Once again we managed to post at the same time. LOL.

I’m in favor of Brant or Ornwin trying a STR roll to open the chest. The rope of climbing is hard to fall from, gravity is reversed once up there, I’ve already set off and disarmed the trap AND subsequently cast a Find Traps spell, which confirmed that there are no additional traps. We’ve made a tremendous amount of noise and no one has come in and, frankly, if they do, that would solve all our problems and open all the doors we need.

So. Swing, chip, pry away. Open the damn chest. If stuff falls, catch it if we can.

Piled on Hieroman? I thought we were piling on the DM!

Maybe use an ordinary rope to loop the chest to the rope of climbing, and ease it down from above?

Hieroman and Cassandra both make good points, and I am fine with either, but would prefer Cassandra's method.
Losing a potion is something we can afford, but if the chest contains a crystal arm we have to add to a statue three chapters into the module, I'd rather it not get broken from a fall.

But, yes, we are dangerously close to overthinking this. I would prefer we not spend 12 days on it like we did on planning with the bugbears.

It's taken us 6 days to get this far with the stupid chest.  I'll be amused if it has nothing of any value inside.  This occasionally happens, and it reminds me of the time in my very first TT game doing Keep on the Borderlands.  The party was too scared to open a door when the die roll indicated that the thief had missed his find traps, pick lock and hear noise roll on a door.  After 30+ minutes of heated discussion someone finally tried the door.  It wasn't locked, it wasn't trapped and there was nothing behind the door.  It's a lesson that has stuck with me.

I am playing B2 on RPoL right now. Our small party of sad characters barely survived the first encounter (with a pack of wolves), so it was decided that we should turn around and go back to the Keep to "regroup."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:40, Tue 07 May.

I chose to abstract the party's diabolical method of forced entry (TBD) as a minor strength test. Obviously, there are some reasons for having locks on chests despite these diabolical methods, but that was not the spirit in which the question was asked.

I certainly like the prospect of freeing the chest from its gravity prison with four meaty things positioned conveniently below.

Or you could net the chest in its current position and then secure it to the rope of climbing.

Or you could bag the chest with the Stomach Lining of Holding.

Brant wants to do the chest like a piñata.

Are we affected by the reverse gravity? When Cass went up there was she standing on our ceiling?

She was.

Brant, you can make a minor test of strength.

Indeed. I was! Quite exhilarating being upside down.

Brant, can you save the “whack” until after we lower it. Better yet, can you put it in your bag of holding, bring it down, and then force it open without breaking the glass statuette. Archonia’s advice is sound. And the DMs suggestion of using the bag is much simpler than my well-conceived rope trick. And better to do your STR test on the ground than on the ceiling - notwithstanding the reverse gravity…

But Brant is the incarnation of entropy.

Indeed he is. And we often need that one person willing to open the potentially trapped and locked door with nothing of value behind it.

Hopefully he can now bring it down in the Bag of Holding to give all the fighters a try.

Okay, I almost died laughing at the unexpected way Cass's in-game post ended. >_<

🤣 Figured it was ok to post IC in narrative (since it wasn’t spoken out loud). Only Brant would roll a 6 - after Cass rolled a 1 on the trap saving throw…

Ha- I think we can handle a little joking over the die roller results. It's not like any of us can control it, after all!

Oh, in terms of the Tegal Guests thread:
Archonia is 4th level with 17hp.

She uses the dagger +1 for melee combat, and normal daggers for ranged combat

She has the following spells memorized:
Sleepx3, Invisibility x1, Stinking Cloud x1

--
For the watch order, I proposed this:
(Bartholomew and Ornwin agreed, but I think there was no other feedback, so I assume silence means consent.)

1st shift Bercy & Cass
2nd shift Ornwin & Rasxif
3rd shift Brant & Archonia
4th shift Bart & Hieroman

Shifts of 2 1/2 hours each.


---
Marching order- we have not discussed this yet.
How about this?

Single File
Ornwin (D, F, smallest, IV)
Brant (H, F, no IV, with torch, as needed)
Bartholemew (H, P, no IV)
Hieroman (1/2E, Dr, IV)
Archonia (H, female spell caster, no IV, with torch, as needed)
Cassandra (H, female spell caster, no IV, with torch, as needed)
Rasxif (G, F/spell caster, IV)
Bercy (H, P, no IV, with torch, as needed, rearguard)

Keeping Bart third let's his aura cover those ahead and some who follow.
Bercy in the rear covers the ones who might not be in Bart's aura, and also guards the spellcasters from a rear attack.


Double File
Ornwin --- Brant
Bart --- Hieroman
Cass --- Archonia
----- Rasxif -----
----- Bercy -----


Thoughts or suggestions?

All ok with me Archonia. And thanks for the reminder about my aura. Been a minute since I ran a paladin. I shall now summon my warhorse to the caves! 🙂

Well thought out Archonia thanks for putting that together, but I wasn't around to comment, not that I think there is anything wrong with what you wrote.

I do note that Barts PFE is only 5' radius which would most likely have Ornwin popping in and out of the cover if Bart is 3rd in line.  5 feet isn't a lot of room for 3 people to be operating in, and if an attack happened it's unlikely they could be that close and swing weapons.  Perhaps Bart should be 2nd and Brant drop to 3rd?

I like how you've got fighters with casters on each shift, and no IV coupled with IV, as long as we can be fluid with the casters and their watch order.  As I'm sure you know as we get up in level a longer rest period is required to learn higher level spells, so those needing longer sleep should get the option of going 1st, or 4th so they have the sleep required.  We're not likely to need 10 hours of sleep at a stretch though.

Admittedly, I only remembered the aura because a paladin in a different game I play just talked about theirs today. *L*
As for the warhorse, if there is a chance you instead get whatever fauna type is present in the area, then cross fingers for a warcrocodile!

A paladin's protection from evil aura is a 10' rd, not 5' rd, so Ornwin would hopefully be fine with Bart in the third row when single file.
But I don't see a problem with Bart and Brant switching if they prefer it, although to me it seems better to have the two pure fighters as the first two, with Bart ready to move in if either need it, or to lay on hands.

Agreed on flexibility where needed, and that's a good point about needing more time to memorize higher level spells.
If we need more time per shift, or after the watch, then we could also go with/maintain three shifts instead of four.
(If so, I would recommend deleting the last, adding Bart to the first shift, and Hieroman to the second.)

We have to be careful that they are getting their actual sleep time in though, and not just the time for memorization calculation.

As it is, from the book...
Spell memorization requires a minimum rest period of 4 hours, which must be spent in a quiet place without interruption. Once this period has expired, it takes fifteen minutes per level to memorize spells; in other words, a character memorizing one 3rd, two 2nd and four 1st level spells would require a further (45+30+30+15+15+15+15=) two hours and forty-five minutes of memorization time.

I'm not sure if the DM is using that level of detail on memorization though, or if it is the 'you rest for the night and rememorize' handwave.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:58, Yesterday.

Good work.  I wonder where I got the 5' radius from.  I was so sure I didn't even check the guides.

Honestly, like I said, I wouldn't have even remembered the aura at all, much less the radius, if someone else had not brought it up.
But I did check just to confirm- AD&D1 and OSRIC both have it as a 10'rd. Maybe you were thinking 10' diameter? I know in my TT group, more than once we have forgotten if the 20' for the fireball is radius or diameter- often to our (painful) detriment. ^_^;

I was so sure it was 5' radius in 1st ed I assumed it would be the same in OSRIC.  I saw it wasn't when you pointed it out, so then checked the 1st ed books so I'd have a leg to stand on as an excuse, and saw it wasn't 5' radius there either.  It was then that I tucked my serviette in for my serving of humble pie.  *Shrugs*  Not the first time I've eaten it, and it won't be the last.

I’m still a little confused. Does the key do something besides opening a door which warrants that value? Does it have the power of flight? Does it sing a selection of show tunes? Can it function as a comforting night light after dark? Anything?

True, the concentrate explanation only goes so far.

Perhaps the jade key opens the chest in which it was locked…

That's Jack Handey territory! 🤔