadar was a god of civilization, so he didn't have much sway in caves and natural places.  But alters to evil werewolves were bad news period, so somewhere in the recesses of rituals, Abadar must have SOME method for wiping that place from the face of the earth.

Meanwhile, the task at hand beckoned.

"There are two paths.  Maybe there's a way that's not so damp."


OOC:

22:05, Today: Arell Kirkwood rolled 20 using 1d20+8.  Knowledge Religion purify the alter.

Hester moves along with the others but eventually the thought in her head pops out of her mouth.  "What DID they do to Annabelle, I wonder?" she muses, addressing her question to nobody in particular.

Arell clearly sees that the most effective way to remove the awfulness of the altar is also the most obvious - clean away the runes, remove the unholy tools of sacrifice and symbols of demons, and if possible destroy the slab itself. Purification.

"Rope might be a good idea, we could tie it to a sturdy stalagmite and use that. You can save yours though, I got this one." While speaking, Caleb tugged on a loose thread of the ratty looking robe, which somehow became a length of sturdy looking rope. He kept going for a minute or two, amassing quite the length of rope before beginning to knot it, all the better for climbing.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
Using robe of infinite twine to produce ten feet of hemp rope per turn, continuing for two minutes for 200 feet of rope. I'm pretty sure there's no check to make good knots for climbing the rope, but feel free to correct me.

---

In the few moments as Caleb works on a way forward, Arell starts desecrating the Alter site.  He digs in his pack for his Ioun torch and any-tool--turning the device into a pick-ax--and begins smashing the unholy sigils to rubble.  Once done with that he gathers up the old tools into his haversack (careful not to touch them with bare hands) to be disposed of later.

Once the secondary concerns are dealt with, he turns his attention to the alter itself--and draws his greatsword...

OOC: pausing here in case my house-cleaning has negative effects

Next post I intend to break the alter with evil-smiting paladin-ness.  Will that require a roll of any sort?

There's a sense of a weight lightening as Arell desecrates the altar. A feeling of a burden you weren't even aware of being lifted. There's no reprisal of any kind, though at the same time, there is a faint sense of malice directed his way.

Strength check to break it or a sunder attempt - but if you actually use smite evil, that's enough to pass.

Bristle winced when Arell started destroying the alter site. She would have liked to study it and see if she could learn anything about the magics involved here, but that desire was unrelated to their current goals. She knew that Arell's actions were the correct move, as much as she loathed to admit it. Eventually, the changeling took out her own any-tool and helped him take the space apart.

In the end she didn't feel too bad about it, considering the area was helping fuel whoever had tried to control her. But when Arell went for the final smash, Bristle put some distance between herself and the smite-area and went to go check on how the ropes were coming along.

Arell utters a prayer over his sword, calling on the lawmaker to rectify this travesty.

He raises his sword high and speaks in sepulcher thunder

"Be purified by the word of Abadar.  Be sanctified by his might.  Let no evil fester in this place.  Let no wickedness survive.  By Abadar, be CLEAN!"

And down goes his sword through the unholy alter, shattering it beyond recognition.  And then, almost as a final 'screw you and everything you stand for,' he pours out a vial of holy water over the rubble.

OOC: You bet your ass I'm smiting this evil.

With evil smote, Hester started checking for secret doors to try to avoid the water or perhaps an easier way to cross it.

The stone breaks in half with a sound more suited to cracking glass than a slab of stone. As it does, the feeling of relief intensifies, as though some impalpable weight has been lessened.

But not removed, and it remains a grim, foreboding atmosphere as you continue, maneuvering past the cracks in the stone. Once past them, the corridor dead-ends at a shaft leading down to the level with the river. Small handholds are cut in the stone, but they don't appear to have been frequently used.

Since her burning skeletons wouldn't be able to use the rope for balance without burning through it, and since the river would extinguish them, Bristle decided to leave them behind. She left them just past the destroyed altar area with instructions to stay in the area and attack anyone who came down the passage. They could act as guards against any who may try to sneak up behind the group.

When they reached the spot with the handholds, Bristle glanced over to Caleb and said, "Good thing we have unlimited rope, huh? I'm not much good at climbing, so if you feel like lowering me down first, I can stand guard as others descend."

Having finished his knotting, Caleb nodded to Bristle, looking her up and down. "Yeah, rope is always good to have. Come here and hold out your arms at the sides, I'll put together a makeshift harness for you." Caleb worked with practiced efficiency, and soon enough the rope was secured around Bristle's chest and waist.
"That should hold well enough, drop down when you're ready."

Using the harness, the group is able to lower Bristle to the bottom of the shaft. Once there, she sees the same thing Caleb had described - a river, crossed by natural stone arches that create a tangle of bridges over it. From down here, she can make out a single clear path all the way across.

Unfortunately, she can also make out five more of the undead werewolves on that path. They are standing stock still, not moving or stretching or breathing at all. Past them, at the far end, the path continues, turning a corner and following the river.

OOC: Will get a map soon, very tired now and have to do a few other posts. For clarity, the direction of flow of the river is like this.

Wall        ||
Bristle     ||
Arches    ||
Passage  ||
              v

Does that make sense?

Bristle's muscles tensed at the sight of the undead werewolves, but she unstrapped herself from the rope harness regardless. It looked like the werewolves might not attack if she stayed put, but even so, she kept her shield at the ready. She did her best to bring her companions' attention to the werewolves without being noisy, but did not want to take her eyes off of them.

If they started moving toward her, she was ready to try and exert command over them before they could so much as scratch her shield. She let her companions know as much as they came into whisper range.

---

Bristle is standing guard while everyone else climbs down. She is keeping a readied action to try and Command Undead if any targets decide to come close enough. Otherwise she is waiting until her allies are ready, then she will approach the werewolves and try to use Command Undead on as many as possible at the same time.