The ruins of Torbel are easier to spot from the air, so changing course towards them is easy enough.

And that's the reason, apparently, that the village didn't show up on the later map--it had been abandoned by then. It's also easier to see from the air that the village looks like it was destroyed. Walls were built of stone and the roofs were probably thatch over timbers. The thatch and timbers are long gone except for a few scraps of wood here and there. The stones, however, have been knocked down and scattered around the area.

Hsang examines the village from the air.

"440 years ago this village didn't exist.  So lets go over this.

When it came to crafting magical armor, there was no one more skilled at crafting it than Mistrallena and that is why I went to her when I realized that some kind of armor would be needed. Her armors were legendary even before I met her, though few people new that it was she who had crafted them. After explaining to her my sketchy vision, she crafted Steelheart. After the villagers of Torbel made a tomb for the Warlord Kaballah Kabar upon his death, I thought that would be an excellent place to hide Mistrallena’s Armor.

That is our guide.  So we're looking for a tomb.  Assuming this is was a good place to hide but still notable what do we have around here that makes sense as a location?"

He spirals gently inspecting the area around the village looking for any sign of a temple or any sign of a large mound that might be the tomb.

"A graveyard would be a good starting point," Ozrus suggested as they scanned the area from above. He occasionally recast Guidance upon himself as they searched. "Even if the tomb isn't in the graveyard, it would likely be nearby. But if we don't find it, we could always ask the locals." Before Hsang had a chance to think Ozrus was blind to the ruination, he clarified. "And by that, I mean ask some of the critters who have moved in. Using magic..."

---

Looking for a grave-like area of town, with Guidance.
21:49, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 30 using 1d20+22.  Perception, with Guidance - grave-area.

Hsang and Ozrus fly over and around the village but neither of you spot a graveyard or anything that looks like the ruins of a temple.

However, Ozrus, thinking it might be nearby rather than in the village, spots something a bit of a way off. As he flies towards it, he realizes that it is the graveyard but it's in a clearing in a small copse of trees. The closer he gets, though, the more he realizes that the trees were probably planted around the graveyard at some point because the trees don't look to be 400+ years old.


Meanwhile, Hsang spots a stone that seems a bit out of place even amid the other scattered stones. He guesses that it's in the middle of what was once the village square or common. The reason it looks odd is that it seems to be a bit less regular than the blocks that were used on the buildings. In fact, from the air, it looks like it's in the center of a circle of other stones. The peripheral stones are irregularly scattered, not regular in any sense.

Hsang suddenly looks sick.

"I have a horrible thought here.  We have a village where everyone died.  And then the wording, the villagers of Torbel made a tomb.  What if that is EXACTLY literal.  The villagers of Torbel made a tomb, as in they BECAME the tomb themselves.  Look at those stones in the middle of the village, could those be the villagers, turned to stone?"

Tyrol, Ozrus wouldn't have inadvertently stolen Kurat's mirror. :-P But perhaps it is hidden under the pile of notes Ozrus left behind.

---

Ozrus flew back toward Hsang after spotting the graveyard a little ways away and responded to the samurai's question. "That isn't a conclusion I would leap to, but it is certainly possible. Let's have a closer look." He cast Detect magic and Guidance upon himself, then glided down to have a peek at the stones Hsang had mentioned. As he neared them, he also informed his new companion, "By the way, I did find the graveyard just outside of town. It looks like trees have been planted around since after the town fell. This place might not be quite as deserted as it seems."

---

Examining the potentially petrified stone using Detect Magic and Guidance.
13:48, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 27 using 1d20+22.  Perception, with Guidance and Detect Magic - Petrification?

Hsang joins him but doesn't land but instead flies in small circles.

"Did you see anything that might be a tomb other than the stones.  I was looking for a howe or similar but I couldn't see anything."

"I haven't had a chance to examine the graveyard that closely yet, unfortunately. I thought this seemed more important in the short-term." He gestured to the stones he was examining while hovering just above the ground in his air elemental form. If there might be something around that could petrify people, it would be good to know ahead of time. Ozrus shared the conclusions of his examinations with Hsang even as he realized them.

As Ozrus flies around, particularly higher, he gets a better sense that the surrounding stones were just where they fell because they were from the buildings that surrounded the town common. However, he does notice that the stone in the center has a plaque fastened to one side.

"In honor of Warlord Kaballah Kabar, who gave his life to save the villagers of Torbel from the Black Dragon Causticus."

Hsang eyes the stone with interest.

"We are here at the instructions of the Oracle, searching for Steelheart, creation of Mistralenna"

He eyes the area carefully.  If this was the tomb he would expect one or a combination of those words to allow them access to it.

As Hsang spoke, Ozrus kept his eyes trained on the statue to see if any magics were activated. And if so, which types. "If that doesn't work, we can search around a bit more, and I can try earthgliding in the most promising-looking spots. You know. To see if there is any notable architecture underground."

---

Were there any magics present on the stone or plaque? Were any activated with Hsang's words? Ozrus should still have Detect Magic active.

Ozrus detects a bit of magic on the plaque but he easily identifies it as preservation magic. It explains why the plaque isn't tarnished or even dirty.

Nothing Ozrus or Hsang has said or done seems to have triggered any other result.

If there's a crypt around, it's not meant to be obvious.

"Hmm, it seems we will need to try harder to find the tomb entrance. It is encouraging, however, that they bothered to protect this plaque from the ravages of time. I'm going to try scouring the underground in this area and the graveyard to see if I can find anything interesting. Want to see if you can scout out any other potential spots to search, Hsang?"

He was about to transform into a large earth elemental, but stopped himself. "I suppose it would be a good time to cast a spell to allow us to communicate with eachother. Might as well provide a bit of atmospheric protection too. Because why not?" Ozrus cast both Life Bubble and Telepathic bond on himself and Hsang.

The druid then landed and changed forms. His body became bulk and dark, like huge chunks of black granite, imbedded with tiny sparkling crystals. His eyes gleamed like diamonds as he sunk beneath the surface. "Let me know what you find," he said telepathically, testing their connection.

---

Ozrus cast Telepathic Bond and Life Bubble on himself and Hsang. Life bubble should last ten hours, even with its duration split between the two. https://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic...pells/l/life-bubble/ Telepathic Bond should last 1 hour and 40 minutes. https://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic...s/t/telepathic-bond/

Ozrus has also wild shaped into a large earth elemental and is checking underground in the area under the plaque, and under the graveyard. He is looking for any areas the look like a tomb of Kaballah Kabar, or any areas where his earth gliding won't allow him to go, but should.

Ozrus does indeed find an underground section directly under the plaque that he can't glide through. It is clearly man-made and would seem to be about the right size for a crypt. It is also warded, though you can't quite tell what it's warded against. There seems to be a door at one end that you can perceive has a 'green star pentagram' on it--clearly another ward. At the same time, you see that there is a flight of stone stairs leading up from the door.



Hsang, on the other hand, as he 'hears' Ozrus's commentary, discovers that the back of the stone with the plaque has a hinge at the base, nearly an inch underground from centuries of weathering and season cycles. From there, he's able to trace the outline of the slab of stone that conceals the stairs. He can't find any release mechanism, and Ozrus didn't indicate any, so it's probably just a question of leverage--a lot of strength needed to raise it up.

Ozrus relayed what he was finding to Hsang as he discovered it, using their mental link. "I'll try to push up on the slab from underneath," he said to Hsang, referring to big stone slab underneath Hsang. Being in the form of an earth elemental meant Ozrus was stronger than normal. Unfortunately he was not very strong to start with, so the increase was not all that significant. Even so, it was worth a try. He boosted his efforts with a bit of magical guidance.

If that didn't work, he had a couple more ideas they could try too.

---

With Guidance, Ozrus can achieve a strength check of 24 if he takes 20. 26 if Hsang aids. If Hsang can get higher, Ozrus will aid him instead.

If the slab still won't budge, Ozrus will try to dig around it, if possible. Even casting Soften earth and stone if it would help/be necessary.

If that doesn't work either, he will try using the Stone Shape spell on the slab itself to make an entrance. Preferably a cover like a manhole that can be opened and closed easily.

Let me know which spells, if any, I should mark off.

Hsang steps forward and stretches his shoulders as a snake crawls out from one of his pauldrons and drops to the floor before rapidly growing to the size of a human.

"Right.  Lift Stone.  That I can do."

He reaches into the shadow of the standing stone to pull out a crowbar from within its depths and digs it into the earth next to the stone.  The snake moves round to latch onto it and Hsang digs in to heave the stone up.

---

2 Minutes of Umbral Gear (for Crowbar) to allow for taking 20.

Assuming we can't use guidance on taking 20 but that the crowbar bonus applies then the STR check for Hsang would be 20 (Take 20) + 5 STR + 2 Ozrus Asist +2 Snake Asist +2 Crowbar for a 31.

Without looking up the Guidance wording, why wouldn't it guide you to the best place and best way to lift the stone?

It would have required a 30 Strength to lift it up because the centuries of dirt and grass and weeds that have accumulated over the top of it. It would have dropped to 28 if Ozrus had dug out the perimeter, and down to 24 if you'd cleared the dirt off of it completely. As it is, the crowbar gave you just enough leverage to loosen the end and grab the edge.

Once you get the end above waist height, it goes easier because of the pivot at the other end, but it clearly isn't counter-weighted. Also, at that point, everyone has to move to the sides or fall down the stairs.

The wall that holds the door at the bottom of the stairs extends upward above the crypt to hold the pivot. Otherwise, the roof of the crypt is about 6 feet under. That accounts for the length of the stone cover as the stairs had to be longer to go down that extra 6 feet. Either that or the stairs would have been very, very steep.

Just as Ozrus had sensed it underground, as you descend the stairs and approach the door with the obvious green star pentagram on it, you can feel the warding magic.

n his gruff earth elemental voice, Ozrus said to Hsang, "I'm going to double-check the dimensions of this crypt, then I'll come back and try and figure out more about this door and its wards." With that, the druid sunk back into the ground surrounding the man-made masonry. He wanted to know if it was just a small personal tomb they were dealing with, or if it was an elaborate underground complex that plunged into the depths of the earth. "The masonry is... odd. Like nothing I have seen, but not in a magical sort of way. I wonder if Esmeralda foresaw some sort of advanced construction technique in one of her visions..."

When he got back, Ozrus refreshed his Guidance and Detect magic, then got to work studying the door's more closely. It would be good to make sure it wouldn't hurt them to try and open it.

---

What sort of dimensions is the tomb? like a walk-in closet? Or a huge underground mansion? Other?

Here are a couple magical examination rolls:
20:13, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 38 using 1d20+19.  Spellcraft, with Guidance - wardings.
20:13, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 34 using 1d20+19.  Knowledge: Arcana, with Guidance - Magic Auras.

The dimensions of the crypt are limited--40 feet wide, 50 feet long and 30 feet high, not counting the stairs and cover.


Pentagrams are one type of magical circle. They can be used as wards, as protections and even as spell enhancements. The most common one is the warding circle. It has a double circle like this one. The symbols that go between the circles and inside the inner circle between the points dictate what it wards or protects against.

Ozrus can only identify the symbols for Evil, Outsiders, and the four Elements. There's a symbol in the center of the pentacle that seems significant, but he can't identify it.

"You don't happen to know anything about this center symbol, do you?" he asked Hsang. "And do you need me to check anything else underground before I revert back to my natural form? This tomb is only about as big as a large house, but it seems to be warded against the four elements, evil, and outsiders. And I am currently in the form of an elemental outsider, so... yeah, I should probably change back just to be safe."

Hsang inspects the door carefully looking more for mundane traps than mystical elements.  This was supposed to be the home of the armor so he would have expected traps designed to deal with magic users and especially arcane magic users.

He carefully keeps up a constant flow of chatter explaining his actions to Ozrus as he works.

---

Unless there is a good reason he'll take 20 on Perception as will his snake, so 33 with trapfinding, 38 without it but with scent.  +1 if Hsang uses guidance (which doesn't work on ability checks BTW to explain my comment above).

Hsang didn't detect any magical traps when they lifted the cover stone over the stairs,  he didn't detect any in the stairs or walls when they went down the stairs, and he isn't detecting any magic traps on the door. However, he thinks there might be one as part of the magic circle of warding.

He realizes that the the magic circle isn't carved into the door, but painted on the surface, which leads him to believe that it was added after Kaballah Kabar was laid to rest, perhaps long after.

Based on the runes that Ozrus identified, it does seem like it wasn't meant to ward off looters, who might have already looted the crypt before the armor was placed in it.

"Should we... try opening it?" Ozrus asked Hsang, now back in his elven form. "Should we try touching the green star, since we are supposedly the "chosen ones" or something? I could climb up the wall and press my shoulder blade against it if that might help..." His shoulder was where his green star scar was located. It would be awkward to maneuver on the wall in order press his scar against the image, but with all of Ozrus's experience with wall climbing (and ceiling climbing), he was confident he could manage.

But first he wanted Hsang's expert opinion about the safety of such an attempt. He seemed to have a lot more experience with traps than Ozrus himself.

Hsang eyes the painting with some confusion.

"Any ideas why you would put a trap in a painting?  Even with magic that is either incredibly unstable or very easy to disarm?  Could this be the point of the trigger words included in the guidance?  If I was designing this there is no where we would survive that being triggered but that makes no sense, if I was heartless I could just sacrifice my snake and use them to destroy the painting so..."

He trails off helplessly.

Ozrus spider-climbs on the wall until he's above the door and presses his head against the green star that's inside the double-ring magic circle as he speaks some words.

Somewhat anticlimactically, nothing happens.

From this different angle, a few of the symbols become more recognizable. Because one symbol is repeated five times, Ozrus didn't make the connection, but it's a symbol for lightning. In the case of the magic circle of warding, anyone attempting to break the circle would have been zapped with a very powerful bolt of lightning!

At the same time, he realizes the center of the pentagram contains a smaller pentacle--a green star. If his memory serves him right, he thinks that means anyone with a green star is exempt from the warding.

"I think... we are safe to try and break in," Ozrus said to Hsang once he noticed the lightning markings. He pointed to the green star at the center of the warding. "It seems anyone who isn't in our exclusive group would be zapped by powerful electricity. Still got that prybar handy? Let's crack this thing open!"

---

Ozrus will Aid Hsang with prying open the door, if Hsang chooses to do so.

Hsang shakes his head.

“If that works as it appears to I imagine our marks will be enough to open this.  If you step back I’ll simply try to open it as a door.  I have a better chance of survival if not.”

He beckons Ozrus back and then attempts to manipulate the door. To open it as if it were not locked at all.

Hsang attempts to open the door into what is presumably the crypt, but nothing seems to work at first until he tries using his prybar. That's when he discovers that the 'door' rolls aside to the left.

With nothing to grab hold of, though, it requires continuous effort with the prybar to move it aside far enough to grab hold of the edge and roll it all the way aside.

Beyond, you can see a room roughly the size of what Ozrus had determined was underground. In the center of the room, sitting on a bier, is a sarcophagus... sort of. It's not as fancy as you'd expect a sarcophagus to be, but it's more substantial than just a coffin as it's made of stone. It's also consistent with a simple village.

When the crypt was opened, Ozrus had expected... more. He expected a legion of undead skeletons to attack, or for the room to fill up with water, or a contracted dragon asassin to swoop down from the sky. Something. But no. It was just a nearly-empty tomb.

Or was it? "I'll scan for magic if you want to scan for traps," Ozrus suggested. The druid cast Guidance upon himself and Hsang, then blessed his eyes with magic-detection. Perhaps there were still surprises to be found.

Although, if not and they were able to collect the first Wonder this easily, he and Hsang would still have tremendous bragging rites.

---

Ozrus will cast Guidance on himself and Hsang, then scan the interior of the crypt with Detect Magic.
22:06, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 35 using 1d20+22.  Perception, with Guidance - crypt magic.
If I can take 20, that is a 42 instead. Ozrus is looking for any and all magical auras within the crypt before they open the sarcophagus. Preferably before they even step inside.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:13, Fri 04 Dec 2020.

Hsang nods and begins his own in depth inspection of the room.  He was puzzled by the whole thing, if it were this simple he was fairly sure these things would have been found by now.  Something here was not how it seemed.

Ozrus and Hsang examine the crypt in more detail and with their special senses.

Hsang suspects that opening the crypt will release a poisonous gas into the crypt. This is based on the seal between the lid and the base.

He also discovers that the walls are lined with secret compartments. They are all rather on the small side, about six inches wide 12 inches high. There are ten along each side wall and 5 on the far end wall. Every other one is trapped.


Ozrus does, indeed, detect magic throughout the room. There is faint magic coming from behind each secret compartment that Hsang detects, plus there is strong magic coming from the sarcophagus. The first aura he can detect is protection from evil. He's also detecting evocation magic in force and lightning, as well as necromancy.

Ozrus shared his findings with Hsang as he noticed them. "The poison from the sarcophagus shouldn't be an issue," Ozrus noted. "Not with the Life Bubble I cast on the both of us earlier. Besides, I'm immune to poisons regardless. I can also ward us each against a decent amount of electricity for nearly two hours. Should I cast that now?"

The druid scanned the room again. "Are you any good at disabling the traps we found? If the body of Kaballah Kabar decides to rise when we open his resting place, I have a spell that may put him under my command rather than attack us. Although I am unsure if that is what the necromancy I am sensing would do..." He wanted to try and take a closer look, but figured they might want to deal with the traps first. In the meantime, he cast Guidance on the two of them again.

---

If Hsang thinks it is a good idea, Ozrus will cast Resist Energy (electricity) on the two of them. It will last for 110 minutes. If an undead creature rises from the sarcophagus, Ozrus will cast Command Undead on it.

"Yeah, I can find traps," Hsang replies to Ozrus, "though it depends on the trap."

He's been studying the sarcophagus the whole time, considering it from every angle. He walks around it, puts his ear up against it as he taps on it... side, top, ends, floor. At one point, after examining one end, he suddenly leaps backward and starts to run for the door before he catches himself.

"Your Life Bubble and protection from lighting won't do any good. That is, much too little."

He walks back to the sarcophagus and points at the seam between the lid and the base.

"Sealed. Not just by the pressure of the stone lid. Not even lead, which is typical. My guess it's some sort of alchemical putty, which is why it has lasted so long. It's still starting to deteriorate, which is how I was able to smell the swamp gas."

"There's a lightning spell trap on one end. To be precise, it feels like a Delayed Blast Fireball spell... with energy substitution. Can't tell exactly, but it's got that kind of power level to it. And that's suitable for a magical trap."

20:31, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 35 using 1d20+18 ((17)). Perception + Trapfinding.

Ozrus put a hand to his chin as he thought about what Hsang said, and all that it implied. "So... If we trigger the trap, will be blasted by way more electricity than we can handle. And the electricity would ignite the swamp gas, which would trigger a secondary explosion?" He looked to Hsang. "So what is your suggestion for dealing with all of that? Should we toss in a torch and blow everything to smithereens while we are crouched safely behind a wall? Did you want to try disarming the traps? Should I try summoning some helpers to break the sarcophagus open, then we can deal with the aftermath later? Or should we head back to the monastery and bring back more help?"

Honestly, Ozrus was leaning toward blowing it all up and sifting through the wreckage, but he would be fine with any of the choices he had presented.

"It's not as dire as that," Hsang responds. "I can probably deactivate the magic trap. Not sure what will happen if I fail, but I don't think it'll set off the swamp gas as long as it's contained in the sarcophagus."

"As near as I can figure it out, cracking the lid will let the gas escape and fill this room. The delayed blast is meant to allow as much of it as possible to get out before the spell goes off."

"It would do a lot of damage to organics, but maybe not so much to all this stone."

"I also think there might be a secret compartment or something underneath the sarcophagus. It sounded a bit... hollow... when I tapped on it. Not a Dwarf, though, so can't really say that there might not just be a different type of rock."

"I don't think there's any gas under it. Couldn't detect any traps."

"So, do you want me to try and disable the magical trap?"

Ozrus shrugged. "If you are comfortable taking the risk, then sure. See if you can disarm the traps. But I still suggest you take some electrical protection." Ozrus cast his protection spell on Hsang, then removed a ring from his finger and offered it to his fellow adventurer. "Take this too. It will protect you from fire a little bit if things go really, really wrong. I'll keep back a safe distance while you work."

---

Ozrus will cast Resist Energy (electricity) on Hsang, and let him borrow his ring of resist fire. He should have resistance 20 from both.

The 'solution' for the poison gas was easy enough... Ozrus's Life Bubble would take care of that, but then it wasn't the poison aspect of the swamp gas that was the main concern. Oh, it could be a problem, but it was mostly a red herring... a misdirection.

So, he set about trying to disarm the magical trap. So far, of course, he'd only detected the one. He had a hard time comprehending it, though. It's purpose was easy enough to fathom, but the ensuing explosion could seriously compromise the whole tomb and crypt.

With most magic traps, you could find them simply by sensing the magic. You had to be sensitized to magic, though, not just be a spellcaster. He'd sensed the trap inside the sarcophagus, and now he had to tweak it. He only had to do it a little bit to make it unworkable.

16:11, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 28 using 1d20+19 ((9)).

"Woh! Almost set it off! Okay... not sure I can do this quickly. Need to take my time..."

That was close! He's going to Take 20 to disable the magic trap.

16:31, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 34 using 1d20+19 ((15)). Technically, he can't Take 20, but the GM said he could under the circumstances--I made a second check anyway.

That should do it!

"Nice job!" Ozrus replied from his safe distance. "Maybe try opening the lid now and hustle back over here until the gas dissipates? Better safe than sorry." He was certainly eager to get a look at the inside of the sarcophagus, but he wanted to use an abundance of caution when it was just the two of them here.

---

My thought is for Hsang to open the sarcophagus just enough to let out all of the gas, then retreat until it is truly clear nothing is going to explode. (He'll also ask for his ring back during this time.) Once it is safe, Ozrus will go back in to take a preliminary look at what they have uncovered.

The lid is too heavy for just the two of you to lift, but Hsang is able to whittle away the seal at one point and then pry up a corner of the lid... just enough to let the swamp gas escape. With the crypt cover open, it take about ten minutes for the gas to disperse enough (with some fanning) to no longer be hazardous.

From there, it requires removing most of the seal in order to shift the lid. While you can't lift it, you can slide it. The easiest way to do that is to push on opposite sides on opposite edge, thus causing the lid to rotate but still remain on the crypt.

When that's done, you can look into the crypt now.

Almost as expected, there appears to be the remains of a corpse in there, still wearing a suit of plate armor that has a green star pentacle painted on the chest.

"Not too pretty, is he?" Ozrus commented to Hsang. With the knowledge that he had detected necromancy magic on the sarcophagus earlier, the first thing Ozrus did after the lid was pushed aside was examine the skeleton with his magical sight. He wanted to know if it had been animated, or would soon animate.

Other than that, he scanned for all other auras that might now be visible. He also searched for other items in the tomb that might be of interest, such as scrolls or books, or even engravings on the sarcophagus itself.

---

Using Detect Magic and Perception. I will take 20 on Perception with Guidance, if able, for a total of 42. Also, here is a Knowledge: Arcana and a Spellcraft check, if necessary. Both with Guidance, of course.

22:11, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 25 using 1d20+19.  Knowledge: Arcana, with Guidance - Auras.
22:12, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 38 using 1d20+19.  Spellcraft, with Guidance - Auras.
Perception take 20 with Guidance: 42

There's definitely some magic in here, but it takes a minute or so for Ozrus to figure out what it is. It seems to be coming from the body. The armor is definitely magical with an illusion aura. The body within is also magical--necromancy.

There are no other items in the sarcophagus.

However, he does spot the magic circle that was painted on the inside bottom end of the sarcophagus... but there's no magic there. Apparently, that's the trap that Hsang disarmed.

"Hmm, interesting," Ozrus commented aloud to Hsang. He didn't bother using their mental link at the moment. "The body possesses necromancy magic, and the armor bears illusion magic. Let's do a bit of experimenting before touching anything with our bare hands though, hmm?" The last thing he wanted to do was reach for the armor only to find out it was an illusion while dead hands grasp at him.

Standing back about ten feet, Ozrus cast Guidance on himself again and drew his club. It was a weapon that almost never saw use in combat, and even now he had no intention of using it for that purpose. He held it aloft in the air before him using his Mage Hand cantrip. He hovered the wooden weapon high over top of the resting body of Kaballah Kabar and then watched carefully as he let it drop onto the armor. He looked and listened for any signs of illusions. He also watched for any movement from the body wearing the armor.

If nothing happened, he refresh his Guidance before retrieving his club with Mage Hand again, then blasted the body with a couple of Rays of Frost.

If there was still no signs of anything amiss, Ozrus would cast Guidance again, then carefully reach in and attempt to retrieve his the armor from the corpse. (Assuming Hsang had nothing he wanted to try.) But he would still keep his Windy Escape spell ready in case any surprises jutted out at him. And hopefully there were no flesh-melting traps either.

---

Perception x2 for his experiments.
14:56, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 39 using 1d20+22.  Perception, with Guidance - corpse/armor experiments.
14:56, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 29 using 1d20+22.  Perception, with Guidance - corpse/armor experiments.

Also, can Ozrus hear Vashon?
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:54, Fri 04 Dec 2020.

"Let me check for traps first," Hsang says, and proceeds to do so.

This time the trap would be on the armor or the body, rather than on the sarcophagus. It just didn't feel right with all these traps. Not that he couldn't see them on Kaballah Kabar, but not for the Wonders or the Cycle. It didn't seem consistent with what they'd learned about Esmeralda.

16:41, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 28 using 1d20+18 ((10)). Perception searching for traps.

Hsang does not find any traps on the inside of the sarcophagus, nor does he find any on the armor or the body.

Even after Ozrus hits the body with a couple rays of frost, there's no reaction.

Unfortunately, he can't just take the armor off the body. It's fastened on to the body like normal armor. At the very least, the body will have to be rolled over to unfasten it from the back.

He starts with the helmet, of course, as it's the easiest. Once off, it reveals the skeletal remains of a humanoid... in the condition one would expect after 500 years.

Just as he pulls the helmet out of the sarcophagus, with nothing else happening, he and Hsang here are voice!

"Yo! Ozrus! Hsang! Can you hear me?"

"Vashon?" Ozrus said, finally recognizing the voice. He peeled his eyes away from the dead body long enough to look over and see the person who was talking, along with the secret passage. "Well that would have saved us a lot of flying..." he commented, referring to the secret passage.

The druid had to consider the possibility that Vashon's appearance might be some sort of trick. After all, the armor had radiated an aura of illusion. However, if Vashon was some kind of trick, it was one that made zero sense to Ozrus. He opted to assume Vashon was the real deal. At least until proven otherwise. He expressed these thoughts to Hsang via their mental link.

"You, uh, don't happen to have a good way to remove armor from a dead body, do you?" he asked Vashon, gesturing toward the body of Kaballah Kabar. "We already dispersed the swamp gasses inside the sarcophagus and deactivated the lightning trap, but Kaballah Kabar's body still radiates an undefined aura of necromancy, and the armor itself radiates illusion. So far I have only removed the helmet." He held up the mentioned item so that Vashon could see it clearly.

"If you're talking about magic, no, I don't know any spell that will remove armor from a corpse," Vashon replies.

He walks over to the sarcophagus and examines the body.

"I don't think that's Steelheart. That green pentacle is just painted on. That makes no sense for one of the Wonders. You say it's got an illusion aura? Maybe it's just Magic Aura cast on it to make you think the armor is magical. Of course, normally it wouldn't last that long... we're talking 500 years. Hmmm. I'm guessing it's the pentacle that's kept the magic going all this time, particularly sealed up here in this crypt."

"We could try to scrap a break in the pentacle. If we do that, the magic should go away."

"As for the body... I'm not that familiar with necromancy spells. It doesn't look like the body was preserved. If it didn't animate, then that spell is ruled out. Oh! I know! It's some sort of anti-animate spell! I'll bet that's what it is. I don't know that such a spell exists, but it kind of makes sense. Magic to keep the body from being animated. That way, the corpse doesn't get up and walk out of here, as that would defeat the purpose of the shrine."

"Found anything else? Secret writings? Secret compartments? Did you look for anything invisible?"

He pulls out his dagger, holds it by the blade, and the starts going around the room tapping the walls with the hilt.

zrus listened to Vashon's insights with curiosity. It was a good thing Vashon had shown up when he did. "As I understood it, Hsang found traps and secret compartments around the room, but I will let him explain all of the particulars about those himself. Even if this armor isn't Steelheart, I'm still going to go ahead and remove it. Easier to test it that way. And it should be safe enough if Kaballah really is warded against reanimation." Ozrus continued removing the deceased hero's armor and answered some more of Vashon's question's as he worked.

"I earth glided around this structure before we opened it, and it is about 40 feet wide, 50 feet long and 30 feet high. And made of some sort of weird masonry. Something... advanced, I think. The crypt was warded on the outside against Evil, Outsiders, and the four Elements, and even had a bit of a lightning trap built in. The warding was merely painted on though, suggesting it was placed after this structure was constructed. Probably even after it had already been looted."

"The sarcophagus in here was full of swamp gas, and was rigged with a delayed-blast lightning ball-type trap that would have been devastating if Hsang hadn't disarmed it. We did not check specifically for anything invisible though."

---

If I as a player forgot anything, GM, please remind me. Even feel free to say Ozrus shares it aloud with Vashon.

Vashon circles the entire room tapping on the walls, but at no point does his tapping sound any different, particularly as if there was a hollow space behind it. It all sounds solid as a rock.

"Swamp gas and lightning? Yes, very nasty," he comments on Ozrus's report. "Could any of us have survived that? And once used, can the swamp gas refill the sarcophagus? Well, that's assuming anything was left here intact."

"It sounds more like it was meant to prevent any looting of the crypt. Unless there was going to be somebody on constant guard duty, like in a temple, it sounds like it was an all or nothing gambit. I'm amazed that it lasted 500 years, though."

"That may have more to do with the locale and limited population."

"Trust me, Vashon, the secret compartments are there, easily discernible to my particular set of skills," Hsang says.

"There may be one underneath the sarcophagus, too. That I couldn't be completely sure about. The stone sounded different, but I couldn't tell if that was due to different stones or a hollow space beyond it. At least, I don't think it's trapped."

"I just had another strange thought. Do you think the armor might have dismantled into pieces and then the pieces stored in the secret compartments? A few would have to be deep, but they wouldn't need to be very large otherwise."

"It is certainly possible that the armor is inside the compartments," Ozrus conceded. "Let's see if we can find that out." The druid examined his surroundings with renewed interest. Apparently there were more secrets here to be uncovered.

"Maybe the intended way to open the compartments is located under the sarcophagus. The lid was heavy enough, so I don't suppose we could move the entire thing, huh? I mean, I could try summoning some help to aid us, or slick up the floor under it with a Grease spell. Oh, or try using my Stone Shape spell to give it rollers maybe?" The druid looked to Hsang and Vashon. "Or maybe there is even a hidden switch that will do all of the work for us. Might as well look for that before trying other options. But assuming we don't find one, do either of you have a preferred method to try first?"

---

Ozrus will take 20 (with Guidance) to search the sarcophagus for any hidden switches or mechanisms that might give them access to underneath the sarcophagus (Take 20 perception result of 42). If it is dusty or dirty, he will clean with Prestidigitation first. If they find nothing, he will cast whatever spells necessary for the preferred alternate strategy of Hsang and/or Vashon:
1. Conjure help to move the sarcophagus with Summon Nature's Ally (with Augment Summoning)
2. Grease floor to aid movement. Could also use regular soap.
3. try modifying sarcophagus with Stone Shape.

"I knew a barbarian once that would have smashed everything with his hammer," Vashon responds. "Even if we have hammers, I recommend we not take that course of action."

"Greasing the floor sounds like a good idea, but that's only assuming the sarcophagus can be slide aside. I noticed the hinge the stair cover. That's a pretty clever and sophisticated technique for a village. I suspect they had professional help building this crypt."

"That being the case, we should expect the same for everything else here. Perhaps Hsang can try using his prybar again, just to see where the sarcophagus might be... vulnerable?"

"Vashon has a good point," Hsang agrees. "There are four possible sides on which the sarcophagus could be hinged. If it's done like the stairs lid, he hinges are hidden--the advanced design Vashon mentioned."

"It could also slide aside in any of those four directions, or, if there's some sort of hidden switch, it could raise up. I don't see it sinking down, though."

"I also doubt if it's hinged at either end. The ceiling in here just isn't high enough for that to be workable."

"I'm pretty sure there isn't any other magic. I would have sensed it earlier, but, I'll check again."

22:19, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 24 using 1d20+18 ((6)). Perception check to detect magic traps for the second time.

"Don't think there's any more, but it just occurred to be that we may not be looking for a trap... more like a magic trick is my guess."

He then sets about working on the bottom edge of the sarcophagus with his prybar, trying to see if he can get it to budge.

"I guess I'll wait to see if the prybar produces any results before casting any spells then," Ozrus said to Hsang and Vashon. "While you do that, I'll double check to make sure the theory about this armor was correct. I'll see if disrupting the painted-on magic removes its magical aura." The druid pulled out his magical any-tool and shifted it into the shape of a paint scraper, then went to work on the set of armor he had reluctantly removed from Kaballah Kabar's body. He observed the armor with his Detect Magic cantrip as he worked on removing the painted on symbols that were presumably giving it an aura of illusion.

As Ozrus scrapes off the paint, once the circle is broken, the magic does indeed go away.

Hsang's efforts with his prybar soon determines that there's no give to the sarcophagus from either end, and it's only from one side that he gets a result. It doesn't lift, but it does seem like it'll slide to one side. He is only able to get it to move a fraction of an inch no matter where he puts the prybar.

It may be because there's a release somewhere.

The three of you begin looking for some sort of switch to release the sarcophagus. It's Hsang that realizes there is a secret compartment beneath body. You have to at least push the remains to the side before the stone slab can be raised on its pivot points.

Revealed underneath is a large iron lever against the left side. It appears to have to be pulled to the other side. Although very had to do, it can pried open at first then kicked open the rest of the way.

Now the sarcophagus can roll side. As soon as the sarcophagus clears the secret compartment beneath it, another suit of armor is visible with another green pentagram on its chest.

Only, this one suddenly sits up and attacks! Stone spikes fly from its hands! Vashon seems to be in its immediate line of sight, so that's who it attacks.

14:14, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 26 using 1d20+6 ((20)). Ranged attack! Critical threat!
14:14, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 18 using 1d20+6 ((12)). Confirm critical? No.
14:18, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 21 using 2d8+9 ((8,4)). Damage!

At the same time, the sarcophagus and the floor suddenly sprout dozens of stone spikes. Everyone needs to make a DC 16 Reflex save to avoid taking damage from the spikes.

Ozrus, having finished with the armor, watched Hsang as the man continued to work on the sarcophagus. It seemed all of Ozrus's paranoia about traps and animating bodies paid off when the spikes showed up, because the druid was ready. Almost uncannily quickly, he leapt backward and grasped the wall itself to keep himself above the spiked ground.

Then, with a quick glance over to make sure the armor was truly animated as he suspected, Ozrus climbed upward toward the place where the wall met the ceiling. "Can anyone dispell that? Is it activated by painted magic too?" He tried to see if that was the case as he climbed. Maybe he would need to use his paint-scraper on it like he had the other armor. But for now he cast a spell from up near the ceiling. And that spell was... Mad Monkeys.

A moment later the tomb was filled with the hairy bodies and annoying shrieks of a monkey swarm that was eager to cause mischief. "Monkey pile the living armor!" he called out to the swarm. "Dismantle it if you can!"

---

Reflex Save.
20:54, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 30 using 1d20+10.  DC 16 Reflex Save vs spikes.
Max roll!

I figure now would also be a good time for an initiative roll:
20:55, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 23 using 1d20+6.  Initiative.

When it is Ozrus's turn in initiative order, he will do what is described above. He will scan for any signs the armor could be disenchanted by scraping off some paint and climb to the ceiling. He will then cast Mad Monkey (with Augment Summoning and Starlight Summons feats) to summon a monkey swarm to dogpile the armor and potentially dismantle it.

Mad Monkeys spell: https://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic...pells/m/mad-monkeys/
base Monkey Swarm stats: https://www.d20pfsrd.com/besti...primate-monkey-swarm
Augment Summoning feat: https://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats...s/augment-summoning/
Starlight Summons feat (probably not relevant): https://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats...s/starlight-summons/

OOC: I forgot the Mad Monkey spell takes a full round to cast. So Ozrus wouldn't have time to climb all the way up the wall. He merely took a 5 foot step up it, I suppose.

Hsang had been as close to the sarcophagus as Ozrus when they'd pushed it aside, but, still expecting there to be a trap, he'd been prepared for... something. Admittedly, the spikes suddenly sprouting from the sarcophagus and floor and walls was unexpected, but not so much that he couldn't leap out of the way.

18:20, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 25 using 1d20+13 ((12)). Reflex save.

The attacking armor was something Ozrus had been expecting, though. Having leaped away from the trap, Hsang draws his swords. He's not happy having to attack a suit of armor with his fine-edged weapons.

18:33, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 13 using 1d20+3 ((10)). Initiative.

18:45, Today: Vashon the Vigilant rolled 27 using 1d20+11 ((16)). Reflex save... not as good as Ozrus, but pretty good!

Vashon wasn't taken by surprise by the sprouting spikes (after all, he wasn't called 'the Vigilant' for nothing), but the armor attack was beyond his ability to cope with.

"Damn! That hurt!" he calls out as he backed away.

Guns appear in his hands with the snap of his fingers.

19:01, Today: Vashon the Vigilant rolled 14 using 1d20+4 ((10)). Initiative.

The armor begins clambering out of the hole in the floor. As it does so, you realize that it's not just a suit of empty armor but that there is a creature inside it. The stone spikes seem to move with it.

00:21, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 17 using 1d20-2 ((19)). Creature's initiative.

Still reacting quickly, Ozrus is able to cast his spell, and while the swarm of monkeys clamber all over the armored creature, they are unable to remove the armor, don't seem capable of damage the creature, and pretty much get impaled on the spikes that constantly grow out of the surrounding rock near the creature.

The creature fires a volley of stone spikes at Ozrus up on the wall since it can't reach him. They just barely manage to strike Ozrus for 22 points of damage.

00:48, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 20 using 1d20+6 ((14)). Ranged attack.
00:52, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 22 using 2d8+9 ((7,6)). Spike volley damage.

"Oof," Ozrus exclaimed as spikes pierced his skin. Luckily he had a spell that was able to lessen the blow by making him air-like for a moment. Even so, the blow had hurt.

"It's a spikestone golem! I think. Wearing non-wonder armor," Ozrus called out even as the knowledge was still coalescing in his head. His sharp mind rushed to formulate a new plan. His monkeys wouldn't help much if they couldn't dismantle the suit, so best to use them for something else. Plus, it would be helpful to get them out of the way of his next spell.

"Monkeys, retreat! Run down that hall and lead help back!" He was referring to the hall Vashon had appeared from. If they could manage to coax a few of the other Green Stars out of the monastery, the battle would probably be finished much more easily. He could throw more summoned creatures at it for quite a while, but that plan did not seem... optimal. Instead, he decided to try and trip it up.

"Watch out for the slippery patch," he warned Vashon and Hsang, then cast a Grease spell at the construct's feet. With a little luck, it might even fall back into the pit it had climbed out of! Still in the realm of stalling tactics, he also said to the group, "Let me know if you want me to fill the room with Webs so that we can take a moment to strategize. Not sure what your plans are."

---

Not sure if we are doing block initiatives or in exact order. Regardless, Ozrus will do the same thing during his turn in the order.

Ozrus
Immediate Action: Cast Windy Escape to reduce the spike damage by 10. Took 12 damage.
Free/Move Actions: Talk/order monkeys.
Standard Action: Cast Grease under golem's feet. But he will avoid slipping allies too. DC 16 Reflex save or it falls. Also needs to make a DC 10 reflex save to try and move through the spell's area. https://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/g/grease/

Monkey Swarm
Free Action: Disarm/Steal attempt. (on the off chance there is anything to disarm/steal)
21:52, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 35 using 1d20+16.  Mad Monkey Steal/Disarm attempt.
Full Round Action: Run up to 120 feet (probably less due to spike injuries). They will head down the passage to the monastery to get the attention of the people there and (ideally) lead some people back. But they are monkeys, and I realize there is a chance nobody will answer the call.

10:50, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 13 using 1d20+3 ((10)) for Initiative.

He'd been expecting something of the sort all along, so he was prepared for it. What he wasn't prepared for were the spikes that suddenly sprouted from the walls and floor around the creature. If necessary, he would have endured the damage from the spikes in order to attack the creature, but it wasn't necessary... that is, he didn't think it would be, though the confines of the crypt made it difficult.

Swiftly drawing his swords, Hsang used his acrobatics to leap over the spikes and attack the guardian in mid leap with both his weapons.

10:59, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 34 using 1d20+15 ((19)). Acrobatics check. Yes! Nailed it!

11:02, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 22,26 using 1d20+15,1d20+10 ((7,16)). Attacks.

He swung a bit too soon with his katana in his leaping arc and probably missed, but his second attack with his wakizashi might have done the trick.

11:08, Today: Hsang Li Tsung rolled 9,9 using 1d8+5,1d6+5 ((4,4)). Damage from katana and wakizashi if he hits.

Since Vashon drew his guns, he was presumably going to shoot at the golem. Both shots hit and manage to damage the golem, although not by much.

Hsang, on the other hand, manages to hit with his wakizashi but it doesn't seem to penetrate the golem's DR.

Ozrus's Grease spell also proves to be less effective than expected. He quickly realizes that it's because the golem's leg joints don't work like human leg joints; thus, its balance never shifts to the point where it puts its weight on just one foot.


A moment later, Tyrol appears in the tunnel mouth and takes in the situation.

"Tyrol!" Ozrus exclaimed excitedly as the man arrived. The druid clamored against the ceiling as he spoke. "It's an armored spikestone golem!" He took a moment to blast the pokey foe with some missiles of magic, then continued speaking to Tyrol. "You have any remedies for our current predicament?"

It seemed the golem's durable and armored body was not easily marred by conventional weapons.

---

On his turn, Ozrus is sticking to the ceiling and blasting the golem with Magic Missile. The spell deals a total of 15 magical force damage.

14:01, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 15 using 5d4+5 with rolls of 3,3,1,1,2.  Magic Missile Damage.

Taking in the situation, Tyrol exclaims, "What the hell is that thing?"

What appeared to be an animated stone statue clearly marked it as some sort of stone golem, but it looked different enough to make it an unknown. Although he wasn't an expert on golems, he was familiar with constructs as part of his alchemy training. It just wasn't a direction he had any desire to pursue.

He did know that constructs generally had some sort of resistance to damage.

Tyrol quickly put together a bomb. He didn't think a Frost Bomb would do much, but a Force or Shock Bomb seemed like they would.

Deciding on a Shock Bomb first, he threw it at the golem.

00:03, Today: Tyrol Halverschlagen rolled 25,21 using 1d20+11,5d6+5 ((14,6,1,1,2,6)).

I sure hope that's a hit!

Ozrus's Magic Missile seems to be effective, as does Tyrol's shock bomb.

Spikestone Guardian: 96hp - 15 = 81hp - 21 = 60hp.

Although the golem is rather slow and ponderous in its actions, it was constructed with the intent to be defensive, thus the 'enemy' has to come to it. On the other hand, those attacking it have initiative.

But now it's the golem's turn again. Ozrus, from his vantage point on the ceiling, sees that spikes grow out of the sarcophagus, floor, walls and ceiling whenever the creature is within 5 feet, and disappear again when it's out of range.

He, Vashon, and Hsang have to keep moving around the sarcophagus to keep out of range of the spikes that sprout from the walls.

That doesn't keep it from firing a volley of spikes at a target. This time, it targets Ozrus, probably because he's the most clearly visible.

14:32, Today: GM StarMaster rolled 19,19 using 1d20+6,2d8+9 ((13,4,6)).

That might be a hit if Ozrus's AC is still 19.

"Ah! The spikestone golem got me!" Ozrus shrieked as the golem's volley nearly pinned him to the wall. He was bleeding substantially now, but he had suffered worse in the past. Since his magical missiles had seemed effective, he sent another salvo the golem's way. He then scurried toward the tomb's entrance to try and avoid being the golem's target for a third time.

"His spikes seem to only pop up right next to him. I can throw up some webs to buy us a bit of time," Ozrus offered even as he crawled across the ceiling. At the very least, it could give him time to summon a creature or two. But the way things were going, it might prove to be unnecessary.

---

My AC was exactly 19, so it just barely hit. 69/100 hp remaining. Ozrus cast his second and final prepared Magic Missile spell at the golem.

21:47, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 22 using 5d4+5 ((4,3,3,4,3))

He had his guns drawn from the start, but he wasn't sure if they'd be effective against this stone creature... assuming he could even hit it.

It was slow, though, and only its ranged spikes proved dangerous to him and the others.

Tyrol's appearance and bomb seemed to galvanize Vashon into action.

He took aim and fired both guns at the golem.

18:56, Today: Vashon the Vigilant rolled 19,11,8,16 using 1d20+14,1d8+5,1d6+2,5d4+5 ((5,6,6,4,1,2,1,3)).

18:57, Today: Vashon the Vigilant rolled 20,13,5,16 using 1d20+9,1d8+5,1d6+2,5d4+5 ((11,8,3,3,3,1,2,2)).

Damn! Couldn't hit it! So, still don't know if it'll take the damage.

The group's attacks have clearly damaged the golem, but not enough yet to make it ineffective.

Ozrus's spell again takes its toll.

Spikestone Guardian: 96hp - 15 = 81hp - 21 = 60hp - 22 = 38hp.


Vashon's aim was truer than he thought (OOC: numbers seemed off, so I recalculated his attack bonus--he was only adding in his BAB+Dex, not weapon attunement, Arcane Strike or Aim): he just barely hits with his first shot, but misses with the second! The damage is 19! (bullet+corrosive; Arcane Strike doesn't actually expend a spell slot and thus doesn't cast the spell).

Spikestone Guardian: 96hp - 15 = 81hp - 21 = 60hp - 22 = 38hp - 19 = 19hp.

Knowing now what the guardian's abilities are, specifically the way it attacks, allows everyone to mostly avoid it, especially by Tyrol who's still in the tunnel mouth--no walls there.

The guardian was particularly deadly here in the crypt because there was limited room to maneuver, but it could be done. Apparently, its primary attack was a slam/grapple where its spikes could be quite lethal.

So, after a moment of jockeying around, and the guardian misses Vashon with its stone spike volley, everyone can attack it again.

"Should I?" the upside down Ozrus mused while looking at the ring adorning his finger. "Probably. This guy is getting to be a nuisance." The druid-wizard called upon the power of his arcane bond and unleashed a third magical missile attack at the golem. He usually liked to save his ring for a spell with a bit more oomph, but he had little else at his disposal that would provide meaningful aid against the golem. At least not without also being considered overkill.

"Whoo!" Ozrus yelled as he nearly shredded the golem completely. "Just a bit more should do the trick now!" He was regretting not having a vial of acid to drop on the golem's spikey little head.

---

Using my ring's 1/day power to cast a third Magic Missile spell.
21:01, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 17 using 5d4+5.  Magic Missile Damage.
That should bring it down to 2 HP if I'm not mistaken.

Yes, Ozrus's Magic Missile spell did a lot of damage to the guardian, but, due to its nature, it's not affected by injury until it is completely destroyed. At least, it doesn't appear to be regenerating.

Spikestone Guardian: 19hp - 17hp = 2hp!

(OOC: Oops! Forgot all about this one!)

Seeing pieces of stone getting chipped off the Guardian by the various attacks, Tyrol gets the idea that it might be on its last legs.

He quickly prepares another bomb and tosses it at the beastie!

"HA! Take that!"

0:58, Today: Tyrol Halverschlagen rolled 10,22 using 1d20+6,5d6+5 ((4,3,4,3,5,2)).

"YIKES! Everybody watch out! I missed! It's faster than it looks!"

"Guess you'll have to do the honors, Vashon!"

Oh, crap! Has it been that long?


On the one hand, he'd expected to have done better with his guns, but, on the other hand, he half expected them to prove useless against the golem. Apparently, the magic he can infuse his bullets with was enough to get through the golem's stone skin... or however that worked.

"Well, if you three aren't going to finish it off, guess I'll have to do it!" he said, hoping it wasn't an idle boast.

15:07, Today: Vashon the Vigilant rolled 26,12,6,17 using 1d20+14,1d8+5,1d6+2,5d4+5 ((12,7,4,2,1,3,2,4)).

Better than last time, so I think he hit. That should be enough to destroy the golem. If I did that right, that's 35 points of damage!

Vashon does, indeed, hit the golem this time, and while he doesn't have the spell available for the extra damage, the magical bullet is enough to finish destroying the golem.

Everyone is now free to search the room for the armor.

It doesn't take long to realize that the armor on the slab is not the armor you are looking for, despite the green star painted on it. It appears as if that was done as a decoy.

"And the prickly porcupine guardian finally falls," Ozrus said with a sigh of relief from up on the ceiling. He allowed himself to drop to the floor where he gingerly touched the spots on his body that had been injured during the battle. He concentrated momentarily and performed the proper prayers to heal his wounds. Mostly. Then he turned toward the messy scene before them.

"Well, the armor in the sarcophagus wasn't what we were looking for. Nor was the armor the golem was wearing. So I suppose the next step is to search the area that the Spikestone Guardian was guarding, eh? The spot it emerged from?" Casually but cautiously, Ozrus moved forward to do exactly that. As he searched for clues, he made sure to keep himself blessed with divine Guidance, and bestowed magic sight upon himself as well.

---

Casting Cure Serious Wounds on myself. Up to 93/100 HP. Anyone else need healing?
21:12, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 24 using 3d8+10.  Cast Cure Serious Wounds on self.

Ozrus will take 20 on his search of the area the Spikestone Golem emerged from. With Guidance, that should give him a result of 42. He has Detect Magic active as well.

The spikestone guardian--in armor--had been beneath the sarcophagus, and had apparently been activated or awoken or whatever when the sarcophagus had been pushed aside. It had risen up out of the hole in the floor and then moved about the room to attack.

Ozrus now began searching the hole where it had been while the others watched, not really able to fit in the hole to help.

He takes a good 20 minutes searching, searching again, and then again, finding nothing each time.

At the end, just sitting there trying to figure out what he missed, he looks up at the others to see if they have any suggestions.

Was it a shadow? A scratch where a spike struck? Or maybe the spikes that grew out of the ceiling shifted something. Whatever it was, he saw a crack in the ceiling. It was only a small one, but it was straight. The only way for a crack to be straight was if it was man-made.

With that clue to start with, he now sees that the section of the ceiling has been plastered over. The spikes that grew out of the ceiling appears to have disrupted the work.

"Heh, clever girl," Ozrus said, mostly to himself. Then to the others more directly, he said, "I think Esmerelda purposefully drew all of our attention to this sarcophagus on the floor so that we wouldn't notice she hid our prize in the ceiling. Or at least another clue." He pointed to the spot where he had noticed the plaster. He wondered if the armor was actually hidden inside the memorial located atop this tomb.

The druidic wizard pulled out his Traveler's Any-tool device and formed it into the shape of something that would pick through plaster. He then tossed it into the air and caught it with a Mage Hand cantrip. "Let's see what happens when we chip away at the ceiling, shall we?" He backed up to what he hoped was a safe distance, then tried scraping at the plaster area with his floating Any-tool.

---

Ozrus will start chipping away at the plastered area with his Mage Hand/Any-tool combo. If nothing notable happens for a while, and it seems safe, he'll climb up onto the ceiling again to use his actual hands instead of Mage Hand to chip away at the ceiling. If something bad does happen, he has another Windy Escape spell prepared and ready to use.

Vashon went over and kicked the armor that the Spikestone Guardian had been wearing, just to make sure the pile of rocks wasn't going to animate again.

Satisfied, he then climbed up on the sarcophagus and balanced on the edges as he helped Ozrus chip away at the ceiling seam.

"It doesn't seem likely that whatever is hidden up here will come crashing down on top of us once we clear away the plaster," Vashon said, "but we should make sure we aren't under it if it does."

With Vashon's help, clearing away the concealing plaster progresses rather quickly. It's soon revealed that there are eight pins holding it in place--three along each side and two at one end. Ironically, they are more like spikes that have been driven into the ceiling at an angle to hold the 'compartment' in place, since, without any pins in one end, that is likely the end where the pivot is, meaning that it can't completely fall down, just from one end.

With the pins/spikes revealed, Vashon studies the ceiling for a bit before offering his comment.

"There are no spikes at that end down there," he says, "so I'm guessing that's where there's a pivot point, letting the whole thing swing down. While construction would have been more difficult, putting the armor in place would have been a lot easier."

"I wonder who she got to design this place..."

"I'm thinking we should pull the spikes out by the pivot end first, and the end ones last. If we do it in reverse, it'll put more stress on the last two spikes. I'm not big in the strength department. Do you think you could support the slab and lower it?"

"Of course, we don't know how thick it is. Probably about a foot thick; anything thinner would be to brittle."

"We'd better move the sarcophagus back into place so that we can stand on it to lower the slab."

"I'm not particularly big or strong either, but I can change that easily enough. Here, hold this." Ozrus handed off his any-tool from his perch on the ceiling, then focused his mind on a new form. Even as he hung upside down, his body erupted into the bulky physique of a large earth elemental. He then gestured with his mossy granite and obsidian arms to cast a spell upon himself as well. Ant Haul.

In a deep gravely voice, he said, "There. Now I am stronger, bigger, and can hold even more than my bulk would suggest. Hopefully it will be enough. If not, I can summon another couple of friends to assist." The wild shaped druid lowered his bulky form down off of the ceiling and got into a position where he would be the most helpful to Vashon.

---

In the form of a large earth elemental, Ozrus's strength should be up to 17. With Ant Haul, he should be able to hold 780 lbs  over his head. (Edit: I think it is actually 1560 lbs, since his size increased to large as well.) Also, "A large earth elemental is 16 feet long and weighs 6,000 pounds."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:41, Sun 11 Apr 2021.

With Ozrus's transformation, there should be no problem in being able to lower the ceiling cover.

Once he gets in place, Vashon and Hsang begin pulling out the pins, starting at the hinge end, then the opposite end, and finally along the sides working forward.

Ozrus has to push up slightly in order for them to pull out the last two pins. It turns out it's not that heavy, though the leverage would have been hard.

Once the last two pins are out, Ozrus can lower the front end down to the floor.

Fastened to the back side of the slab is a suit of armor with a green star inset in green metal in the chest.

"Is this finally it? Steelheart?" Ozrus asked, retaining his elemental shape. First he cast magical detection upon his eyes then gazed at the armor to see if it held magic potent enough to be the piece they were searching for. If it didn't turn out to be yet another decoy, the elf scrutinized it even further.

First, searching it for any remaining tricky traps from Esmerelda. Secondly, he scanned its magical auras thoroughly to try and determine the schools of its auras and gauge what sorts of abilities it might possess. His elven eyes helped him to pick out certain details others might miss.

---

What type of armor is it? Full plate? Can Ozrus tell what material it is made of?

He will take 20 on his Perception to check it for traps. With Guidance as well, that will give him a 42.

Using Guidance and Detect Magic to determine the armor's schools of magic.
22:08, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 26 using 1d20+19.  Knowledge: Arcana, with Guidance - Magic Auras.

Using Guidance, Detect Magic, and his racial bonus to help figure out what the armor does.
22:02, Today: Ozrus Wither rolled 32 using 1d20+21.  Identify magic properties of magic armor, with Guidance.

The armor is field plate, and it seems to be made of a mithril-steel alloy with a third element that Ozrus can't quite identify but he thinks it might be aurum.

The green star on the chest is not center, but shifted to the right a bit so that it is centered over the area where the heart of the person wearing it would be. In the center of the green star is an inset metal plate of steel that has an indentation in it that appears designed to hold an augment crystal.

The auras he detects are transmutation, which is consistent with the spells Fly, Bull's Strength and Mending that he can sense. He's pretty sure that these have all been enhanced, though.

He also senses something deeper and vaster within the armor that he can't quite figure out.

"This has to be what we came for," Ozrus insisted. He shared all that he had discovered with the others that were present, then said, "Due to the armor's metallic nature, I will not be wearing it. Messes with my mojo. I probably wouldn't have worn it even if it were made of rock or wood though. It is tough to cast spells with most armors on. Should we bring it back so that the others can do what they do and take a closer look? I wonder who will want to try it out first."

If nobody objected, Ozrus would carry the armor over to the hall that somehow led back to the monastery. He resumed his natural elven form as he entered the smaller space.

---

Ready to head back to the monastery. The shortcut hall still works, right?

Also, do I know what and "augment crystal" is? As a player, I do not.

OOC: First introduced in the 3.5 Magic Item Compendium, an augment crystal is a small gem, crystal, or similar object that provides a magical effect when affixed to a weapon, shield, or suit of armor. Most of them can be easily removed, so you could take it off your armor and put it on your sword for a few rounds, then put it back on the armor.

Pathfinder tweaked Ioun stones and use them in wayfinders a bit like that.