Malcom reaches out and places a hand on Nathan as a surge of energy transfers through him his amulet glows and adds to the energy that he restores to his team mate.
Over his shoulder he flicks a lone feather at the closest giant. He smiles with satisfaction as the feather sinks deep into the fungal flesh. Then before a strike can get them he snaps his wings up into a defensive shield.


Action 1: Lay on Hands to Nathan restoring 18hp and granting +2 AC for 1 round.
Action 2: Take a shot at the closest Giant with a steel feather. Damage 32, possibly 34
Given that it is a crit (10 over target) do I double the positive damage as well or just the physical?
19:00, Today: Malcom rolled 2 using 1d6 with rolls of 2.  Weapon ally positive damage.
18:59, Today: Malcom rolled 15 using 2d8+4 with rolls of 4,7.  steel feather damage.
18:59, Today: Malcom rolled 27 using 1d20+9 with rolls of 18.  Attack.

Action 3: Raise Shield

Reaction will be to use Glimpse of Redemption on the first Giant to cause Nathan any harm. Effect: The damage either doesn't happen or Nathan gains Resistance 5 to all damage after the damage happens, and the Giant is enfeebled 2 until the end of its next turn.

This message was deleted by the player at 21:44, Mon 11 Dec 2023.

OCC:Whoops.  missed the part of about being grappled. rewriting entry

"This is not my idea of a group Hug." Nathan struggles to get out of the grip of the giants.

 While failing again to wiggle out he will feeling healing energy coursing through him as Malcom fly by "Thank you"

Nathan was growing frustrated by the dangerous situation and his inability to affect it. He mused "Well If you can affect then distract." He started Yelling "Police Brutality.". He try to move his musket, While getting a shot at one of his giant foes was unlikely he wanted to set off his musket to cause noise and smoke to distract.If he succeeds or not he will scream. "FIRE FIRE" If not accentuate will struggles with screams of "GUN". With either attempt he hoped to at least distract his target and maybe entertain his audience into giving the surviving party member better tools to survive with.





07:32, Yesterday: Nathan rolled 12 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 5.  Athletics to dodge .
23:06, Today: Nathan rolled 15 using 1d20+2 ((13)). last attempt to dodge (dammit)
 14:02, Today: Nathan rolled 23 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 17.  Performance (because why not).

Chalei'nh first blow is absorbed by his bulk, but her legsweep actually hits so hard that the Bloat rolls over on its side. There is even a cracking noise of its useless legs as it flops over like a giant balloon. Then she proceeds to blast it right in the face.

Connor manages to move the two of the flaming orbs near two of the giants. However, because both Nathan and Malcom are close by, the orbs can only burn those near Malcom. Otherwise he would end up burning his friends.

Malcom heals Nathan's injuries, and proceeds to slash off the mushroom cap off one of the giants with a swing of his wing. The body goes still for a moment, and then topples over.

Nathan however fails to remove himself from the grapple, and cannot get another shot off as a result.

The Horde lashes out at its Master's command. Trying to strike everyone with their extended ranged mouth tendrils. However, there so few of them left none strike true.

The Giants are just as successful...expect for the one on Nathan. That one maintains his hold, trying to pin the sniper. The surviving two other giants try to smash Malcom, but both blows are knocked aside by the metal wings.

OOC-
Current Statuses in effect:

Malcom is at Stage 1 of the infection. Nathan and Conner are at Stage 2, However do not take any additional damage. The Bloat needs to do something in order to keep the damage going. He is a bit distracted.

Nathan is still grappled by the giants. He must make a DC 20  escape check via athletics or acrobatics. Remember, this takes 1 action and counts against your multi attack penalty. Thus if you escape with one action, your next attack will be at -5. You may make more than one escape attempt, but it count as an attack a minus purposes. The third escape will be at -10.

Character|Visible Status|Conditions|AC|SAVES|
Current Statuses in effect:

FMR 1|Horde critically damaged|Engaged|16|F+8,R+3,W+5

Special Ability: Horde status.

Given the amount of FMRs, the horde takes damage as a single entity. As a result it is resistant to damage that effects one target, and vulnerable to area effects. Furthermore
its abilities are reduced as it takes damage, but how much damage it must take before it breaks down is unknown to you.

Giant Mushroom man-1|Seriously Damaged|Engaged(Malcom)|17|F+12,R+5,W+8
Giant Mushroom man-2|Seriously Damaged|Engaged(Malcom)|17|F+12,R+5,W+8
Giant Mushroom man-3|Damaged|Engaged(Nathan)|17|F+12,R+5,W+8
Giant Mushroom man-4|Dead|Engaged(Nathan)|17|F+12,R+5,W+8

The Orange Bloat|Very, very Badly Damaged|?|?|?

Conner|32/25|UnEnagaged|18(19)|F+6,R+10,W+8

Nathan|35/32|Engaged|18|F+6,R+9,W+9

Chalei'nh|42/27|Engaged|22(25)|F+9,R+11,W+9

Malcom|41/15|AC:20(22)|Engaged|F+8,R+8,W+7

If you are casting spells or doing effects requiring saves, please use the above stats for the enemy and roll for them.

Party Does NOT need to make new Fort saves!


This message was last edited by the player at 22:10, Wed 13 Dec 2023.

Seeing her attempt at knocking the Bloat over was a success, Chalei'nh moved to a different location. She reasoned that most of the Bloat's bulk would be around its body and head, where it would be exposed to getting hit, but it would be weaker between the legs as that part of it generally would not be within most enemies' attack range. It was worth a try, anyway.

- "Keep at it, it's almost down!"

OOC: First attack is probably a miss again even if the Bloat's prone, but there's always a chance, right?

Action 1: Move to reposition
Action 2: Flurry of Blows on Bloat (apply resistances and weaknesses once)
- Attack 1: 13 to hit, 11 damage
- Attack 2: 23 to hit, 14 damage
Actions 3: Parry (+3 AC to 25).

Energy Breath can be used again in 1 rounds.

00:00, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 13,23 using d20+10,d20+6 with rolls of 3,17.  Flurry of Blows on Bloat.
00:01, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 11,14 using 2d8+1,2d8+1 with rolls of 5,5,6,7.  Flurry of Blows on Bloat: Damage.

I'm gonna try something, and see if gets them to let up on us a bit. Turn your eyes for a sec, folks! Trust me on this! 3...2...1! BOOM! Connor thought-spoke suddenly into the HUD as a party-wide "all-chat."

Suddenly, one of his spheres - the second sphere to be exact - suddenly fizzled out of existence as Connor spur-of-the-moment cut off its flow of mana. With no mystical energy to sustain its flames, the sphere puttered out and died in a harmless poof.

Suddenly, Connor made several new hand mudras that the audience had not yet seen before, before thrusting his hands out and making a sweeping motion at the Bloat as well as any FMRs he could catch in the effect, especially but not limited to ones near Nathan. A 15 foot long cone of what could only be described as rainbow-colored light and energy suddenly blasted out of Connor's hands and surged over the Bloat and FMRs. Connor took full advantage of the fact that the cone of the spell was quite narrow close to him while it got extremely wide the further out it went. Something he used to help avoid hitting the party while catching the bloat and many FMRs in its effect!

As this happened, the other remaining flaming Sphere bounces a bit and bores into the Bloat more!



OOC:

Action 1: Sustain Flaming Sphere 1 (3 Rounds Left, Assuming 10 rounds = 1 minute)

Action 2 & 3: Drop sustaining Sphere 2, and instead cast the Color Spray Spell! Will DC 19.

The remaining sphere is number 1 so fully juiced up from Cabochon. Again, due to the varying nature of this and theater of the mind, I need your help with applying damage based on the parameters above and the fact that the Bloat's stats are hidden to me. After mods, they deal 4d6 fire damage (DC 21-22 Reflex save).

Ok, so DM I'll need your help on this one since in this Theater of the Mind fight, I'm unsure which targets are hit. But I'd like to get as many enemies as possible within it, with special focus on the Bloat and giant FMRs (especially any near Nathan). They have to roll a will save vs DC 19 or get some sort of debuff most likely, even on a normal success! Here's to hoping the Bloat and Giants fail and get stunned lol!

OCC: i  I can't believe my damn rolls

Despite losing half of his dance partners Nathan found himself overwhelmed. His attempts to free himself proved even more futile. Even his attempts to maintain his bravado failed as he found his head stuffed under a giant's armpit muffling any attempt at witty repartee.

Action 1: make attempt to escape
Action 2: Make another attempt to escape
Action 3: fail another attempt to perform

21:12, Today: Nathan rolled 7 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 1. Perfromance (beacause why not).
 20:32, Today: Nathan rolled 3 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 1. Acrobatics to escape.
20:30, Today: Nathan rolled 9 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 2. Acrobatics to escape.

Malcom readies his stance against the giants on him and Nathan. Then he slashes one of the creatures with a single glowing wing strike.

OOC:

Action 1-Everhand Stance

Action 2-Attack 1 giant in melee

23:25, Today: Dr Feck, on behalf of Malcom, rolled 11,5 using 2d8+4,1d6 with rolls of 3,4,5.  Damage on Giant mushroom man.

23:24, Today: Dr Feck, on behalf of Malcom, rolled 23 using 1d20+9 with rolls of 14.  Wing Strike.

Action 3-raise shield(wings).

Reaction prepared: Glimpse of Redemption-As a reaction to someone else getting hit, the target gets resist all 2, and the attacker gains enfeeble 2.

Or Shield block if attack on him hits.

When Chalei'th manages to score a blow at the bloat right into its piggish tiny face, the creature lets out a scream sounding like a bleat. The remaining Horde leaps upon the fire orbs, burning themselves to death rather than let their foul master be harmed.

Conner manages to blind and stun two of the giants. He fails to do so to the third giant, as Malcom cuts it at and angle and it falls into two different chunks.

Thanks to Connor, Nathan is now free of his giant restraint and can do whatever he wishes as his foe is both stunned and blinded by the light.

The Bloat itself starts to mumble loudly. "Unfair! Wrong! Disgraceful! Bad!"


OOC-
Current Statuses in effect:

Malcom is at Stage 1 of the infection. Nathan and Conner are at Stage 2, However do not take any additional damage. The Bloat needs to do something in order to keep the damage going. He is a bit distracted.

Nathan is FREE!

Character|Visible Status|Conditions|AC|SAVES|
Current Statuses in effect:

FMR 1|Dead|Engaged|16|F+8,R+3,W+5

Special Ability: Horde status.

Given the amount of FMRs, the horde takes damage as a single entity. As a result it is resistant to damage that effects one target, and vulnerable to area effects. Furthermore
its abilities are reduced as it takes damage, but how much damage it must take before it breaks down is unknown to you.

Giant Mushroom man-1|Seriously Damaged|UnEngaged(Malcom)Stunned/Blinded|17|F+12,R+5,W+8
Giant Mushroom man-2|Dead|Engaged(Malcom)|17|F+12,R+5,W+8
Giant Mushroom man-3|Damaged|UnEngaged(Nathan)Stunned/blinded|17|F+12,R+5,W+8
Giant Mushroom man-4|Dead|Engaged(Nathan)|17|F+12,R+5,W+8

The Orange Bloat|Very, very, VERY Badly Damaged|?|?|?

Conner|32/25|UnEnagaged|18(19)|F+6,R+10,W+8

Nathan|35/32|UnEngaged-But not grappled.|18|F+6,R+9,W+9

Chalei'nh|42/27|Engaged|22(25)|F+9,R+11,W+9

Malcom|41/15|AC:20(22)|UnEngaged|F+8,R+8,W+7

If you are casting spells or doing effects requiring saves, please use the above stats for the enemy and roll for them.

Party Does NOT need to make new Fort saves!


This message was lightly edited by the player at 03:42, Fri 22 Dec 2023.

Chalei'nh started to feel a tingle in her veins from excitement. The Bloat was almost down, she could feel it. It's earlier shouting had reduced to a mere mumble, and she had the distinct impression that any hit to it could be enough to finish it off. With Connor having freed Nathan, she turned around for a final breath weeapon attack on the giants and the Horde before turning back to the Bloat in an attempt to finish it off and clear the level, indirectly also saving the life of Henry and who knew how many others that were still stuck on this area.

OOC:
Actions 1 and 2: Dragon Breath: 4 negative energy damage, Reflex DC 17 (Nat 12 rolled), success so damage halved to 2.
Action 3: Flurry of Blows on Bloat (total damage, apply resistances and weaknesses once)
- Attack 1: 17 to hit, 11 damage
- Attack 2: 20 to hit, 9 damage

Energy Breath will be 15 ft cone or 30 ft line, depending on what hits the most targets. Can use it again in 1 round.

13:07, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 4 using 2d4 with rolls of 2,2.  Dragon Breath: Negative energy damage.
13:08, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 12 using 1d20 with rolls of 12.  Reflex save (Horde +6, Giants +5), DC 17.
13:09, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 17,20 using d20+10,d20+6 with rolls of 7,14.  Flurry of Blows on Bloat.
13:10, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 11,9 using 2d8+1,2d8+1 with rolls of 6,4,7,1.  Flurry of Blows on Bloat: Damage.
13:10, Today: Chalei'nh rolled 1 using 1d4 with rolls of 1.  Rounds until next Dragon Breath.

OOC: I miss the old version of the site sigh.

Thanks to Connor's timely magical intervention, it seems the party had a relatively "free" round of combat to do things as the 2 remaining giants were stunned (and would be blind thereafter for quite some time), so instead he took advantage of that to try and do some healing.

With a moment of focused intention, the remaining Flaming Sphere bounded into the Bloat while Cabochon opened one of the orbiting Elixirs of Life and applied it to Malcom, who currently was the most injured of the party right now. Cabochon then applied another Elixir of Life to Malcome, before returning to orbit around Connor.

Action 1: Sustain Flaming Sphere 1 (3 Rounds Left, Assuming 10 rounds = 1 minute)

Action 2: Grant Cabochon 2 actions
---1: Fly to Malcom
---2: Apply a Minor Elixir of Life to Malcom. He gains +1 to poison and disease for the next 10 minutes, and heals 6 hit points.

Action 3: Grant Cabochon 2 actions
---1: Apply a Minor Elixir of Life to Malcom. He heals 2 hit points.
---2: Return to Connor.

OOC: Malcom heals 8 hit points and has +1 to poison and disease for 10 minutes. Also, The sphere does 4d6 fore damage to Bloat if it fails a DC 21 Reflex save.

23:06, Today: Connor rolled 2 using 1d6 with rolls of 2.  Healing. – 2

23:06, Today: Connor rolled 6 using 1d6 with rolls of 6.  Healing. – 6
 

Nathan gratefully gulping air that didn't smell like a giant's armpit. He moved away from the giants to get a better angle for finish off the Orange Blob. Peeking into his scope he looked for a crack in the Blob's armor. Finding a likely target points he fires the musket.

Not pausing to see his results he bolts into a stack of boxes only to have half of the stack falling depriving him a much of his visible cover. He will notice a camera pointing in his direction. He will look into the camera and smile "Don't forget to hit that like button and subscribe to our channel."

Free Action plot strategy vs blob
Action 1 Move away from giants
Action 2 Take shot on Blob.
Action 3 attempt to hide /find cover then reload

19:25, Today: Nathan rolled 32 using 2d12+1d6+8+4 with rolls of 7,7,6.  critical damage. – 28

19:20, Today: Nathan rolled 12 using 1d8+1d6+4 with rolls of 4,4.  non-critical damage. – 12

19:18, Today: Nathan rolled 33 using 1d20+14 with rolls of 19.  plot strategy. – [roll=1703992712.57701.364139

21:00, Today: Nathan rolled 10 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 3.  stealth  or seek cover (if Needed)]

Malcom, after getting healed by Connor, does a sweep with his wings, wrapping them around himself so he vanishes from view. The steel-coated appendages blast both remaining giants with a metal feather burst, covering them both like pincushions. Then each feathers glow and proceed to explode ethier of the oversized mushrooms.

OOC:

09:44, Today: Secret Roll: Dr Feck, on behalf of Malcom, rolled 29 using 1d20+9 with rolls of 20. – 29

Damage...I am not gonna roll. Its enough I would think.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:50, Tue 02 Jan.

Chalei'nh gets a few blows in, and her Dragon's breath causes more damage to all the remaining foes.

Connor keeps burning the bloat, and manages to heal Malcom successfully.

Malcom takes down both remaining giants in a steel feather burst.

Nathan moves away from the grasping hold he was in, takes aim, and makes a hole between the Bloats tiny eyes. The last thing he bleats out was "Rigggged..."

Upon the creature's death the effects are felt at once. Anyone stricken with the mushroom infection feels a sudden burst of cleansing, as the fell power which kept the unnatural growths active falls away. All around them in the stadium, roots wither and fade to dust. Even the many, many bodies all over the field shrivel up and become piles of mulch.

The sheer emptiness of the place, an area meant for entertainment and celebration, seems profound and deep.

Which of course is ruined right away by the System AI's message to each Wanderers HUD.

"NEW BOON!

Shroom SLAYER!"

There is a holographic electrical guitar playing.

"You have beaten the Level's Apex! You map is now displaying the stairwell down to the 3rd level! You have gotten a Platinum gardener's box! Anyone who has been infected now has resistance to plant infections!

Remember this moment, as this will be the easiest Apex you will ever beat!

Expect for that first one.

Good luck with that..."

At the defeat of the Bloat, Chalei'nh paused for a second to confirm the spores were actually beginning to die off before taking a deep breath and turning in the direction of where she suspected Carl, Tony and Cindy to be.

- "We got 'em, it's safe to bring Henry over!"

To be fair, in the excitement she forgot what means they had to actually contact the other team, and decided to access her status screen to see if she could also send a message over with much the same contents. Regardless, at the end of her attempt she looked at the others of her own team.

- "Well, after making sure the others are approaching the exit, shall we head in? Place'll be crawling with survivors soon enough i reckon."

"Ugh, of course the AI would ruin the sense of profound cathartic stillness we had after that gruesome battle." Connor said as he rolled his eyes.

"On the plus side...we beat the bastard, so I won't complain more than that! And apparently this new body of mine now is resistant to plant-based infections! I suppose those spores were a vaccine in disguise, except you know...for the looming impending death and conversion into a mushroom zombie part. That aside, of course! Talk about playing roulette with a medicine wheel!" he said, with a chuckle that was more of a coping mechanism for his sense of relief that it was now over more than anything.

"And yes, we need to let Henry's group know it's safe for them to come to the exit now." he said.

He then flagged Cabochon a bit he looked at a near-by camera. The familiar left Connor's orbit, and swirled around the man's entire boxy before flying in an impressive flow of gems, orbs, and potion bottles away from the mage and through the air in the area, doing some acrobatic swirls and twists and making sure to show off in front of the Camera a bit before returning to Orbit Connor like a cat curling up against someone's leg.

"And Audience? If you enjoyed watching me during this level of gruesome, slimey, fungal disgustingness...please make sure to let me know during the intermission. Cabochon is fully sentient also, by the way, and would love to hear from you too! So remember, if you enjoyed watching Cabochon and I please let us and our show producers know! Because your support and kind thoughts, beyond the confines of this show and its sponsors, means all the world to us!" Connor said as he turned to check on if the rest of his party was doing okay.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:14, Wed 03 Jan.

Chalei'nh chuckled in response, readjusting the sash back from where she had it wrapped around her face back to her waist again.

- "Hey, even though that means i'm not getting any fancy new resistances, i am more than happy about the sash i was gifted."

She then checked the HUD again, thinking out loud more than addressing anyone in particular.

- "...So do these boons themselves do anything or are they just for collecting and showing off in general?"

Nathan felt relief washing over him as the Blob is silenced and it's minions become one with the earth "With all this fertilizer they could tear out the AstroTurf and start a farm." He then remembered that city they just fought in was itself was going to be recycled.

 He looked at the soon to be demolished stage for their most recent fight for their lives, a recreation of a city once full of being with hopes and dreams. He knew that the people on his lost world were not perfect but they deserved better than being rendered into components for a alien amusement center.

He long at the remains of the Orange Blob. He says quietly ""My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"  . He will look up at the nearest camera and smile as if think of a private joke and turn to the surviving party members. "We are done here. Let's collect the survivors and get out of here."

20:11, Today: Nathan rolled 18 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 12.  Performance (because why not). – []

When Chalei'nh tries to yell to the other wanderers the group left behind, nothing comes out of her mouth. She still goes through the seeming like she is shouting. Her voice was just 'turned off'. What she sees in her HUD is the words she was yelling, and sent to the wanderers in question as some sort of text message.

Then the AI sends up holographic messages to each member of the group, and then speaks them out loud for everyone to hear.

"Wanderer Chalei'nh, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Big mouth!

Wanderer Chalei'nh, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Tougher than expired fruitcake!

Wanderer Chalei'nh, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Patty Cake!"

The same happens to Connor.

"Wanderer Connor, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Flash in the pan!

Wanderer Connor, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Juggler!

Wanderer Connor, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Wetnurse!"

Nathan is next

"Wanderer Nathan, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Touchable!

Wanderer Nathan, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Deadeye...mk II!

Wanderer Nathan, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Glass Cannon...mk II!"

Finally, last up was Malcom.

"Wanderer Malcom, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Aerial Chicken!

Wanderer Malcom, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Pokey Pokey!

Wanderer Malcom, you have earned a NEW BOON!

Hide under a rock!"

Finally, the AI shows your now detailed digital map for all to see in their HUDs.

"All boons and loot boxes can only be claimed at a safe zone! Nearest Guildhall and stairwell down is now visible on your maps!"

Sure enough, the guildhall is shown to be maybe a couple hours walk from this location. The stairwell exit was right near by. Both of them seem to be located at a dock of some kind.

OOC-Please mention your boons when you arrive at the Guildhall, otherwise they will not be claimed!

As Chalei'nh noticed there was no voice coming out of her throat, she looked at the dissolving remains of the Bloat with a snort, mumbling something under her breath. While her voice could of course not be heard, the HUD did not fail to make it appear on the HUDs of the others.

- "Bet the Bloat would have loved that ability in real life..."

Taking a deep breath of now thankfully spore-free air, she returned to her initial intention of waiting for the other group to arrive with Henry before giving them a wave and stepping into the portal, unless her party had different ideas or anything they wanted to discuss before heading back to the Guildhall of course.

"I guess we are done here." says Nathan. with their actual voice turned off he was half expecting piano from a silent film soundtrack to startup. Assuming that he could still communicate with his team and see if they could contact the other party. If he is reminded about Henry and his group he willing to wait, time permitting. Along the way to the portal he will look for useful scraps for tool and alchemical components.

There was not much in terms of tools. Nathan did manage to find a working anti-fire foam projector, but how long that would still be good for was in doubt. They did need to be replaced from time to time, and it seemed like no one had done so recently. Even the plant life seem withered after the Bloat's taint on the land.

Just as before, after beating the Apex the party's HUD maps showed much more detail of the land scape. Including the 'red dots' which signified foes. Now with the Bloat's death, the city much of the surrounding landscape showed nothing but large black X's, each of which could be zoomed in on to show the AI label.

Dead Florida man Redcap! This creature is not lootable and its XP has already been claimed and calculated.


More importantly, there is a faraway blue dot with a much more important label.

Guildmaster! This is a safe zone.

Beyond that dot is a clear label for the stairwell down to the next level.

Chalei'nh took a deep breath, the only sound she could make with her actual voice sealed off. She sent a message to the others.

- "Well, can't talk, no one's sick and there's nothing left to fight or loot on this map, which pretty much means D'Monix is done with collecting footage. I'd say it's about time to head to the exit, then?"

She pinged the blue dot on the map for the party to stress her point, though she did wait on their opinion. She had been intending to run some tests on the game's inventory function, and with the preparations having been made she was eager to see the results of those efforts.

Connor nodded.

"Let's head back to the Guildhall for now, and settle things and get prepared to proceed to the staircase to the next floor." he said.

Sure enough, the party heads off to the Guildhall. With the map highlighting both active and inactive foes, its easy to avoid them and make it to the guild hall.

OOC-Thread ended! New thread in Guildhall #3!